Hello, I’m transferring to a university next semester and there’s something I’m confused about.
At least 20000$ of the 30000 for next year’s tuition is already taken care of by the school (“grant in aid”, I think it’s called)+the pell grant.
From there, I intended to pay off 5000$ by working and the other half by a subsidized loan.
And here’s where it gets complicated.
I recently checked back to my Cal Grant portal and, uh…it’s been renewed at 13000$ for the next year (or does that cover two years? I’m not sure). Of course I’m not too thrilled about it–there’s no way I’m going to be given that full amount.
However, I do know that it is disbursed on a need basis by the university. Does this mean that if I reject the loan, I’ll be given a bit more of the Cal Grant in order to meet my need?
Ideally, I’d want to avoid getting a loan altogether so that’s why I’m asking. :-/
Bump. I know it’s a hard question to answer, so maybe I’m just looking for some input from someone who has gotten a Cal Grant+how the amount you were given by your financial aid office changed depending on your need for that year.
The loan is part of filling your need. How much is the COA for the school? Which Cal Grant? How much?
I am assuming you are going to a UC school where the max annual Cal Grant A is 13K. This is money from the state of California. In addition, you should be getting annual Pell Grant money of 6k. This is from the federal government and is completely separate from Cal Grant awards. So, there is your approx. 20K (you may or may not also be receiving some grant aid from the school). Loans are offered to make-up the difference, which will help cover room and board (they will not lower your grant aid (but scholarships can). Make sure you accept only loans that you absolutely need and the ones with the best terms (educate yourself on the loans being offered).
If you’re talking about Cal Grants, then those are “set amounts” depending on whether you’re going to a UC or CSU/Cal Poly. The amounts don’t change based on loans.
That approx $13k of Cal Grant is the max…that’s for a UC for one year.
You will NOT get more Cal Grant if you reject the loan. The loans are typical to cover the REST of your school costs. You’re expected to cover some of your education with self-help. The gov’t isn’t going to pay for everything, including your personal expenses (shampoo, etc).
The $20k of aid you were initially seeing is the Cal Grant plus Pell…schools often call it “grant in aid” until Cal Grant and Pell comes in and replaces.
In looking at your post again, I am confused by what you are asking… You say your Cal Grant was renewed for next year at 13K. This indicates you are 0 EFC and should also receive the max annual Pell Grant, but then you say-- “there is no way I will be receiving this much money.” Why do you think this?
@1andonly Get a Cal Grant of $13k does NOT mean that a person has an EFC of 0. They “might”…but they also might have a significantly higher EFC.
IF the student DOES have a 0 EFC, then she’d get max Pell. But she may have an EFC of - say - $3k or more.
@mom2collegekids I doubt anyone with a significantly higher EFC than 0 is getting max Cal Grant, do you have any examples of this happening or are you basing this on other states. My D is a Cal Grant recipient this yr and I can verify that every dollar over the minimum income reduces your award amount.
I apologize for being late–I didn’t think people would answer this!
I’ll get to the point.
UC
EFC: 12$
COA: 30000$
Cal Grant B
…Anyways, I do get it now. My initial confusion mainly stemmed from the amount I was receiving–on top of the 20000$, getting approved for 13000$ on top of it struck me as odd.
Now, I understand that this amount simply replaces the grant in aid and that getting the Cal Grant doesn’t necessarily mean I’m getting any more money.