<p>D is going into senior year HS so I am just getting into this financial aid game. I am divorced, not remarried, make less than 80K and she is interested in private schools that take FAFSA and Profiles. D's father will be trying to pay as little as possible for college and never was required to pay child support - so what's new.
D's 63 year old father makes about 80K and has a fully vested retirement, paid for house and plenty in funds - my guess is ~2M. He would likely kill me when he does the Profile, but will be retiring end 2012 - right after D starts college.<br>
Does anyone know how gov't and schools look at retirement accounts/funds, houses, etc that are used as the income for a retired person. Sure am hoping he won't still cause me to pay for everything during college years too.</p>
<p>Income is income. If it is taxable income, it is reported whether the person is retired…or not. Re: home equity for that non-custodial parent…again…I seriously doubt that being retired matters. Home equity in a home will be put on the non-custodial parent Profile regardless of whether the person is retired…or not. </p>
<p>Any income from pensions, TSAs, IRAs, etc would also be income…regardless of whether the person is retired…or not.</p>
<p>I believe the AGI does not include UNTAXED social security or disability incomes…but I think those are the only things “not counted” when completing the financial aid forms.</p>
<p>It IS possible that Profile schools have some asset protection (as the FAFSA does) that does increase with the age of the parent. BUT truthfully since the each Profile school has its own “formula” that is very hard to say.</p>
<p>I wish I was able to write more positive news for you.</p>
<p>Here are my suggestions:</p>
<ol>
<li>Look for affordable schools (including the public universities in your state)</li>
<li>Look for schools where your daughter might qualify for merit aid.</li>
<li>Look for Profile schools that do NOT require the non-custodial parent form.</li>
</ol>
<p>And also…keep an eye out…some of the schools that do not use the Profile have their OWN forms which ask for non-custodial parent info.</p>
<p>And lastly…with your $80,000 in income, you know your daughter will not qualify for any need based federally funded grants. So even FAFSA only schools would likely give you a small amount of aid…mostly the Stafford loan.</p>
<p>Many Profile schools do not require the Non-Custodial Parent info. Check to see the case for your D’s schools.</p>
<p>Ugh, I was under the impression that her #1 choice, Rice, would help those of us under 80K, which I am. </p>
<p>How do schools that cost 50-60K annually expect someone who makes less than 80K to pay 100% of that and still live. FRUSTRATION</p>
<p>all her choices require non-custodial parent info.</p>
<p>Rice requires information from the non-custodial parent. With that information…her parents together earn well in excess of $80,000.</p>
<p>I think you need to help her modify her list of schools if the father really doesn’t plan to contribute a nickel…and the schools requires his information. If the school requires the NCP Profile, it is highly unlikely your daughter will get need based aid.</p>
<p>HOWEVER…the good news. If she is a competitive admit for Rice, she likely has the stats to garner some significant merit aid elsewhere. Start looking if the finances really ARE a significant consideration.</p>
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<p>Simple answer…attending a college that costs $50k-$60K is a CHOICE. The schools are not forcing students to apply. If your income is such that paying $50K per year is too much…you need to look at other options that ARE affordable (sorry to be so harsh…but there it is).</p>
<p>I am now SUPER grumpy. Sure I am not the only one whose kid busts her ass to go to a great school but parent makes just a little too much to get it free(ish), but not actually enough to afford it. According to you, it doesn’t even matter what my ex makes, I make too much - ridiculous.</p>
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<p>You make too much to qualify for federally funded GRANT money (the Pell grant). </p>
<p>Rice uses both custodial and non-custodial parents to determine the awarding of THEIR institutional money, which is what you would NEED to get the need based funds to get a “freeish” education at Rice.</p>
<p>Your daughter is not the only one who has worked hard in high school. There are plently of wonderful colleges where she can get an excellent education that are far less pricey than Rice…places where she might garner significant merit aid, for example.</p>
<p>I don’t know your daughter’s SAT/GPA, but if she is REALLY a competitive admit for Rice, she might have the stats to get a FREEISH ride from U of Alabama. She might also garner merit aid at other schools…not Rice…but schools where her stats are above the 75%ile for accepted students. AND YES…there will be smart kids at those schools. </p>
<p>Your daughter’s excellent progress in high school will definitely help her in her college hunt. First…she will have greater chances of being admitted. Second…she could very well be in the running for some merit money at many schools.</p>
<p>maidenMom,</p>
<p>I think that the point you are missing is that parents are the first in line when it comes to paying for their child’s education. A college education is a privilege, not a right and certainly no one has a right to a $50,000 education no matter how hard they worked or how much they bust their butt. Stay on CC long enough you will see a lot of other hard working students and their parent(s) talking about how they can not afford some school or some student talking about their parent won’t pay for college. While college is a social and moral obligation, it is certainly not a legal one.</p>
<p>I think that your frustration is misdirected and you are personalizing a situation that is not personal. You are mad at the school for their financial aid policies, which apply to all students applying to their school (an exception is probably recruited athletes at schools that give athletic scholarships). </p>
<p>You at a school(s) that offers need based financial aid based on the income and assets of both you and your ex. You stated that your ex is not willing to pay for his child’s education. So basically, what he is saying is to let someone else’s parents pay to educate his kid (where do you think the endowment comes from; the generosity of other people and other people’s parents).</p>
<p>Even at schools that do not use the profile, if they offer a lot of money in institutional aid, they are going to ask for the income and assets of both parents on their own financial aid forms. </p>
<p>Since you know that your ex is unwilling to pay for your daughter’s college education, the best thing you can do is sit down talk with your daughter about how much you are willing to pay or borrow for her education. You can look at schools that require only the FAFSA your ex’s income and assets will not be considered by prospective schools. You can also look at schools where your daughter stands a good chance of receiving merit money.</p>
<p>Based on your income alone, you are not going to be eligible for any “free” money from the government when you file the FAFSA (Pell grants, SEOG, FEOG, federal work study). She will be eligible for Stafford loans. If you are a California resident, you may be eligible for the Blue and Gold (someone from CA. will end up chiming in and letting you know where you stand). Your EFC is going to be ~15-20k. </p>
<p>Sit with your daughter now and start building a list which includes 1-2 financial safeties, which means a school your daughter has a good good chance of being admitted (possibly rolling admissions or EA), somewhere she would be happy to attend and a school that is a financially feasible option for your family,</p>
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<p>This is from another thread by the OP…OP are you Texas residents? </p>
<p>In the financial situation you are in…I would urge you NOT to have your daughter apply ED (was this to Rice?). Her financial aid award will be based on the estimated Profile you do and the non-custodial Profile her father does (this would be the case at any ED school requiring the Profile and NCP Profile). I KNOW YOU CAN BACK OUT if the finances don’t work out…but going into the application…you KNOW the finances are not going to work if the NCP info is included. Why put your daughter into this situation?
She can apply RD to Rice (or any ED school) and have the ability to compare financial aid packages.</p>
<p>Re: ED and other applications…your daughter can apply to ONLY ONE ED school. She cannot apply to a SCEA (single choice early action school) if she applies ED to another place. BUT any ED applicant CAN AND SHOULD apply to the other schools on their lists…rolling admissions schools can also be done early…and RD applications sent it.</p>
<p>IF the student accepts an ED admissions offer, they are required to notify all other pending applications that they are being withdrawn…and that any other acceptances are no longer being considered.</p>
<p>I appreciate everyone’s insight and my anger was misdirected - I’m really angry at her father - was a bad day! I have since seen posts from hard working kids who have neither parent fighting for them financially to go where they can get in and want to go - breaks my heart. I always knew I would only have one kid because (we) could only do one right based on our earning potential - she would be able to go wherever if he’d stayed on the same page.</p>
<p>This is generally also a stressful time for me (and her) decisions with choices that are very different - while she really wants Rice - and I want her to go where she wants to go. She still has three official visits to schools for her sport and actually has started to seriously question Rice v the others. We do have a state school back up plan - and it is a very good school, but I had always planned for to her to be able to go wherever she wanted and could get in.</p>
<p>IT WILL ALL WORK OUT. (and thanks again)</p>
<p>It WILL all work out…students sometimes don’t believe that there is more than one school that can be great for them…but there is. </p>
<p>Just an FYI…if she is a recruited athlete, some schools will encourage you to apply ED…if you are unsure about the finances…don’t do this.</p>
<p>Is your daughter’s sport a D1 sport where she can get an athletic scholarship if recruited. Before you apply ED, you should ask the school for a financial read. This way you know where you financially stand before you commit.</p>
<p>All the best</p>
<p>the reality is…</p>
<p>1) At schools that will require NCP info, your D will not get aid.</p>
<p>2) at schools that only require FAFSA or your income, you will likely not get enough aid to cover any need. Exceptions…Vandy, USC, and a few others. However, you will still have a contribution. </p>
<p>3) How much can YOU afford to pay each year? (I don’t recommend taking out a bunch of Plus Loans since you don’t make a lot of money.)</p>
<p>3) Since ALL schools that meet need are hard to get into, your D needs viable financial safety schools. What are her stats? we can recommend some for you.</p>
<p>4) I would not recommend applying ED because you won’t be able to compare FA offers…which you will need to do. HOwever, if your D insists, she ALSO needs to submit her RD app to UT…as well as some other apps for schools that have scholarships deadlines in the fall. It’s ok to submit those apps. YOU DO NOT have to wait for accept/reject from ED to send out other apps. That is a misunderstanding. </p>
<p>5) again, the schools that will give your D merit scholarships often have fall scholarship deadlines. She needs to meet those deadlines EVEN IF she applies to Rice ED. </p>
<p>6) Lastly, the time is NOW to make it clear to your D that you will only spend X amount each year. Explain that you won’t co-sign big loans or anything else that would jeopardize your financial future. Your D’s life will not be over if she goes to a school other than Rice. She can go to Rice for grad school if necessary. What is your D’s major?</p>
<p>Mom, please know I really, really, really want a long arm quilting machine. Man, I want one so badly! But (barring a winning lottery ticket) it is not in my future as my family wrestles with groceries, housing, college costs and everything else that costs $. </p>
<p>So your D wants Rice. It’s a great school – but it is definitely not the only great school. Almost any private college will cost TWICE of a public. If you have the money, fine. If you don’t, then either there is tremendous borrowing or she changes her heart’s desires. </p>
<p>You are actually starting the fin aid game a bit late. I urge you to get “How to pay for college without going broke” and get up to speed on how the various forms work. Even knowing the whole process, please know that the first year is really, really stressful. </p>
<p>Save copies of everything and make lots of notes. The following year will be easier (in part because D has been admitted and you are concerned with just one college’s paperwork world). </p>
<p>It sounds like you have a terrific kid. Please, please tell her that you are so grateful to have her in your life and that you are so very thankful that she is finishing high school in a strong and healthy fashion. She may not get to jet off to her Dream college in a cashmere twin set – but there are lots of paths open to her.</p>
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<p>The only thing she cannot do is apply to another ED school or a SCEA (single choice early action) school.</p>
<p>If a student gets accepted ED, they are supposed to withdraw ALL other pending applications AND acceptances…immediately.</p>
<p>OP,
tell us about your D- what are her stats? interests? SAT’s? GPA? Does she qualify for NMF? if she is a top student, and I’m guessing she is if Rice is a U she qualified for] then there are other U’s that offer $$$ in Merit scholarships- especially USC. Encourage her to complete her application there no later than the DEC 1 deadline for scholarship consideration and she may win one of the 200 FULL Tuition or 400 HALF tuition scholarships they offer each year! She can still apply ED or SCEA elsewhere as well.</p>