"Meet full need" schools can vary significantly in their net prices.

<p>Starting sophomore year Yale’s minimal student contribution goes up to 6.4K. Does it mean that they technically do not meet full need either? </p>

<p>If the student contribution does not include more than the subsidized federal direct loan amount ($4,500 for sophomores, $5,500 for juniors and seniors; all class levels can take additional $2,000 in unsubsidized federal direct loans), then the financial aid package does not disqualify the school from counting it as “meet full need” in the Common Data Set definition. Of course, the loophole is that there is no hard limit on the amount of work-study the school can offer for the student contribution.</p>

<p>Yale does not put loans in their aid packages, so students can use the $6500 of Direct Loans available sophomore year to meet the minimal student contribution. They do put work study in the packages but I don’t know if it’s to meet any of the required student contribution or if that required amount has to be raised IN ADDITION to the work study during the year. I know I was surprised to see some high WS amounts in Harvard and other highly selective school packages for some low EFC students and a counselor told me that even those with Zero EFCs get them. I find it no coincidence that the sophomore contribution expectation is so close to what the Direct Loan allotment is by the way. $4k Freshman year requires, so the student can borrow the full $5500, most likely, to with the extra money to be used for seed money to get to the school and set self up there. </p>

<p>UCB if a school’s aid formula states a minimum student contribution, say Yale’s of 4K freshman year, doesn’t Common Data consider full need met if the aid package meets all but that min student required contribution whether or not the subsidized loans are available to meet it or not? Some schools do have that min required contribuiton AND also have the full subsidized part of the Direct loans in the aid package, I know. I’ve seen that. Not sure about the unsub part, but will go with what you say are the Common App rules–just didn’t personally check that out or read/hear anything about that, and don’t remember. </p>

<p>UMich meet needs of in state students but that include the subsidized loan and workstudy. Nevertheless, they may use grant money to replace the loan and workstudy if they have money. My D’s initial package was with loan and workstudy but they were replaced with grant money at the end. I am not sure what would happen if we request the $5500 subsidized loan amount in the financial aid. We know by getting more scholarships, the grant will be reduced accordingly (until it reaches 0) to maintain the EFC. Would putting loan back in the aid package reduce the grant? Possible, as the grant was used to replace the loan in the beginning. So this need met calculation can be more complicated that it appears.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>It appears that the Common Data Set definition of “meet need” can use grants, scholarships, work-study, or subsidized federal direct loans (i.e. $3,500 frosh, $4,500 soph, $5,500 jr/sr). So a school which uses only those types of financial aid (not unsubsidized loans, parent loans, or private alternative loans) against 100% of need (however it determines “need”) can answer 100% for the need met question.</p>

<p>it is entirely possible that there are colleges that answer this question incorrectly, or use a different definition of “meet 100% of need” on their web sites than the Common Data Set definition.</p>

<p>For the schools specifically, here is how their NPCs break down the amounts for the $20,000 income family example (UCLA is in-state):</p>

<p>



School  List    EFC&    Need    Grant   Loan    Work    Net Price
USC     60033    2500^  57533*  49533    5500   2500    10500
UCLA    32563       0   32563*  23963       8600+        8600
Yale    61900    1600   60300   57500       0   2800     4400</p>

<p>& Federal EFC for UCLA, institutional EFC for Yale.
^ USC's NPC calls this "estimated remaining costs", rather than 
  calling it EFC.
* Not explictly listed in NPC, but calculated from List - EFC.
+ UCLA's NPC lists "self-help" = $8,600; it says that loans and
  work-study will be offered.


</p>

<p>Obviously, a school can repackage the same net price different ways (e.g. moving it around between EFC, subsidized federal direct loans, unsubsidized federal direct loans, and work-study), which can result in different answers for the Common Data Set’s “meet need” questions.</p>

<p>Common Data shows USC meeting full need which they should not be so showing if they leave a net price that is greater than their own definition of need/EFC. So this def is slightly different from how Common data defines meeting need. Yale meets full need in that work study and and subsidized loans can be used to meet the $4k student contribution. It is possible that UCLA, in this case meets full need if they meet that $8600 with subsidized Direct and Perkins loans along with work study. Could be USC uses Perkins, workstudy and Subsized Direct loans to meet that full need as they define it too… </p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Net price is almost always greater than EFC due to the expected student contribution (that is true for UCLA and Yale in this example).</p>

<p>However, where USC may be answering the CDS incorrectly is that they package $5,500 of loans, which presumably includes both the subsidized ($3,500) and unsubsidized ($2,000) federal direct loans, the latter of which is not supposed to be included in the CDS definition of “meet need”.</p>

<p>In any case, these examples show that claims to “meet need” (on the CDS or otherwise) are not very reliable. Students and parents should not relay on such claims and use the net price calculators to get better estimates.</p>

<p>"However, where USC may be answering the CDS incorrectly is that they package $5,500 of loans, which presumably includes both the subsidized ($3,500) and unsubsidized ($2,000) federal direct loans, "</p>

<p>Don’t know for sure. Could be giving $5500 in subsidized loans by pairing the Direct loans subsidized portion with Perkins. </p>