Huge Financial Aid Dilemma: Have not recieved FA Package, Enrollment Deposit due soon

<p>Hello CC. I was recently accepted to one of my top college choices, a liberal arts college up in Maine called Bates College. I didn't realize that my financial aid documents (FAFSA, CSS Profile, W2 Forms, Tax Returns, etc), had to be sent before decisions were made or the fact that the school had deadlines on submitting this information. I called the Financial Services Office at Bates College today and they advised me to send in all other documents that were missing, which are basically my parents W2 Forms and Tax Returns for 2011, so that they could make a decision on my application. The problem is that the enrollment deposit (of $300) and final decisions deadline is May 1st and I've yet to receive my FA Package because these missing documents were just sent. I don't know what else to do. The school claims that they meet 100% of need and I am a highly "needy" applicant. My mother (noncustodial) makes about 12,000 a year and my father around 75,000 (supporting my 4 other siblings and his wife). I have an EFC of 00000. Should I just pay the deposit and hope that they are generous with my FA package or should I set my sights else where. It's been hard enough encouraging my parents to consider and out of state private LAC because of the expenses themselves. I was accepted to my instate safety and another smaller LAC but I'd much rather go to Bates if at all possible.</p>

<p>You need to call Bates and ask them. You missed some important deadlines. The college will tell you what to do.</p>

<p>Talk to Bates and get an extension for your enrollment deposit and acceptance contract, so that you have your financial aid packages in hand from them before making your commitment to them. However, if you don’t want to be left out cold in the event the package is not one you can afford, you will have to make a commitment and pay the enrollment deposits to another school, the one you will attend if Bates’ offer turns out to be unacceptable to you. It’s like being on a waitlist, just an unofficial one.</p>

<p>^alright, I plan on calling again tomorrow.</p>

<p>Can I expect that since I have an EFC of 00000 (I believe the information on FAFSA is up to date and accurate) and Bates College is an institution that offers 100% Need that I may have to pay very little or nothing at all for my tuition and board expenses in college? I don’t believe they offer merit scholarships so I don’t think my academic record will affect my financial aid package. I am also a prospective student-athlete (the school is Division III) from a “unique” geographical region and a URM if that helps my case at all.</p>

<p>Unlike the FAFSA, the CSS Profile considers your dad’s income, and other criteria not on the FAFSA. Have you tried the Net Price Calculator? <a href=“Net Price Calculator”>Net Price Calculator; Remember, Bates meets 100% of need as they define it. (The FAFSA EFC is really a misnomer… it is just an index for how much federal financial aid you are eligible for.)</p>

<p>First, read the website and everything they say about FA. You want to be as smart as possible when you speak to them. [Student</a> Financial Services | Bates College](<a href=“http://www.bates.edu/financial-services/]Student”>Student Financial Services | Bates College) Tonight, write down all of your questions such as the ones about URM, athletics, etc. Not sure D3 schools have even one penny for athletes, but ask every question. Second, if your parents cannot qualify for the Parent Plus Loan, then they will raise your Stafford loans several more thousand, which may cover your gap if you have one. Meanwhile, the advice about getting a delay is a good one if they cannot give your case a proper review, but this does mean possibly wasting money on the deposit. Finally, you might wish to speak to your GC at school immediately and see if he/she can help you with the “grown ups” at the FA Office at Bates. With hope, all will work out and you will now know to work with FA at your college so that you don’t miss any deadlines in the future–for aid, scholarships, etc. Good luck!</p>

<p>Thanks everyone. I’ll make sure to follow through with your advice. And if anyone else has any feedback I’d be happy to hear it.</p>

<p>Just remember – “meets full need” means that they meet the full need AS THEY DETERMINE NEED – which is not necessarily the need determined by the federal FAFSA EFC. </p>

<p>I hope it all works out very well for you. Good luck!</p>

<p>According to Bates website:
“Bates offers financial aid when we recognize that the contribution a family is able to make is less than the total cost of attendance. To determine eligibility, Bates uses guidelines established by the College Scholarship Service… All financial aid at Bates is awarded on the basis of demonstrated financial need…The Office of Student Financial Services is the final authority on your exact contribution. This estimate should provide an approximation of your expected contribution.”</p>

<p>That means that the college meets the need based on what the school calculates that you need, not what you think you need. The difference may be many $$$$ thousands, as many people find out when the financial aid package comes.</p>

<p>As laplatinum adviced you, write down all your questions and also develop an action plan to suggest to FA so the matter can be resolved as soon as possible. When you call, first ask to be connected to the officer who is responsible for your case, write down their name and contact info and always address all correspondence directly to that person. Explain the situation and your misunderstanding of the requirements. You can ask them if it would be possible that you can email them directly the tax return and W2 so you can speed up the process and can get a general fa package before the May 1st deadline, and that you will also mail the documents to IDOC as well so the forms can be validated. If you have not file the fafsa yet, do it asap. If you did not fill out the fafsa, right now apply for a pin for you and a pin for your dad. Then proceed with the css profile and fill out the info with your dad, and ask your mom to do the non-custodial part. I assume you have done all these, but just in case! Be very nice and polite to the officer, explain that Bates is your top choice and would really want to attend the school but because of the financial burden on your parents you want to make sure that they can afford it. After you hang up with the FA office, regardless what the officer says, write a polite email to the regional coordinator, or whoever is your contact person at Bates admissions (check the emails and letters that the school have send you, they must also have a URM dedicated person) and explain that you misunderstood with the deadlines, Bates is your top school, you really love the school and were honored to be admitted, but really need to know the financial package before committing to attend as your parents might not be able to afford it, hope they can assist you with the process, yada, yada, yada. Good luck.</p>

<p>My son was accepted at Bates last year and also has a 0 EFC. Their financial aid package was nowhere near as good as others he received because of the high amount of loans that would have been required (over $10,000 per year versus Carleton which was less than half that amount). So, my advice would be to not put all your eggs in the Bates basket until the financial aid offer is known.</p>

<p>*my father around 75,000 (supporting my 4 other siblings and his wife). I have an EFC of 00000. *</p>

<p>If your mom is “non-custodial”, then that means your dad is custodial.</p>

<p>I don’t see how you could have an EFC of 0 with an income of $75k…unless all 4 siblings are also in college???</p>

<p>I’m hoping that was a typo and the MOM is the custodial parent.</p>

<p>My father is the custodial parent. It used to be my mother but for right now its been my father. I do currently have an EFC of 00000 and I believe my information is pretty accurate.</p>

<p>Forgot to mention, my siblings are 3, 10, 14, and 16. My father’s income is actually much higher around 100,000 (but that’s gross).</p>

<p>If your father is your custodial parent and his income is in the $100,000 range, I find it VERY hard to believe your EFC is $0. I would guess it to be more like $25,000.</p>

<p>Is your dad self employed?</p>

<p>Yeah, my father is self employed</p>

<p>You will have to just wait to see what Bates determines your need to be. Some private schools do not allow the very significant expenses your dad seems to have from his business. His AGI would need to be quite low for a $0 EFC. It is quite possible that Bates will compute a different family contribution, but really there is no way for us to know. I hate to say this…but it doesn’t help that you missed their financial aid application deadline by quite a lot.</p>

<p>Give them a call tomorrow to find out the status of your application.</p>

<p>Pathetichopeful, something is not right here. Unless you have your mother down as the custodial parent or there is something major missing in your father’s financial picture, and I mean really major, it is not possible for you to have a zero EFC. With Bates using PROFILE, they are most likely will use both parents’ financial statements. Have you filed FAFSA already? And PROFILE? Is it verification that they are awaiting or the actual fiancial aid applications? Your first post implied that you had not filed anything. Do you have a financial aid award from that other college you mentioned, or is that a merit award?</p>

<p>If your father is self employed, how PROFILE will view need and income may well be different from FAFSA. You do need to talk to Bates and get the requested materials to them ASAP and get an extension from Admissions if you don’t get a package by May 1. As I said before, you may have to accept another school, so that you don’t end up in limbo, until Bate finalizes its package. Do not assume that the FInancial Aid Office and Admissions are in synch with each other. You need to talk to both of them, or it could lead to tremendous headaches later.</p>

<p>Our son received a much better financial aid package from Bates than Carleton. Bates grant is $6,000+ more unlike Catie33’s experience. We are middle income family with two in college beginning this fall. I would call the admission/financial aid office for sure but found that their NPC is fairly accurate.</p>

<p>There is no way a $75,000 income gives a 0 EFC on FAFSA. Something is wrong here. An AGI of 75,000 would give an EFC closer to 9-10,000.</p>