So Confused and Lost

Paying for College
1

<p>Hey everyone, I'm looking for some answers and advice. </p>

<p>It appears as though I will be, along with the numerous other burdens of the college process, taking the financial aid part on as well. I know that there are two basic forms for financial aid - I think. The federal government one, FAFSA (or something similar =)) and the Profile, which is the uniform form for all aid originiating from the college itself. Correct me if I am wrong here.</p>

<p>Now, most of the schools that I will be applying to are top liberal arts schools which don't offer any merit aide. Some of my other schools that are lower down (Conn. College, Clark, Skidmore, Brandeis) do offer merit aid, which I assume I will be applying for. Now, many of my top schools, Swat, Wes, Brown, Dartmouth, Amherst, I believe are need blind and meet 100% need based, or something close to it. My familiy is in that "middle" position. An annual base salary of about 115k. not too much, but not too little. I don't want to apply for financial aid to my top schools because I assume although it won't hurt me, it will help me to some degree. I will, I assume, be applying for aid to my lower tier schools because that won't affect my admission chances as much and because I will be able to qualify for merit aid hopefully. </p>

<p>Now if I do end up applying for aid to my top schools what I assume I will be getting is mostly loans. If this is the case, I am sure I can get a loan from a bank with an equivilent interest rate, if not a better one. </p>

<p>What I have been told to do is call up each of my 11 schools, remain anonymoyous, talk to a financial aid person, and give them my information and ask for an approximate breakdown. Has anyone done this in the past?</p>

<p>As you can see, I'm pretty much lost in this process. I don't even know if I have my forms right, or if each school as their own. Any help anyone can give would be so appreciated, and be a huge stress reliever. </p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

2

<p>Apply for aid to ALL schools that you have made application to. Fill out the FAFSA and not all schools use "the profile". You need to check each school's FA website for deadlines, forms etc.</p>

3

<p>I wouldn't bother calling 11 schools anonymously. Even if you got straight information, what would you do with it?</p>

<p>The best thing to do is save your energy for researching exactly what needs to be done, and when, at each school, and then doing it on time. Then you will be "So NOT Confused and Lost."</p>

4

<p>As hazmat said, apply for aid to ALL schools. If they are need blind, that means they do not look at your financial aid application to determine whether or not to admit. It cannot hurt you to apply; it CAN hurt you NOT to apply, as you may lose out on loans, work study, maybe even small grants. ALL schools will require the FAFSA. Some will also require the CSS Profile. A few may also require other forms, such as your parents' tax forms. Check each school's website to be sure of what they want.</p>

<p>I would NOT call all the schools anonymously. You can use a financial aid estimator (linked somewhere on this site) to get an idea of what your EFC will be. Otherwise, you really have to wait for each school's offer. Any estimate made over the phone to an anonymous student would not be very accurate.</p>

5

<p>I thought FAFSA was the Federal Gov. financial assistance, not the college itself while the Profile was insitutional aid. Am I right or wrong here, and what is the difference? Do people apply for aid from the school and gov? Or do I have it all mixed up?</p>

<p>I assume that if I dont apply for aid that can only help me. While applying surely won't hurt my chances, it can't help. If admissions holds two candidates in the same light academically, extracurc, and the whole 9 yards, but one applies for aid and the other isn't, they will accept the one who isn't. Its common sense- there is only so much aid to be given out. </p>

<p>The other thing that continues to trouble me is if i do apply for aid, I believe I'm in that range where I will only be getting loans from the college or federal government (still confused here), but I can get a loan at a bank without applying for aid - which would be to my benefit. Workstudy only adds a few thousand at best, so I'm leaving that out of the picture.</p>

6

<p>FAFSA is not federal government assistance, but simply a form that collects that data required to show your expected family contribution (EFC). Once that is in hand, the college will put together an aid package of loans, grants, work-study etc. You HAVE to have it on file even if you DON'T get any government subsidized aid - even if ALL your aid comes from the college. The Profile provides additional info for the college that the FAFSA doesn't. Only some schools require it.</p>

<p>Loans: the college doesn't loan money. They list loans as part of your aid package, and then the loans are federally subsidized. As for borrowing privately without applying for aid - check the rates at various banks. The federal rates used to be ridiculously low - and you got points off the interest for paying on time, so last year my niece was paying only 2.38%! They've gone up, but she is only paying $2 more a month from last year! </p>

<p>Will applying for aid help or hurt? People will deny this, but you are right. Not applying for aid is better. Check out all the threads with the words "enrollment management" (or see the Atlantic Monthly Nov. issue, or google "enrollment management") or "need blind." The latter DOES NOT EXIST - at least not in the way we all wish to understand it!. This has been THOROUGHLY researched, so don't let anyone tell you otherwise. That said, you should still apply for aid if you need it.</p>

7

<p>Thanks nedad, that helps a lot. Couple more things -</p>

<p>Does anyone know where I can get a link to an EFC calculator?</p>

<p>I thought education loans were interest free- am I wrong here?</p>

<p>One needs to apply for financial aid to be considered for merit scholarships, correct?</p>

<p>And finally, in your honest opinion, is not applying for aid to my top schools because I can indeed afford it, just not easily worth it? Do the gains exceed the losses here? Just looking for opinions. I mean, if it will significantly improve my chances to my ED school (Swarthmore) then I would like to think I would simply tough it out and not apply for aid. Besides, I can always apply for aid sophmore year, right? Paying full tuition and taking out some loans one year in turn for getting into my first choice school doesn't seem all that bad. Do a lot of people apply for financial aid sophmore year? Are they just as willing to give it if you demonstrate need?</p>

<p>I truly appreciate all the help - its a large stress reliever.</p>

8

<p>Student Loans are NOT interest free. Google 'college efc calculator' and pick from the cast of thousands. You merit aid question is a school by school answer.</p>

9

<p>SOME student loans, however, have the interest paid (by the government) while you're a full-time student, up until 6 months after you graduate.</p>

<p>What this means to you is that, essentially, while in school, your loans (if they are the right kind) are interest free. This doesn't mean you shouldn't be making small payments to them while in school, and it doesn't mean they will remain interest free to you until they're paid off.</p>

<p>Ultimately, it is up to you and your parents whether you apply for aid or not. If you're doing so to get a couple thousand dollars more than you can cover without aid, then it's probably not worth it. If you're looking at taking a majority of the cost of attendance on yourself, you WILL want financial aid. Would you feel comfortable going to Swarthmore knowing you would rack up nearly $200,000 in debt upon graduation?</p>

10

<p>I have heard that, at some colleges, if you do not apply for aid as a freshman, you are not eligible in later years. I do not know that as a fact, but have heard it on this board. You may want to check into that at your respective schools to make sure you don't shoot yourself in the foot by not applying for aid.</p>

<p>Also, at some schools you must fill out FAFSA even for merit aid.</p>

11

<p>descant,</p>

<p>In case you are still looking for a financial aid estimator (and a lot of other financial information) you can find what you are looking at on
<a href="http://www.finaid.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.finaid.org&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Go to the calculators link and once there, choose the institutional methodology.</p>

<p>I believe that you will qualify for financial aid, perhaps even some grants at the upper tier, need-blind schools, as long as there are not major assets along with the income. The aid calculators will help you determine this!</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

12

<p>hi descant,</p>

<p>i've skimmed some of the answers you've been getting to your original post and it seems to me some contain wrong or misleading information. i know it's tedious and time consuming, but the best way to give yourself a course on the financial aid scene is to study up on it, eg start with something general (the chapters in the fiske college books are good), then move on to the publications of the individual colleges and aid agencies (government or private) you are interested in. finally, talk with a college counselor at your high school (or your child's high school). and, you can also simply call up the financial aid offices of a particular college and ask to speak to someone in the know. after all, they're selling a very pricey product, they ought to help one learn how to finance it!</p>

<p>finally, to complicate the complex matter even more, a bright student can and often will be offered "aid", actually a money incentive or "bribe", if he or she applies to a less sought-after school that s/he is very well-qualified for. the offer will simply show up with the admission letter and can amount to a considerable amount of money and is not dependant on the filling out of financial aid applications. some schools may make this offer earlier in the process.</p>

<p>there are many reasons to consider some of the many good schools out there that are not "top tier" or even second tier, and this is one of them--especially if saving money on your BA/BS degree will make graduate education more affordable.</p>

<p>good luck.</p>