<p>USC will bill you by the semester, so half will be billed in August - and you can sign up for the payment plan for that Aug-Dec, and the other half in January - and the payment plan for that will be Jan-May.</p>
<p>It won’t be $5,194, however.</p>
<p>The cost of attendance includes allowances for books and supplies, travel, and personal expenses. Those will not be billed by USC - you will purchase those things on your own. The work/study will be paid to you, and you can use it to pay the monthly payments.</p>
<p>USC will bill you for tuition, room and board, insurance (which many are able to waive with their own insurance), and any funds you add to your discretionary account. That bill will be offset by your grants and loans of $48,034.</p>
<p>If you and your parents can swing the $5,000, then it is a fantastic package! If you can’t manage the $5,000+ EFC, contact the school and see if they can help. They must have considered some assets the FAFSA did not - can you access those assets for the $5,000?</p>
<p>Shinywing,
If you add up the USC grant alone it is over $140,000 you are being granted. That money did not come from the government. It came from alumni and friends of the university who donate, some in small amounts each month. </p>
<p>How about a finding a job over the summer? That could help a bit for extra expenses. As almamemom wrote if there is no possibility of finding the family contribution make an appointment with the financial aid office. Bring supporting documents.</p>
<p>Also, at SC within your school there are scholarships given to continuing students. Study, study, study and earn those top grades and perhaps you will be in a position to apply and receive a scholarship in the future.</p>
<p>What I am saying is that USC will not be billing you for some those things, but they are included in your aid. The “EFC” is not something they will send you a bill for - much of your EFC will be money you spend on books or a plane ticket - but USC (and most colleges) include those things as part of your budget and award aid for them. So if USC bills you for a total of $52,602 for example (tuition, fees, room & board) the balance after your grants and loans are applied is $4,568 for the year. Half of that would be due in August, or you can set up the payment plan. The $2,500 work/study will be paid to you as you earn it and could go toward those payments, making the out-of pocket $2,068 for the year. (I know this is confusing - I was just as confused at first myself! The financial aid office explains this thousand of times each year, so if it still isn’t clear, give them a call - they are very helpful.) </p>
<p>By the way, the books and supplies category assumes you purchase new books from the USC bookstore. By buying used books online, you can probably save $500-$700 on that category.</p>
<p>So my family only has to pay $5194 to USC per year. and those $5194 ALREADY includes the fees for book/supplies, personal expenses, etc? So all I have to do is to pay the $5194 to USC and I don’t have to pay EXTRA money for personal expenses?</p>
<p>I’m sorry that if I still don’t get it. I’m not a fast-learner…:/</p>
<p>Think of the 5194 as an index they used to figure out how much aid they would award to you, not as a dollar amount. Now we will go step-by-step:</p>
<p>Using that index, they awarded you
$42,534 in grants
$3,500 in subsidized loans
$2,000 in unsubsidized loans</p>
<p>For a total of $48,534 that they use to directly offset things they bill you for like tuition and room and board. Based on the budget in the post above, they will bill you for approximately $52,602.</p>
<p>$52,602 - $48,534 = $4,806.</p>
<p>$4,806 is the (approximate) amount you and your family will have to pay (using the monthly payment plan) to USC. On a ten-month basis, that would be about $481/month.</p>
<p>You have also been awarded work/study of $2,500 which will be paid directly to you. You can use your paychecks toward the monthly payments. Again, on a ten-month basis, that would be income of about $250/month.</p>
<p>Using the work/study to go toward your payments means you would have $481 - $250 = $231/month for your parents to cover for USC’s billed costs.</p>
<p>Here is the important part to remember: Not included in the billed costs are things like travel, personal expenses and books. You have to buy those yourself.</p>
<p>Try not to think of it as a dollar amount… think of it as an index used to calculate your aid.</p>
<p>The reason there is a difference is that they recognize that there are expenses you have to cover beyond the amount they will bill you for. That is figured into both the cost of attendance and your aid. The amount you will be billed is less than that index number because you need some of that money for books, personal expenses and travel.</p>
<p>oh, so the “real” EFC (excluding ALL those personal expenses, travel, etc) is $4806? and the reason why they say that the EFC is $5194 is because that extra $388 (5194-4806) is the amount that I need for personal expenses, etc?</p>
<p>We would LOVE to get an FA package like that! Still waiting, though. I wish they would hurry and decide. I can’t imagine what’s taking them so long—it’s not like we make a HUGE amount or have many assets. Our EFC is $15,000. I hope that doesn’t mean we’ll only be offered a bunch of loans.</p>
<p>To shiny: Nooooooooo! The EFC, ultimately, has nothing to do with how much you pay! The EFC is used as an index to calculate your aid package. Just forget that number. At this point (aid package presented),what a year at USC costs has to do with your aid and your individual expenses.</p>
<p>You live in New York for example. Your travel costs are sure to be *more *than the budgeted amount. If you shop on Rodeo Drive for all your clothes your personal expenses will be *more *than the budgeted amount. If you shop online for used books, your books and supplies will be way less than the budgeted amount.</p>
<p>You must now let GO of that index number… LET GO!!!</p>
<p>okay…so that EFC is basically useless for me. It’s only used for USC to calculate my aid package? So…I received $48534 (42532 + 2000 + 3500) FROM USC. and my family has to pay (the cost of attendance - $48534) to USC? (Let’s forget about the books/supplies, personal expenses, etc)</p>
<p>Shinywing – for '09-10 the USC cost of attendance included:
$1,500 Books and supplies
$896 Personal and Miscellaneous
$580 Transportation</p>
<p>I don’t see a 2010-11 figure yet – but there might be one on your award letter. I would expect that each of these items has increased a little bit for next year. You can call the USC FA office as ask what their cost of attendance is if it is not on your letter.</p>
<p>The costs built in for books, personal, and transportation are not costs you or your family would pay USC – you buy those things as they’re needed, and they are often an area where students can significantly economize. </p>
<p>It looks like you got a GREAT financial aid package from USC – congratulations!</p>
<p>shiny - I quoted and linked the 2010-2011 COA in post #7 of this thread. The figures USC will bill include tuition, mandatory fees, room and board. Also the orientation fee listed at the end. The rest of the estimates will not be billed by USC - they will be your expenses.</p>
<p>tokdoc - yes, in the past two years most packages were available by about the 8th or 9th of April. If anyone had paperwork turned in recently (as opposed to by March 2nd) or hasn’t submitted tax returns + W2s, it will take a bit longer.</p>
<p>It seems to take forever, but everyone still has until May 1st to make a decision or ask for an adjustment. You will have at least a couple of weeks to sort through the numbers (and recover from the shock).</p>
I can’t imagine what’s taking them so long—it’s not like we make a HUGE amount or have many assets. Our EFC is $15,000. I hope that doesn’t mean we’ll only be offered a bunch of loans.</p>