<p>After filling out my FAFSA, my EFC was 48,444. The school that I want to go to is UT (20k tuition per year). Does this mean my family is expected to pay the full tuition?</p>
<p>With such a high EFC am I still eligible to get large amounts of loans and/or grants? My family keeps on saying that they don't have the money to pay for college without loans; they didn't save much for college and they think they have an average income, even though it was 160k last year... My parents are the type of people who think 5k tuition is too much, they aren't willing to pay much. </p>
<p>My dad was also laid off for a few months, significantly changing our income, so will this help my chances of getting more aid?</p>
<p>Edit: Do you think I messed up when filling out my FAFSA because 48,444 seems really high? 2008 family income was $160,000. 2007 was around $130-150k. This year its around $40k.</p>
<p>Sadly, that EFC sounds right for that income. So, yes, unless you get either merit money from the school, or gather up some private scholarships, you and your family are expected to pay the whole thing. But it wouldn’t hurt to call the financial aid office and explain that your 2009 income will be 75% lower than 2008; maybe they can help although don’t expect them to bring your EFC down to the $5K that your parents expect. </p>
<p>You and/or your parents can borrow up to the full Cost of Attendance minus any scholarships/grants/subsidized loans you might get. </p>
<p>Our EFC was a shock too; I think everyone feels that way.</p>
<p>Agree that the EFC sounds right for your 2008 income and also that you can let colleges know about your father’s job loss to see if they’ll work with you. Many won’t as the EFC is based on last year’s income so you would start to benefit next year if your father remains jobless.</p>
<p>Given that your father will probably get a job at some point, you should look at schools you’ll be able to afford even when he does. Hopefully you have good grades and can focus on merit aid schools.</p>
<p>You will definitely want to contact the FA office right away about filing for a special circumstance review based on dad’s job loss. It will not make you eligible for federal grants this fall, but may make some difference in how your loans are structured and they may be able to offer you some work study. You can find out about federal and private loan programs for you and your parents here:
[FinAid</a> | Loans | Student Loans](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Student Loans - Finaid)</p>
<p>Your parents may find that using their home equity is more economical than a private student loan, especially if they already have an established line of credit. But with $20K tuition and no savings, what will you do about living expenses and all the other college costs?</p>
<p>A private loan is from a bank and is unsecured–meaning that the only thing backing it up is your promise to pay it back. A home equity loan (or home equity line of credit) is secured by your parents’ house. If the loan isn’t repaid, the bank can make you sell the house. </p>
<p>It is probably cheaper to use the home equity line of credit…but you risk losing your house.</p>