<p>Hello, I am confused on how EFC is factored into need based aid. My EFC is around 20k. Does that mean if a school meets 100% of need I will receive the difference in forms of loans and grants? Say a school with a COA of 55k meets 100% of need would I get 35k? Thanks to anyone who can explain this to me.</p>
<p>* Does that mean if a school meets 100% of need I will receive the difference in forms of loans and grants? *</p>
<p>Your FAFSA EFC is rather meaningless at most of these schools that meet 100% of need because they use CSS Profile to determine what THEY think your family should pay. Schools that use CSS Profile take other things into account…like home equity…and some use the income/assets of a non-custodial parent’s family. </p>
<p>The expected contribution from CSS Profile schools can vary widely…some people have reported differences as much as $10-20k or more.</p>
<p>Building on what mom2collegekids wrote…</p>
<p>Aid comes from several places:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Federal Aid.
The only form or place that spits out an “efc” is FAFSA which is a federal form and FAFSA’s efc is ONLY used to determine federal aid-- so Pell Grant and certain other school-based programs like work-study and SEOG. </p></li>
<li><p>States:
States sometimes have grants (which can often only be used in instate schools) and, depending on the state, they may be based on FAFSA efc. So it’s hard to generalize because it depends on your state.</p></li>
<li><p>Schools:
This is where most of the big $ comes from if you’re going to an expensive private school. Some schools have a policy that they meet full need. However, they define ‘need’ as they see it. They will have you fill out the FAFSA to determine federal aid but often have you fill out more paperwork to determine how much of the school’s money they think you will get. They may want you to fill out the College Board’s PROFILE form which will ask a LOT more about your family’s economic situation including $ in your siblings’ names, equity in house, noncustodial and stepparents income and assets etc. Some schools have their own forms they want you to fill out. NONE of these forms spit out an efc. You generally don’t find out what the college thinks you can pay until you get your actual financial aid package, usually with your acceptance. So, if you need financial aid to attend those private schools, you need to have a back-up plan of a school you can attend. Also, some generous schools (like Amherst) have calculators on their websites and there are a few other calculators floating around the internet which will give you guesstimates-- but people have said the guesstimates are sometimes too low.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It is a complicated system. The EFC is what FAFSA generates for qualification for federal funds. For the neediest students, there are PELL grants up to $5500. With your EFC you do not qualify. There are also the Stafford loans up to $5500 freshman year, some of which may be subsidized. </p>
<p>The problem is that colleges are under no obligation to meet need as defined by FAFSA. So they’ll give you the federal funds that your EFC entitles you and that often is the foundation on your financial aid. But those schools that tend to meet need, want more information via PROFILE or their own apps. They will include info like primary home value and non custodial parent information that FAFSA does not use. </p>
<p>For schools that use FAFSA only, yes, they look at that EFC, and then see what funds they can afford to give you and that does not mean they meet need. If you look up school financial aid info, you can get an average of what % of need overall a school meets. Doesn’t mean that’ll be what they’ll meet for you, but it gives you some idea of how much they can meet in terms of need. </p>
<p>Also there are states that use FAFSA info for awards and scholarship organizations as well.</p>