<p>I got a letter from FAFSA after completing the online form on Feb. 15, and I got an email back. What is the total amount of money I can receive for financial aid? The email says: </p>
<p>"
The EFC is a measure of how much you can contribute to the cost of your education. Schools use your EFC to determine your federal student aid eligibility.
The EFC is not how much aid you will receive or how much you have to pay for college.
Based on the eligibility criteria you may be eligible for the following:
Pell Grant Estimate - $5,645.00
Direct Stafford Loan Estimate - $5,500.00
"</p>
<p>Is the amount of financial aid I will get the combined amount of money? Which is around $11,000? </p>
<p>Filing FAFSA determines how much aid you will get from the federal government. You qualify for, if you used actual 2013 income and tax numbers, $5645 in Pell grants. Grants are free money, you don’t have to pay back. You can also take out $5500 in federal direct loans. You will have to pay the money back with interest after you graduate or stop attending college. So yes, you can get both if you choose to take out the loans. Many states also give financial aid for lower income families. Those states that give the biggest grants generally have their own state application process in additional to FAFSA. Some states base state grants on FAFSA. You should be able to google your state name and ‘college grants’ to find the programs for your state. In addition many schools give need-based financial aid out of their own funds. There is also merit aid schools may give you if you have a high GPA and SAT/ACT scores for the school.</p>
<p>You should read this thread to get a basic understanding of how financial aid works, it is stickied at the top of this forum:</p>
<p><a href=“Financial aid FAQs - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums”>Financial aid FAQs - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums;
<p>After reading that thread you may have more specific questions to ask. </p>
<p>wait for the financial package from the school. It should include th federal aid.</p>
<p>Run the Net Price Calculator at the website(s) of the college/university(s) on your list for a guesstimate of aid.</p>
<p>Almost every place will expect you to pay more than your FAFSA EFC.</p>