<p>Hey everyone, I had a couple of questions that I've been struggling to answer.</p>
<p>1.) I read that transfer financial aid is hard to come by. But... why? My FAFSA EFC is 0, so won't the school strive to give me as much financial aid as possible? Won't I still be entitled to the same Pell Grant and Government Aid? Does transferring mean that the institution keeps all this money and makes me pay out of pocket?</p>
<p>2.) I know that transfer merit aid is almost impossible getting most of the time. THIS I understand, because I realize that merit aid comes directly from the institution, and isn't coming from a third party like the government. Am I right about this?</p>
<p>3.) Which top 50 schools give the most aid? I read that GWU was one of the most expensive schools to attend, are they really bad at aid, too?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>FAFSA determines how much need based FA you get from Federal funds, this will not change if you are a transfer.</p>
<p>Private colleges also give Institutional need based FA, which is often determined by the Profile. Private colleges vary in how they treat FA for transfers, some treat them the same as they would a fr applicant, others offer less to transfers. There is no universal policy, you need to check the college website. Transfers are often given less FA because their packages are given after fr, so depending on how much money they have left, they are more or less generous to transfers. Spring transfers may be particularly hard hit as there may be little FA money left for a college to offer that academic year.</p>
<p>There are both institutional and outside merit scholarships. The outside scholarships come from a third party, not usually the government, but rather private institutions or programs.</p>
<p>For privates, As with fr admissions, the colleges with the highest endowments are generally more generous with transfer FA. Brown is an example of an exception, while relatively generous for fr admissions, they give limited FA to transfers, as well as having need-aware admissions for transfers.</p>
<p>GWU does not guarantee to provide 100% of need to fr, so it is unlikely that they’re particularly generous with transfers. However, I have no specific experience with them and so will defer to others on this.</p>
<p>You answered question #1 with question #2. Federal aid will always be there, but the rest is up to the school. </p>
<p>Generally speaking, private and in-state schools will offer you the most aid. Also, many states will provide additional need-based aid if you attend an in-state college and apply for it. </p>
<p>Another thing to consider: while many top private schools offer to “meet 100% of need-based aid” - very few of them have “need blind” admissions. This means that when it comes down to two equal candidates with very similar stats, they will take the student who will need less aid. </p>
<p>Here is a list of “need-blind” schools - [Need-blind</a> admission - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need-blind_admission]Need-blind”>Need-blind admission - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>Of course, not all of the schools on that list are transfer friendly, and not all are generous with FA. </p>
<p>Vanderbilt is both transfer friendly, need-blind, and meets 100% of need without ANY loans. I do not know of any other top school that can match that.</p>
<p>You will likely qualify for Stafford Sub and Unsub loans (no, the school doesn’t keep this money). For a Junior transfer the max of Sub and Unsub would be 7500 (5500 + 2000). Depending on your EFC you may qualify for other state or federal loans or grant aid.</p>
<p>But perhaps you should pose your question the other way - list how much in total loans you are willing to take out, how much in out-of-pocket cash/earnings you can pay out each year - and calculate the FA GAP still remaining and ask if University XYZ or EFG is likely to cover it with institutional grants or aid for transfer students. Listing your GPA profile helps, too.</p>