<p>Hello all. I'll try to keep this short. I've been getting consistently disappointing financial aid packages from my schools. My FAFSA EFC was around 25k, which is the very most my family would be able to afford; I'd probably have to take some additional loans of my own. My parents are more comfortable paying around 20k, which is why some of these FA packages have been particularly shocking as most of these schools claim to be full-need (though I understand that each school has a different methodology).</p>
<p>I'm still waiting Vassar's FA and a decision from Wesleyan, but I doubt those will be any better than Grinnell. From Beloit, one of my safeties, the EFC was around 18k, but I'd rather just take a small loan and go to Grinnell.</p>
<p>So am I out of line for being disappointed with these results? In order for me to afford Grinnell, I'm going to have to take about 4k in loans and then contribute 2k of my own, which I don't think is too unreasonable, but as CC's FA already includes loans, I think it would be unwise to take on additional debt. Oberlin, my first choice, would mean 10k more a year in loans! This breaks my heart. </p>
<p>Anyways... Should I/how do I go about appealing these offers? Phone, email, snail mail? What do I say? Should I supply a copy of Grinnell's FA? Do you think CC would replace the loans with grants? My top choices are Oberlin, Mac, and Middlebury. I know you could do a lot worse than Grinnell, but after visiting, I don't know if I'd be happy there.</p>
<p>You had to have filled out the Profile for most if not all of these schools. FAFSA is only for Federal funds, Institutional FA is given using the Profile which in many (if not most) cases results in a higher COA for the student because it counts things like non-custodial parent and home equity that FAFSA does not.</p>
<p>Hopefully you also read the FA webpages and ran the calculators, which would have shown you estimated FA packages, including loans for most schools.</p>
<p>Your offers look very consistent to me. Of course you can always ask for a FA review and show them your offer from Grinnell. I don’t have experience with these schools so I can’t predict if they will increase aid, but it can’t hurt and might help.</p>
<p>Get in touch (call/email…I, personally would call) and ask your advisor for a professional judgement/to appeal the aid offer, however you are going to have to give them a good reason to re-evaluate such as change in income…financial hardship. Good luck.</p>
<p>If these loans include Stafford and will require your parents to take out a loan as well, they may not be affordable.
It might be reasonable to perhaps see what schools are still taking applications or to take a gap year and apply to some schools that are less expensive &/or offer merit awards if you dont choose Grinnell.</p>
<p>No one expects your family to be “comfortable” - they’re expected to use savings, current income, and loans to pay for your education. So, at least part of the debt burden should be on them - you shouldn’t have to assume the debt entirely on your own.</p>
<p>You have some amazing options, but if you’re really not happy with the cost, you do have the option of taking a gap year. It’s unlikely, though, that you’d find any school comparable to these where you’d be eligible for significant merit aid . . . so, honestly, I wouldn’t recommend it.</p>
<p>If you possibly can, revisit the more affordable schools on your list . . . sit in on classes, see what you think. You may find you like one or more of them better than you thought.</p>
<p>As for appealing, just give it your best shot - one school at a time - after all your offers are in. Here’s the best advice I’ve seen, posted by cptofthehouse in another thread:</p>
<p>You can talk to College A and tell them what you were offered at College B and that you would so prefer to go to College A if only the numbers could work out and see what they can do. Talk to admissions first, find out who your admissions counselor is there and thank him/her and then explain the situation, and get advice from that person as to who to contact and what to say if the Financial Aid Office has to be involved.</p>
<p>It sounds like your family cannot afford the EFC if you have to take out additional loans besides the ones already in your packages? If they can afford the EFC for Grinnell or Colorado College, I would go with one of those. If not, one of your safeties might be better. Hopefully you chose some safeties thinking about affordability and if you like the campus and would be happy there for 4 years. You cannot know what your parents can afford without talking to them. as far as no one expecting them to be “comfortable” you have to talk to them and consider your individual family’s circumstances. My dh makes too much for our ds to get gov’t aid. However, due to medical bills, we are unable to contribute much and are far from “comfortable”. We tried asking for review from the FA departments, and only one school made an adjustment to our EFC on the FAFSA from their end after the review. The rest was a waste of copy paper. For your undergrad degree, especially if you plan to go further in your education, it makes sense to go to the most affordable school. Save the debt for the advanced degree. And don’t put undue burden on your parents. I can tell you I wish we could pay for a full Ivy education for our ds, but his abilities and personality will assure he will have a great college experience no matter where he goes. In the end it is the knowledge and personal growth you come away from college with that counts. Not the institution name on the last line of your job resume.</p>