<p>So this is my first post here and it's not exactly a question about my financial aid situation, so much as financial aid in general. My financial aid situation has always been pretty good, I'm attending a state school and lived with either my mother (I lived with her throughout my childhood) or my father (who I lived with last year out of necessity) and both of them didnt make much. They're separated so I only got support from whichever one I was living with, which my EFC showed by always being in the ~1900 to 2500 range. Next yr I will be a junior and my EFC has completely changed, and I have to admit I feel somewhat guilty about it.</p>
<p>The past year was rough on my family; I ended up moving back in with my mother who usually makes ~$30,000 a year. We live with my grandparents who supported themselves easily. In early 2012 my grandfather was diagnosed with cancer and was hospitalized shortly after. My grandmother also spent some time in the hospital during this time, and unfortunately my grandfather passed away a few months later. Not only did this devastate my family, a large amount of income was lost. We lost parts of his "income " (pension and social security) and my mom was unable to work for about a month to take care of my grandmother. Neither her nor my grandmother are particularly healthy, so between their medical hills and my moms lost work, her income dropped to $24000 a year and she began to support my grandmother. This changed our tax situation quite a bit, and after filling our the fafsa I found that our EFC was 0.
Naturally, I was happy, but I must say I feel pretty guilty at the same time. It's an incredibly rough time for our family, but I imagine people who really "deserve" that 0 EFC to have grown up in poverty, or like my friend who was declared independent, have parents who do drugs or are unemployed. The first thing I'm wondering is : am I in fact "taking" some kid who's had a hard home life's funds? Is there a limit to how much Pell or Stafford loans the government can doll out, and at some point there will be a kid who gets a 0 or very low EFC and no Pell or Stafford? I know there's a limit per school as to how much Perkins loans I can take out, but honestly I'm debating on whether or not to reject these loans if offered them because I know for my particular state school, a lot of kids come from a VERY dangerous neighboring city and many wouldn't be able to afford college without help. For the record, my parents have ended up taking out some parent PLUS loans the past two years, and I am working as much as possible to pay those back.
This is also a slight side note, but I am also applying to this program at school for next yr which pays 60% of tuition and fees for the year. If I'm accepted, would my schools lower my need for things like Perkins or institutional grants first, and can they lower what Im awarded from the federal government (Pell, Stafford)? Sorry for the long post!</p>