<p>Also, FA can change year to year. What one school may offer you for your Freshman year may not be the same for your Junior year if parent income goes up. It doesn’t need to go up a lot to change FA. So even if you think you can afford ED based on a school’s NPC, remember it is not the same as receiving a guaranteed merit scholarship.</p>
<p>We have successfully used ED with high need but just want to put out a word of caution that this should only be done at schools with no-loan or loan cap policies. Full aid including excessive loans is not a good thing. If Vanderbilt is no loan then it’s a good choice. Those who are self-employed, own a business, rental property, second homes, etc., should be aware their financial aid situations may be more complicated than they expect, even if their income is low.</p>
<p>Of course the devil is in the details… Schools say they will meet 100% of need but each has their own definition of “need”. It sometimes comes down to being eligible for loans, but as we all know, that can be an expensive option. </p>
<p>There are obviously issues with the entire ED process, and some inequity in that it definitely favors wealthier students. But I don’t see it being that different from the edge recruited athletes have in that they gain acceptances to select with far inferior academic records than other schools. For the moment, the system is what it is. Families have to make their own decisions knowing what their ability and tolerance is to pay relative to what type of schools their child is considering. </p>
<p>Best to have some clear, direct conversations early in the process so that parents and kids know what the parameters are for selecting schools. </p>
<p>Thanks for all the info. Trying to understand it all. If she applied ED and gets accepted I know she has to pull any apps anywhere else. My question, I also know the only way to not take that ED is if it is a financial reason. When do you get your final financial package? If ED is due by Nov 1 and you learn by the end of December, when do you get the financial info to be able to know it is workable? Does that come with it? Does that not come till after you file taxes next February? </p>
<p>Why wait till February?
When oldest applied to college, I had filed PROFILE in November and FAFSA, January 2nd.</p>
<p>Usually the FA offer comes within a week of the ED admission. </p>
<p>I mean our taxes we have to file with the IRS. I didn’t know if final college FA packages waited till you filed your taxes next spring. I know the CSS opens soon and the FAFSA Jan 1, I was referring to our tax filing once our W2s come in.</p>
<p>This was what I had received from Holy Cross FA office that made me wonder when the final FA notice would come. It makes it sound like it would not be till Spring:</p>
<p>Hi Mrs. Bulger,</p>
<p>We try to get an early read financial aid letter out within a matter of weeks after a student is accepted. Then, once we have your 2014 Tax Return information, a final 1040 review is completed and the students award is finalized.</p>
<p>Your initial FA offer is based on your forecasted income and other data. That will be adjusted when the real info comes in. It’s to your advantage to make your forecast as close as possible to the real info so your FA offer changes only minimally.</p>
<p>And it’s likely no mystery if you are a family for whom your forecast income and tax info is likely to be accurate or not. If you have a lot of capital gains income- particularly in mutual funds- you may be surprised in early or mid-December by a high capital gain which the fund has opted to distribute. If you get a bonus at work which is highly variable, or you work in real estate or other commissioned sales, and you forecast that a fourth quarter sale is going to result in a payment in early January but instead it comes in late December- again, a surprise.</p>
<p>But you know your own tax history. If you are a straight salary employee whose last paycheck is dated December 28th and your “other income” is small dividend or interest payments from a savings account or a few stock holdings, your estimate is going to be pretty accurate after ED/EA. There aren’t that many scenarios which will alter the basis of your tax return.</p>