<p>I turned in my fafsa and they gave me an EFC number but I have no idea what it means. My families EFC is 04009. What on earth does this mean? Can someone please enlighten me on the concept of EFC lol :).</p>
<p>EFC = Expected Family Contribution</p>
<p>So as the name says thats what the federal government expects your family to help you yearly with the college costs.</p>
<p>It used to determine how much need-based aid you going to get.</p>
<p>Lets say College A costs X amount per year. Your EFC is 4009 so thats what your family needs to give you yearly in order to cover all expenses. Then supposed you will get a Financial Aid package that covers the rest = X-EFC</p>
<p>This is taking into account the college covers 100% of financial need.</p>
<p>is that 4009 dollars a semester or a year? thank you for replying</p>
<p>the EFC is per year. </p>
<p>However many schools do not meet full need so, unless the school you are going to does, do not be surprised if your family has to come up with more than the EFC.</p>
<p>And many schools require the Profile or other institutional forms. These allow the schools to use the so-called "institutional method", which can make their determination of your EFC significantly higher than the FAFSA does.</p>