<p>I’m from 2009/2010, not <2008, but I guess I’m an old-timer by now. 
And I’ll give my usual spiel about applying to schools that meet full need, especially those that have no-loans or capped-loans policies, IF AND ONLY IF you have an affordable EFC and equivalent PROFILE family contribution.</p>
<p>It’s always nerve-wracking to fill out FA forms every year, but for the past two years (1 first-year award + 1 returning-student award) my extremely generous top LAC has calculated an expected family contribution a few thousand dollars BELOW our FAFSA EFC. We have a straightforward financial situation–mortgage on primary home, non-self-employed, assets almost entirely in retirement savings–plus some special circumstances that my college accounts for beyond FAFSA/PROFILE. But we started with an FAFSA EFC in the 18-20k range, affordable for a middle-class family that worked its way up from nothing (meaning, we have never been remotely upper-middle-class), and in the end it was the right decision to aim at need-based aid rather than the very large merit scholarships I would have needed to bring a 55k/year school down to 20k.</p>
<p>My parents have paid for the first two years without any loans, on their or my part, which is a HUGE burden lifted. If your plan for paying for college involves more than 30k of debt at graduation, and it’s not your absolute cheapest option, please reconsider. I was lucky enough to get the best of both worlds with “typical” family finances and the stats to get into a full-need no-loans school that I love, but my extensive post history will show that I spent a LOT of time considering backups.</p>