<p>my friend recently got a financial aid package from USC, and although his FAFSA EFC is 35k$, USC expects him to pay full tuition. he's gotten no merit scholarship even though he thought he got the latino alumni scholarship LOL. anyways he is a straight A student and has tons of ECs. the full usc tuition is a third of his parents' untaxed income and they live in a area with a high cost of living.</p>
<p>he really wants to go to USC. is there any way he can negotiate for some more aid?</p>
<p>Does he have any lower-cost financial safeties as options? If he is in California like you, hopefully he applied to and was accepted to a UC, which at ~$30,000 is less than his FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>*Remember, USC uses the CSS/Profile, which considers assets the FAFSA does not (such as home equity). The FAFSA EFC is ONLY used to distribute Federal aid. With a FAFSA EFC of $35,000 your friend is eligible for $3,500 subsidized Stafford loans and $2,000 unsubs. USC uses the Profile to distribute USC grants.</p>