I feel like I should have already known this, but I just realized that my ex-husband’s information is excluded from the FAFSA. So my son’s EFC will be calculated exclusively from my financial situation. But I know that most colleges expect both parents to contribute. Is this gap filled through the CSS profile? So is the “true” EFC considered to be the number that comes out of the CSS? So what is the point of the FAFSA since it ignores half of the equation?
NVM, wrong thread
ditto
FAFSA is the Federal Application for FEDERAL aid. It will determine whether you get federal aid. You also need to fill it out if you want to take out federal student loans (not income-dependent). The schools will need to see if any of your need is filled by federal funds before they can determine the amount of institutional funds to award, if any.
@sherimba03 no…most colleges do not expect info from the non custodial parent as most colleges require the FAFSA only…and as you have found, that doesn’t include the non-custodial parent financials.
BUT these FAFSA only schools don’t meet full need for all students (exception University of Chicago).
And some colleges that use the Profile do not require the non-custodial parent form.
Adding…I don’t believe parents are counted as students in college on their kid’s financial aid applications.
You benefit from having your child attend college(it may not mean additional ai for you because most graduate financial aid is in the form of loans).
Your child does not benefit or get more financial aid because you are attending grad school.
Right - parent can include self & kid(s) in school; kids’ FAFSA household size excludes parent in school.
Until recent years, most grad funding was loans only. I have seen an increasing number of programs that offer scholarships and grants at the grad level. Not all programs, not all schools, not all students … but the availability has increased to the point that I tell students to carefully research grad programs. You don’t want to miss out if you “might” be able to get some money.
You can count the number of schools that guarantee to meet need As defined by the FAFSA EFC with the fingers on one hand if there are any at all anymore. The second F in FAFSA says it all. Federal. The EFC basically is what determines a students eligibility for certain federal aid, the PELL grant and Subsudized student loans. That’s about all you are guaranteed, though that number can be used to determine eligibility for other aid, such as state money.
Most schools simply gap when federal, state, and whatever they have in their coffers does not meet need as defined by that EFC. The EFC tells you the least you can expect to pay after financial aid , in many cases, as many schools will not give need money over and beyond that. You have to pay at least your EFC to get any of the guaranteed federal subsidies.
CSS PROFILE includes other factors (almost always both parents’and their spouses‘ financial information) , usually primary home equity, business deductions , value and depreciation into the mix, just to mention a few things. Schools can use just about any measure they please when it come St disbursing their own money.
Also, most schools do not require PROFILE. Most just ask for FAFSA, and they fund what they can and want of a student’s need, gapping when they do not want to meet it. Some schools will request ancillary info in addition to FAFSA to get any of their money.
Hi. Hoping for some advice. First time soon applying for FAFSA for D '21. Our EFC is expected to be very high and positive we won’t qualify for need based FA but will need merit. Seems like almost all of the private LACs in the Northeast on D’s list do not require FAFSA for merit nor for Tuition Exchange which we are eligible for. Confused if we should submit FAFSA anyway? If the school sees our finances, would they decline TE or offer less merit thinking we can afford it? So confused! Thanks!
You don’t need to worry that the FAFSA information will influence merit awards that are not tied to need. If the awards took family ability to pay into consideration, they would require the FAFSA. Since they don’t, the scholarship will not take your FAFSA information into consideration.
I am not very familiar with how TE works - but because FAFSA information can only be provided to those within the school with a legitimate need to know, I don’t believe that they would have any access to your information.
Great, thank you, @kelsmom !
Why do some schools require a CSS plus FAFSA?
The CSS Profile asks more in-depth questions in order to gain a more complete picture of a family’s financial strength. Schools that require it typically (but not always). have more institutional funds to award than do non-Profile schools. The financial information on the FAFSA is relatively limited. By collecting additional information, schools make what they consider more informed decisions as they allocate their own grant funds.
@kelsmom could you address the appeals process due to job loss (in post#19 @HMom16 made?) In terms of who to speak with, what kind of documentation is needed, etc. And what is the outcome of these appeals? Is it difficult, with little chance of any change from the FA office?
And if this income in 2019 is now gone, could it still knock out eligibility for a PELL Grant in Fall 2021? If the current income would give a Zero EFC and cause student to be eligible for PELL?
There is no one answer to that question. Loss of income is a professional judgment call. Some schools will only review appeals for loss of income at a later date - the parent(s) could get a new job, so they wait. Other schools may review earlier, based on the current situation. Some do not entertain loss of income at all (they do not have to do so).
If the school does allow PJ appeals for loss of income, they will require documentation of the job loss, documentation of all income for a specified period of time (including previous job earnings, current job earnings if any, and unemployment compensation), and most likely they will request a signed statement indicating that the parent is still unemployed (if they are at the time of the appeal).
If the school does adjust the income, it may or may not make a difference in the aid package. Every situation is different. If the income was high and there were unemployment payments, the adjusted income may still be too high for anything but loans & work study at many schools. It could allow a student who would not have qualified for a subsidized loan to qualify for one, though. And for some, the outcome could be increased grant aid - maybe even a Pell grant. Each school has its own processes they follow for loss of income, so the results can vary a lot between schools. That is why it’s always good to try to appeal if income substantially changes. It might not yield measurable results in aid, but you won’t know unless you try.
Two questions:
- Is it possible through the common app to request financial aid at one school but not another?
- If we chose not to file a FAFSA or request aid for student for freshman year of college can we submit sophomore year?
Background:
I just completed the FAFSA for older kid (we’ve done it every year even though we’ve been considered full-pay). Our EFC dropped tremendously–finally below COA.
We have a child applying to schools this year whose stats are not great. Being able to say “no financial aid required” may help him in admissions and I’d love to give him every support we can. But I HATE to leave money on the table. Wondering if I can pick and choose schools to apply for aid at or not ask for any aid this coming year (we can swing that) and then file for sophomore year, once he’s in, and see if the school would offer something then for the remaining years.
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It’s been years since I had a child who used the common app, and I have no idea how it works in terms of answering the financial aid question by school. Someone else may know & chime in.
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The answer varies by school. At many schools, it won’t make a difference. However, at some, you have to file a FAFSA (and maybe Profile) for freshman year in order to get need based institutional aid in later years. You should investigate each school … look at their financial aid pages, and call/email to ask if you can’t find that information.
Is this college news aware for admissions? If not, the admissions office isn’t going to see your kid’s level of financial need at all.
The question on the common AP is yes/no. But you can call any college and say you have changed your mind and won’t be applying for any need based aid. Then also don’t submit the FAFSA to that school.
But you very well might be leaving money on the table…and if your kid isn’t in the ball park for admissions, being full pay isn’t going to get the student admitted.
So that they can get additional information that is not present on FAFSA.
They presumably know that there are “rich people tax accounting tricks” that allow rich people to declare low AGI and tax liability, so they want to use CSS Profile to find out more about some of their financial matters beyond plain old W-2 income.
Another reason for some colleges, which require the CSS Noncustodial Profile in addition (not all CSS Profile using colleges do), is to effectively exclude many students with uncooperative divorced parents from getting FA and to force those with rich cooperative divorced parents to pay more.
Sorry if this has already been asked.
Does anyone have experience adding schools to the CSS Profile after you’ve submitted it? Do they just ask you the supplemental questions from the schools you’re adding?
D is ED-ing and we would like to get it submitted for that, but plan B school list is still in flux.