<p>So, just looked at a financial aid package and after our EFC, there is another $10,000 in unmet need. We don't expect a free education for D and would come up with the EFC but this looks like it's a tough one to overcome.</p>
<p>Is this size gap common, and does it really mean, "We're just not that into you?" She's accepted into honors program, engineering. We do have financial safeties available, though.</p>
<p>It's only the second package we've looked at, and the other also had a gap, but not that large. Discouraging.</p>
<p>Most institutions leave a gap between aid offered and the EFC, and many families can’t easily pay their EFC. For those reasons, most of us would recommend that a college list include several places that are affordable without aid other than federal (FAFSA) aid.</p>
<p>Thanks! I’m hoping for better luck elsewhere. She does have financial safeties on her list, so this school is by no means her only option. Just a disappointment, since she did like it.</p>
<p>I was curious, though, if others felt $10K was a large gap? And I wonder how some schools decide who gets their need filled and who doesn’t, since this school claims to meet 100% need for some.</p>
<p>You bring up an excellent point that many of us find the EFC in itself difficult to come up with. I have two in college next year but fortunately my older daughter is commuting to a great program for her major in a state school, and her costs are lower. </p>
<p>Sadly, many people get gaps much larger than $10k per year.
There are families with EFC of - say - $6,000, that only get a $5500 loan for a school that costs $40k. That would be a gap of about $30k per year!</p>
<p>it doen’t mean that the school doesn’t like your kid. Most schools really don’t have the money. Many schools have to give large gaps to students who have lowish EFCs. </p>
<p>As for this school meeting some kids’ need: Think about it, if a student’s need is within $5k-7k of the COA, then the school can EASILY meet that student’s need with just a 5500 student loan and some work-study. And, the school is meeting need without giving any grants (free money).</p>
<p>FAFSA EFC doesn’t mean what you may think it means. Schools don’t have to do ANYTHING with that number except see if you qualify for any federal aid, which isn’t much.</p>
<p>“And I wonder how some schools decide who gets their need filled and who doesn’t, since this school claims to meet 100% need for some.”</p>
<p>I think some schools meet %100 of need with students that have a high EFC and not much need. I think they offer that student a couple loans and work study and maybe a small grant and then they can say they met 100% of need. I feel like some schools have a maximum amount that they give for gift aid regardless of how desirable the student is.</p>
<p>My daughter shares your daughter’s disappointment. D has had three top regional LAC’s come in with gaps of at least $10,000 and this is after she has won top scholarships, honors programs, and met with coaches etc. I called one school and was told “just as families struggle with budgets, we do too. Good luck in your search”. My daughter certainly felt rejected after all the excitement of the acceptances. There were tears.</p>
<p>In hindsight, I think in our situation, D with high stats and family with low EFC, I would have advised my daughter not to bother applying to any school that doesn’t promise to meet 100% of need for all students. I hope this all turns out well for both our daughters and they end up at great schools next fall.</p>
<p>* I called one school and was told "just as families struggle with budgets, we do too. Good luck in your search*</p>
<p>That statement is the issue in a nutshell. It’s not that a school doesn’t like a student, it’s that they don’t have the money. It’s like telling your child “no” when he wants an expensive item. It’s not that you don’t love them, you just don’t have the money.</p>
<p>Mom - my EFC for this daughter is just under $13K, and the total cost of attending this school is about $56K, although we could probably shave a little off book costs, living expenses, etc. So the package, with merit, need-based grant, small work-study, and Staffords is roughly $33K. </p>
<p>I do feel better after reading all your posts, thanks; I guess this “gap” is not unheard of, then, and I won’t take it personally.</p>
<p>No, don’t take it personally. This sounds like a school that is willing to give your child about $100k of THEIR money towards her education. If that’s right, that’s certainly not insulting. (think of it this way…this school is willing to spend more than you are. I don’t mean that harshly; I mean it as a way to put things in perspective.)</p>
<p>Since COAa are often bloated for FA purposes, it does help to look at direct costs to determine affordability…</p>
<p>I think the school that you’re talking about is CUA…If so…</p>
<p>tuition and fees:… $35,460 </p>
<h2>Room and board:… $13,824</h2>
<p>…about $49,000</p>
<p>So, with your $13k and about $31k in non-work-study aid, that’s about $44k. (I don’t count WS because that goes for personal expenses.).
Books can be less than $1k if you buy used and/or online.</p>
<p>I am wondering if you ran the numbers through the individual schools’ calculators and if your
packages hit near the same EFC. I’m hoping the calculators come close to our actual packages. We will be hearing from all of my Ds schools in the next few weeks.</p>
<p>I’m going to admit I’m a little confused about the net price calculators, but I followed it and here is what it said:</p>
<p>Estimated total price of attendance: $47,524
a. Estimated tuition and fees $31,890
b. Estimated room and board $12,134
c. Estimated books and supplies $1,200
d. Estimated other expenses
(Personal expenses, transportation, etc.) $2,300
Estimated total grant aid:
(Includes both merit and need based aid) $16,700
Estimated net price:
(Price of attendance minus grant aid) $30,824 </p>
<p>I got another aid package in today from a smaller, slightly less expensive school closer to our home (less travel cost), and again, it didn’t meet the gap. </p>
<p>I guess I know what to expect now! Gaps to fill…more mail to come over the next few weeks.</p>
<p>She’s also applying for outside scholarships and if she gets a couple of those, I will ask the schools to see if they can fill that gap, or how they will use them. I know schools can be difficult about this sometimes.</p>
<p>MomSix, my D’s University gapped us by about $5000, and we have an EFC of 6300. So, we are paying almost twice the EFC, and this was after very generous merit and need based aid. Some colleges wanted us to pay well over 3 times the EFC. My D had tears too, since that meant her first choice school was just not financially possible for us. One year later, she is very happy at her U and we can afford the costs without eating mac and cheese for 4 years. It will work out for your D!</p>
<p>I hope this isn’t a stupid question…By gap do you mean a gap between the FAFSA EFC and the EFC at a particular school? I am not clear, sorry! This topic is of great interest to me and I want to make sure I’m reading it right.</p>
<p>Say the COA is $50,000- but the EFC is $10,000. ( PROFILE doesn’t really give families an EFC but it does give the school additional info, to make their own determination of aid needed.)
To meet the gap, the school would have to offer $40,000 in financial aid.
Most schools won’t be able to do that.
However, if the EFC is $40,000, meeting the EFC will be much easier.</p>
<p>Those with lowish EFCs will usually get the biggest gaps. Some schools have “max grants” that they will give per kid. So, the kid with a $7k EFC may get the same size grant that the kid with a $12k EFC has. </p>
<p>I think in EK4’s last sentence, she meant to write: "if the EFC is $40k, then meeting the COA is much easier. </p>
<p>the gap is the “left over” uncovered amount after you subtract EFC and aid from COA.</p>
<p>COA (say 50k)
minus EFC (say $15k)
minus aid (say $10k)</p>
<p>what remains is the gap ( $25k in the above example).</p>
<p>Those with high EFCs often have their needs met. A loan and work study often do the trick…</p>
<p>So long as the EFC agrees with the family’s idea of affordability. Families with incomes of around $100,000 often have EFCs around $30,000. Depending on other expenses and lifestyle, the parents may not necessarily feel able to come up with that much money for college.</p>
<p>So long as the EFC agrees with the family’s idea of affordability. Families with incomes of around $100,000 often have EFCs around $30,000. Depending on other expenses and lifestyle, the parents may not necessarily feel able to come up with that much money for college. </p>
<p>Yes, when our AGI was around $$50,000-$60,000, our EFC was around 1/4 of before tax income, but now our AGI is higher, our EFC is 1/3 of income.
Since we are now trying to makeup for lost time re: retirement accts ( & some stock losses), it is less comfortable paying the EFC than it would have been had that been our income for the last 20 years.</p>
<p>I worked at a state U that was about $20,000 for tuition/room/board in state. Students with an EFC over $8000 got ONLY Stafford loans … meaning that an EFC of $8001 would get $5500 freshman year. That is a huge gap. Unfortunately, we were unable to do any better than that … even for the child of the very nasty mom who wrote me three times before I left, each time berating “me” more for not giving her child more money. Fortunately, many of our students could live at home & commute. They may not have wanted to, but they COULD. I also counseled a number of students to do their prereqs at a community college to save money.</p>
(think of it this way…this school is willing to spend more than you are. I don’t mean that harshly; I mean it as a way to put things in perspective.)</p>