<p>Are there any top schools (with great FinAid) that don't take away Institutional Grants (etc.) due to outside scholarships? Do any let you use scholarships for EFC? Because that's the only way I can afford any of them (parents aren't paying any, though they have a good enough income to give us about $10,000 EFC per year).</p>
<p>Probably not.</p>
<p>As for a “good enough income”…what is their income approx?? If it’s a good income, the EFC may be more than $10k</p>
<p>Protect yourself and apply to some schools that will give you HUGE, HUGE scholarships as your safeties.</p>
<p>Why won’t your parents help out at all?</p>
<p>If you apply to a no loan school, then you can use $5500 loan towards the EFC, use summer income, etc, to help cover the rest.</p>
<p>Well, yes, there are. You have to read the outside scholarship rules for each school. I believe Johns Hopkins lets you keep outside awards for at least the freshman year, and I know Colorado College does not integrate outside awards with college financial aid awards, These things change year to year, so you have to check it out one by one.</p>
<p>Most government aid such as PELL or subsidized loans and state grants MUST be need based, so if you get other aid, they are reduced by law. But a college can do what they want with their own money. Some may permit use of the funds for supplies, transportation costs, a new computer, books, etc before reducing. </p>
<p>My opinion on all of this is that it is a danged good problem to have. The challenge is getting full need met from ANY college and getting ANY outside merit awards. If you can get accepted to a school that meets your full need, that’s a big deal achievement. </p>
<p>Most schools that give aid, package self help in there, and if there is any reduction in that aid, almost always the self help part goes first. And so when you lose Work Study or subsidized loans, you can then take out the Stafford unsubsidize ones and get a job on your own.</p>
<p>It depends. I attend Bentley University, and they did not touch my merit-based, school-awarded aid. However, when I reported my outside scholarships to them (which piled up quickly), they began cutting my need-based aid. The issue there though was that I had too much aid; I have since cut down to no need-based aid and attend for free, so my outside scholarships cover my EFC.</p>
<p>Cpt…Pell Grants are never reduced “by law”. If you get a full ride scholarship that covers COA…and you also qualify for Pell, you STILL get Pell…it’s an entitlement…you get it no matter what.</p>
<p>Sorry, Pell is exempt from federal reduction. You are right. However, most college will integrate their awards for Pell, as an in-house policy.</p>
<p>the problem this student has it that he’s looking at schools that give great FA (probably meets need), but will naturally expect his family to pay their “family contribution”. These schools generally will reduce aid if outside merit comes in.</p>
<p>However, if the school has put loans in the FA pkg, then they might reduce THOSE first, which means that the student can then take out that amount in a student loan to put towards EFC. So, if the student has a 5500 student loan in his pkg, and he gets a $3k outside scholarship and the school reduces the loan by $3k, he can then get that loan back and use it to reduce EFC.</p>
<p>The student needs to also consider one very important point. Outside scholarships are usually ONLY for frosh year. So, if paying the family contribution is helped for frosh year, the problem will come back for soph, jr, and sr years. College is a 4 year ordeal. Affording it for frosh year only will only create problems later.</p>
<p>CMarshall…tell us more…what schools are you applying to? What is your estimated family contribution??? How much will your parents pay each year? </p>
<p>Keep in mind that if you choose a school that is barely affordable your frosh year, and then it’s later not affordable, transferring to an affordable school will be difficult. Any big merit offers you have from other schools as an incoming frosh will disappear if you transfer later.</p>
<p>A question along the same line:</p>
<p>Would the external scholarship be counted as income so that it may affect the second year institutional aid?</p>
<p>It was a long time ago, but my outside scholarship, which was need based and required that I qualify for free lunch, which I did, specified certain schools that it would not allow because the institution would reduce their grant. They negotiated deals with other schools to only reduce the self-help portion which included loans. MIT reduced my loans.</p>
<p>ace no.</p>
<p>But scholarships and grants can be taxable.</p>