My mother makes about $80K a year including her husbands income. Our household size is 5 (2 parents 3 kids). Im the oldest and I am the only one in college. I am afraid that my mom will make too much money for me to receive any financial aid. However, she is not contributing towards my college expenses at all, so everything I owe is completely my responsibility.
Will my EFC be based on her actual contribution which is $0, or will my EFC be based solely on her income?
Thanks for your help!
EFC will be based on parents income and assets. It does not matter that that she will not contribute.
Here is a link to calculate for yourself: https://www.aidcalc.com/EFC.aspx
For the FAFSA EFC used to determine Pell grant eligibility, see here:
https://fafsa.ed.gov/FAFSA/app/f4cForm
For EFC calculated by colleges (which is not necessarily the same as the FAFSA EFC), go to each college’s net price calculator.
Note that most colleges have an ESC (expected student contribution = federal direct loan + work earnings) that is added to EFC (and unmet need if the school does not claim to “meet need”) to get the net price.
No Idea, but I think the cutoff is around $117,000 AGI for any need based aid via the FASFA. All I know is that the Dept of Ed thinks I should be able to give up 25% of my gross salary as my EFC. If I had 25% of my annual salary available to me for the last few years as disposable income, I wouldn’t have needed to fill out the form in he first place.
^^^ No, that isn’t right.
With one in college, depending on family size and maybe a few other things, there is no Pell Grant after about $65k.
Yes, we had a similar income and family size last year and EFC was over $10,000.
We did qualify for a PA state grant and a subsidized loan, but no Pell or other federal need based aid.
My D applied to schools that offered merit for her stats, is attending a school where she got full tuition and we pay for room and board.
Lately- and more than I ever recall- it seems kids are asking EFC questions in some sort of vacuum, a simple how much will I get? Or how much will Fafsa give me?
OP, it depends first on the policies of the particular college, whether they intend to be generous with aid. Some simply don’t have much to give. After that, what one might get is based on the college’s own formula. One school might give considerable support for an 80k household and others may gap you up the wazoo.
That’s why we say, run the school’s Net Price Calculator.
You are already in college and don’t know your EFC?
I think she meant on the FAFSA this year she indicated that she is the only one who is going to attend college.
Did you submit your FAFSA? It should say on the SAR (student aid report) what your EFC is.
In your other thread you mention transferring to Texas Tech, did you file a FAFSA last year? Are there any changes?
Yes my mother was unemployed and unmarried last year, only relying on her money from the military as a retired veteran. So her income was extremely low and I received an EFC of 0. However, this year, she is now working at a high paying job and married and their income together is around $80K. I am most happy for her, though it couldn’t have happened at a more inconvenient time due to my financial aid. We have not yet filed because my mother has not yet filed her taxes. It just sucks when they base the aid off of the parents income and not off of the students actual need for it, like if their parents refuse to help pay for college but they make enough money. Now I am not even sure how I can apply for a Financial Hardship application to live off campus to save money if I won’t receive any financial aid. Im literally screwed.
With the increase in income your mother should be able to help you pay. That’s why the EFC includes parent’s incomes. Are you saying you’ve asked your mom for help and she has said no?
No, you’re not, unless there’s something you’re not including in your post.
If your mom said they can’t help you pay for college and you can’t get enough aid then you need a different plan.
You said in another thread you attended an art school and want to transfer to Texas Tech. If you transfer from a community college with a high GPA and 60 credits, you might qualify for their transfer scholarship.
I would go to a CC you can commute to and get your remaining credits, then apply for transfer scholarships at Texas schools that offer them next year.
Yeah she isn’t helping me pay. She just doesn’t want to. I was really excited about Tech so I really don’t want to go to a community college again. Maybe i’ll just take out loans and try to live off campus if that is possible 
The only loans YOU can take are the federal student loans ($5500 as a freshmen, $6500 as a soph, and $7500/year as a junior and senior). If there’s a 4-year college you can commute to from your mom’s you may be able to work your way through without finishing at the cc, but if money is really tight I’d finish at the cc then transfer.
You would probably only have to do another year at CC, which would save money. With 60 credits and high GPA you might get their $6500 transfer scholarship, and you can take out a $7500 loan. Working in the summer and saving that money.
Your transfer chances with only 24 credits might be low and you wouldn’t qualify for a scholarship. Also 3 years at TT would cost a lot more than 1 at CC and 2 at TT, more than you have.
Look at the longterm goal.