<p>Does anyone have experience or know of anyone who has taken a gap year in order to work and save money for college? Without scholarships, there is no way I can afford college (minus loans, which I would prefer not to use since I would have to start out my life with debt.) So I was thinking that a possible option would be to take a gap year between senior year in hs and college, which I would use working hopefully full time (possibly and internship?) in order to save money for college. Btw, prospective majors are political science (and eventually law) and music. For music, the gap year would be beneficial as well because it would provide an extra year of practice and lessons on my instrument. Does anyone know if taking a year to work for college $ would influence my ability to get into college, and my ability to get scholarships? Thank in advance! (also- grades are high, I already participate in extracurricular activities, etc so I am not just trying to "beef up" my resume, in case this matters.)</p>
<p>Couple points.
It is reasonable to take on some debt in order to procure a college education.
Maximum Stafford loans or about $23,000 or so.
What ever income you earn during your gap year, will somewhat reduce any need based aid you receive.
Identifying schools that may give you a good merit aid package may mean attending a school where you are tops academically rather than in the middle.
You might consider using your gap year to engage in a govt funded volunteer program, like Americorps. This would earn you a small living stipend, but also education credits that don’t have to be used until you graduate ( you can either apply them to loans or tuition.)</p>
<p>It can and has been done, but you have to plan it carefully, and it all depends on your particular situation. Your financial need is primarily determined based on your PARENT’s financial situation. If that remains stable and you earn money, those earnings, outside of an allowance of about $7k, I believe are taken into account for your EFC. Plus any money you have accumulated will be hit up 20%. So you need to keep an eye on what you could lose in financial aid. Make sure you give your parents the money for expenses and let them save it for you, so that the funds are counted in a way more advantageous to you.</p>
<p>What is your particular situation, and what schools are you eyeing? Taking a gap year can help, but if you have 4 years to fund, it may be a very short lived help.</p>
<p>Our EFC is fairly high as we have what is considered a high income… However my parents are telling me that they have nothing to contribute, which leaves me stuck. I understand loans are normal to have, but it would be a lot better to start out life debt free. Cpt- are you saying that if I do decide to take a gap year and save up money, I should leave the money in my parents account so that my EFC isn’t raised? This would make sense, except that I thought until you were 24, you were financially independent on your parents, and therefore the govt didn’t look at your finances/savings but those of your parents. Schools I’m looking at are Eastman school of music at the U of Roch, Longy school of music, Ithaca school of music, Clark U, Holy Cross, and I’ve considered UMass schools but wasn’t sure if that was aiming low, although I’ve heard that state colleges have come a long way. Thanks for the advice!</p>
<p>KC, if your family EFC is high enough that you are not going to qualify for financial aid anyways, it won’t make a difference whose name is on a savings account. However, if you are in the ballpark for some aid, yes, it can make a difference. Any assets in your name are hit at the 20% rate by FAFSA whereas your parents are only hit at 5.6%. Those schools that use PROFILE may not abide by the same percentages, but I’ve been told that as a rule, student accounts are hit harder. </p>
<p>When you apply for financial aid, both your parents income and assets, and yours are needed. You
should look complete some sample FAFSAs and PROFILEs to see what you and your family are expected to contribute towards college. You should also look at what colleges will give financial aid that is close to or meeting need. I believe Holy Cross does guarantee to meet full need, or did at one time. These things change, so you do need current information.</p>
<p>If your parents are not going to pay for any of your education or very little of it, and they make enough money that the calculators come up with expected contributions that are substantial, your working for a year is not going to do much for closing the gap. What can you expect to make in a year? The top private schools are at the $60K per year range. Few kids who graduate from college, much less high school can gross what these schools are charging. In fact, these figures are for upper middle class income categories. Schools expect you and your parents to pay the amounts based on past, current and future income, which means savings from both you and your parents, any current income, and loans representing the future.</p>
<p>So before anyone can really help you here, we need some idea what your parents income and assets are so it can be determined if you are even in the ball park for financial aid.</p>
<p>Regardless of what you end up doing, you should apply for some safety schools which are financial safeties as well. If you are a Massachusetts resident, that means local state schools to which you can commute from home. Those will be the most important schools on your list because anything else is really a crap shoot in terms of admissions and getting the money you need.</p>
<p>The max Stafford/Direct loan limit is $27,000 for four years of college ($5500 first year, $6500 second year, $7500 each additional year). The lifetime limit is $31,000 for undergraduates. $27,000 is a reasonable amount of debt for a new grad.</p>
<p>Of course it is better to start out life debt-free, but you have to consider whether or not it is <em>realistic</em> for you to start out life debt-free. Even at a public four-year university, it is unlikely that you are able to cover tuition, fees, room AND board, plus personal expenses, with just the money you save from a gap year (even if you do Americorps and get educational credits).</p>
<p>Are you a tip-top student (top 10% of class, high grades, 2100+ SAT scores)? You may also consider applying to schools at which you have a really good chance of getting merit aid.</p>