Is it normal to have an EFC = $9K but parent's have to pay $18,000?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>Hey there!</p>

<p>My EFC is about 9k, but when I got my financial aid package.. it says that my parent's have to pay $9k for me to attend the Spring semester next year (Spring admit here). I thought that sounded normal until I realized that my sophmore year would cost $18,000 for my parents since it's 2 semesters. (I thought USC met full need, but in this case.. they aren't?)</p>

<p>My parents can really afford $9k/year, where does the rest of the money come from? specifically which kind of loans? are there more student loans avaliable since I'll be the one paying the rest? </p>

<p>helppp..</p>

2

<p>i'm guessing that your financial aid package will change when you become a sophomore who will be admitted for 2 semesters. usc calculated that you can afford $9K/year, so that's what they're holding you to, then for the next year, you should receive about $38K of aid so you still pay $9K. </p>

<p>just a guess.</p>

3

<p>nope, my aid sucks ass; my parents have a efc of 8k and are expected to pay 25k whats the logic in that? Bye USC you had a good candidate.</p>

4

<p>forevera: I would think that for the school year (07-08) you're EFC is 9K...since you won't be here for the fall, you're still expected to contribute 9K. You should expect you grants/loans etc to increase for sophomore year.</p>

<p>polite: If there's a huge discrepancy between EFC and what you're expected to pay, contact the fin aid office and talk to someone. They can explain why your package is the way it is, and you explain to them your circumstances, they are very helpful in figuring out how you can afford USC.</p>

5

<p>Itla_uno and sunnydaysee, I thought it was supposed to be like that too... but when I called the fin aid office to confirm he told me that my parents will have to pay DOUBLE for sophmore year since I'm there for 2 semesters... so confused!</p>

6

<p>I would recommend a face-to-face meeting with the financial aid office, if at all possible. They were very helpful to us several years ago, and found a way to crunch some numbers to make it work for our family. If you can't meet in person, then perhaps you can ask for a senior member of the staff to explain your situation to. They pride themselves in making USC affordable. Don't give up!! </p>

<p>Good luck, and keep us posted.</p>

7

<p>I agree about meeting with them (in person, or via phone if you are out-of-state). I would hesitate to guess in either direction - as to your situation. I could see it going either way, and i would not be surprised.</p>

<p>As for USC meeting a student's full need, I think that is a myth, or at least there does not seem to be consistency in the implementation of that concept. USC did not meet our full need. They did provide a very generous Merit Scholarship which was/is extremely helpful. Our son would not be attending USC if not for the Merit Scholarship. However, after the Scholarship amount was subtracted from the full cost of attendance (47k), it still left a huge amount for us to come up with. Our son very much wanted to attend USC, and we wanted to help make it happen for him. We have dipped into home-equity to make it happen for him. This was not something I expected to do. </p>

<p>Over the last year and a half, I have seen many low EFC numbers with large Grants. I have seen high EFC numbers with little/no Grants. I have even seen relatively high EFC numbers with a large Grant. I have yet to figure out their Financial Aid formulas. </p>

<p>Last year, we were told (by the Financial Aid Director), that the reason our expected contribution was so high, was due to our home equity. (and we do not even own our home outright). I was frustrated, but I accepted the reality of the situation. This year, as I watched some new freshman post their Financial Aid packages, i saw one post of a student whose EFC was in our range, and whose parents also owned their home (outright), and yet he/she received a huge Grant. I posted my congrats to that indidivual. But it caused me to, once again, question the Financial Aid system at USC. </p>

<p>If I had to summarize my opinion of USC's Financial Aid policy, it would be as follows. If a student comes from a low-income family, then USC will go to great lengths to provide large Grants to help you out. If a student comes from a wealthy family, you are on your own. For those in between (our family), it seems to be a crap shoot. In some cases, generous Grants (and happy families). In other cases, no grants, (and frustrated families, who either dip into retirement or home equity, or the student chooses to go elsewhere). Lastly, I believe that USC has a different concept of what a family can afford (as compared to what that family thinks it can afford). </p>

<p>Did I have $30,000 sitting in a savings accout, waiting to be used for USC? No. Am I thrilled with USC's Financial Aid package? Not even a little bit. Is our son attending USC. You bet he is, and he is having a wonderful time. Would I do things differently, if i had it to do over again? Probably not. But, I was taken by surprise, as to how much we have had to pay, because I bought into the concept that USC "prides itself in making USC affordable". For some, yes, for others, no. (For what it is worth, we are far far from being rich. One house, two 10-year old cars, never been on a cruise, no luxery boat, no RV, etc. You can tell by my screen-name, what we do on vacation = camping.).</p>

<p>I make this post, so that other parents and students will make an informed decision about USC. You may receive a great Financial Aid package, or you may not. You need to be prepared for either outcome. Do not, i repeat, do not "assume" that USC will meet your "full need". </p>

<p>We do love USC.</p>

8

<p>appeal the decision, if not, then work with your parents and come up with a plan...scholarships are all around you. it's just a matter of finding the ones right for you.</p>

9

<p>
[quote]
We have dipped into home-equity to make it happen for him. This was not something I expected to do.

[/quote]

Why not? Did you not know that Profile schools ask about home equity and expect it to be available for college expenses? Just asking. You make it sound like you were ambushed with a policy no one could have known about.</p>

10

<p>Our EFC was $9K, and generally speaking, the schools have asked us to contribute between $12-$15K. The EFC is what the government thinks you can contribute - the schools all think you can squeeze out a little more.</p>

<p>If our child hadn't been a good student and received lots of merit aid in addition to need based aid, we'd have been asked to pony up more (if she applied to the same schools, anyway.)</p>

11

<p>Does anyone know how to make an appeal? Does anyone have any experience doing this with the USC financial aid office? I do not think we got enought money. Any advice would be really appreciated, thanks.</p>

12

<p>dt123 -</p>

<p>For what it is worth, prior to receiving our official USC Financial Aid statement, I was told by a USC Admissions officer that “home equity” will NOT adversely affect a family's ability to receive a good Financial Aid package. </p>

<p>Your comment almost strikes me as smug. Maybe that was not the intent. </p>

<p>I challenge you to conduct a survey of prospective USC parents. First, tell them that USC is known for "making USC affordable". Then, tell them that USC guarantees to meet a family's "full need". Ask them, after considering those two statements, if they expect to finance up to the amount of full-tuition out of their assets (including home equity)? Or, instead, do they anticipate receiving some of this wonderful USC financial assistance. </p>

<p>I predict that you will be surprised by how many parents DO expect to receive some type of aid (and are not expecting to finance the entire 47k from their own assets including home equity).</p>

<p>You say that home equity is “expect[ed] to be available for college expenses”. Do you mean that the way it comes across? Do you expect that a family should first use all of their home equity before USC provides some assistance? Is that what is meant when people post comments about USC being known for “making USC affordable”?</p>

<p>Yes, in answer to your question, I did feel ambushed. Last year, on this website, there were numerous posts in praise of USC meeting a family's need. People could not say enough about how USC tries to make USC affordable to all families. Even at the events for parents (at USC), prior to the start of school, the same general types of statements were uttered from USC employees. </p>

<p>In answer to your question, yes, I did know that USC, Stanford, and other schools to which our son applied, do ask about home ownership (purchase price, monthly payments, current value, etc.). However, I did not, at all, predict that they would say "Hmm, your home equity is greater than the cost of this year's tuition; therefore, you pay full tuition". We are not paying full tuition - but only because our son received a Merit Scholarship. (fyi – Scholarships are not considered part of a financial aid package, meaning they are not awarded based on financial need). </p>

<p>Continue your survey, and ask each parent if they expect to pay $30,000 (each year) from their own assets (including home equity) for a grand total of $120,000.00. My prediction is that you will be surprised by how many parents are NOT expecting to dip into their own assets (including home equity) for $120,000.00 for financing USC Tuition. </p>

<p>To those parents who are able to pay full tuition, my hat is off to them. I am jealous and envious. There are a lot of wealthy families that send their kids to USC. (My son has met a lot of kids from extremely wealthy families). However, I do not fall into that category. I do not resent those wealthy families. But I do resent the people who posted over and over again, about how wonderful the Financial Aid packages are at USC. Maybe I should have known better, but I heard it often enough, and I ended up believing the line about USC "making USC affordable for all families". </p>

<p>I am not naive, nor stupid, so I did not expect to receive a large grant from USC. Also, I did expect to pay a considerable amount for my son to attend USC. However, I did NOT expect to pay $30,000 towards attendance – AND have USC pay nothing (besides the merit scholarship). There were no Grants for us. I am very disappointed in USC's Financial Aid policies for "middle income" families. Maybe because, heaven forbid, I live in California, and my equity might be higher than someone from a Midwest state, USC therefore considers me rich. That is the farthest thing from the truth. </p>

<p>Lest anyone think that I am a bitter parent, that is not the case. Bottomline, I love USC, and I am thrilled that my son is attending USC, and having a great time. However, I wish some (middle income) parent(s) had posted (last year) some comments like mine, so that I (and other middle income parents) would not have been so hugely surprised when the Financial Aid package arrived.</p>

13

<p>Honestly I do not have the energy to read and respond to all that, LTC. All I know is that Profile calculates your need based on a percentage of assets, that home equity is an asset, so that it is expected to be available. How you got ambushed when this is widely known is a mystery to me, but a mystery I am happy to leave unsolved. Fight on.</p>

14

<p>My efc was 3k, yet school made us pay 8K. XP they like double it and +</p>

15

<p>


</p>

<p>Don't be hatin'</p>

<p>People only say that cuz its true... USC gave me hella more than the next best college for me... and thats comparing 8 colleges</p>

<p>Unfortunately, they obviously can't do this for ALL middle class families...</p>

16

<p>I am also appalled by the amount of financial aid given to our family! Our FAFSA efc is 16k and we were only given 2k in university grants and unfortunately, no merit. I agree with "love to camp", that for middle class families, aid is random and could go either way. I've heard about fantastic packages for families with similar financial profiles as ours and obviously ours is not great. The kicker for us is that we have a son who is 2nd year at Harvard and for 2 years, we have received 1/2 of the total cost in need-based grants. With 2 kids in college, you would think USC could provide more. I actually believe they counted 401K retirement accounts into the equation, for which which I was told face-to-face with a USC financial aide counselor that it should not be counted as an asset. </p>

<p>I appealed, but we shall see!</p>

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<p>idluanva - i really dislike it when people quote someone out of context, and don't even have the courtesy to read the entire post that they are criticizing. You say "Don't be hatin" - as if that is my sentiment. It does not appear that you read the following line of mine, from the same post, "Bottomline, I love USC, and I am thrilled that my son is attending USC, and having a great time".</p>

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<p>i really love it when parents get on here and argue with us lol. its hilarious. sometimes i forget they're parents</p>

19

<p>
[quote]
i really love it when parents get on here and argue with us lol. its hilarious. sometimes i forget they're parents

[/quote]

haha yea</p>

<p>well lovetocamp... i know you don't dislike USC...
but you did state that you don't like the people who keep postin on how wonderful USC aid is... i would be one of those people...</p>

<p>anyway, when i posted i didn't mean it in a belligerent tone so sorry</p>

20

<p>Must say I am pretty disappointed in USC FA which I just received yesterday. Though it's not as drastically bad as other people's FA in this thread, compared to UNC's FA package it's not good. EFC is 12k and expected to pay about 15k with $3500 loans, so overall $18,500. UNC covered 100% costs with no loans and a laptop grant. It is "only" 6k difference but for me that is a lot.</p>