<p>While I think it would be a waste of time for our family to apply for need based ( i.e. 200k gross which is still paying student loans more than 20 years after the fact and supports a “middle class lifestyle in Cal”; try some rough figures on an EFC calculator), the application is required for at least one school DD is applying to for merit aid. I don’t think it’s ever a waste of time to apply for merit aid to a school your child really wants to attend. At the very least it means they become more invested in the financial aspects of her current and near future choices. For my DD would prefer a private that’s a slight academic reach and a greater (but doable) financial stretch, to a public that’s not a reach. She is clearly more invested in her current EC’s than the application provess, but she is going to have to put her “money where her mouth is” ( work on some essays). Does that make sense? I’m not sure it does unless you share similar circumstances.</p>