We have a freshman at community college and a senior in HS who was just accepted to UC Davis. They are the first in our family to go to a four year college. I was hoping that that my senior would have gotten something due to her academics to help with tuition.
She really doesn’t want to go to community college but I really don’t know how we will be able to financially support her. Especially since we still have two more girls to put thru college.
She does not qualify for FAFSA. I don’t know if anyone will have any suggestions or recommendations but anything advice is appreciated. Thanks.
Why do you mean “she doesn’t qualify for fafsa”?
Is she an international student?
No, we are in California. Both my husband and I together make to much for them to qualify for anything. But we don’t make enough to put her thru a UC.
By filing a fafsa, your daughter would be able to take a $5500 direct loan for her first year.
So…what you are saying is…your daughter wouldn’t qualify for a Pell Grant…or the Calgrant?
Is there a CSU within commuting distance?
You should be able to qualify for the Blue and Gold, or the next step up, the Middle Class scholarship. If you make more than $125K then I have to wonder why there is no 529 account.
@“aunt bea”
I thought the middle class scholarship was being phased out.
Also, this is a HS senior. If she didn’t do the fafsa and have her GPA submitted by March 2, she missed the Calgrant deadline for this year. Does that include Blue and Gold Promise?
Re: no 529 account…we never had one either…our financial,advisor suggested we put our max into retirement accounts with the idea that we would build up,a sizable nest egg to earn interest…and could stop or reduce contributions to pay for college when the time came.
Not everyone has 529 accounts.
MCS is being phased out but I had heard that some dollars might still be available at some schools.
If she didn’t submit FAFSA by March 2nd, then she may be out of luck.
http://financialaid.ucdavis.edu/undergraduate/types/blue-gold.html
@LeoGirl75, did you fill out the FAFSA by March 2nd? Contact the FA office at Davis and find out what your options are. Also, living off campus at Davis is a LOT cheaper than living on campus. Check out the Davis wiki page: https://localwiki.org/davis/
FWIW: My daughter LOVED Davis!
She is a 4.4 GPA student and signed up for FAFSA.
She did not get anything. The only thing they recommend was to get financial aide.
I’m sorry if I sound “green” but I’m new to this so I’m trying to wrap my head around it all.
Thanks
Thanks Aunt Bea I will do that.
Forgot to mention, Davis does divide payments by quarters. They also have a payment plan, but ask first about the Blue and Gold.
I will definitely ask about that. Thanks!
@“aunt bea”
Can she live off campus her freshman year? She seems to think that she can’t until her second year.
Yes:
http://housing.ucdavis.edu/__pdf/2014_living_at_ucdavis_residencehalls.pdf
You can contact the housing office and explain your situation. There are other freshman students who can’t afford the housing fees. Also, she can purchase a meal plan, but most students who live off campus typically go to one of the Safeways in North Davis or South Davis. The whole town is mostly apartments rented by Davis students.
I forgot to add:
Get a Discover Card. Davis only accepts that card for any CC payments. We didn’t have that card so we had to apply for a Discover card. Who knew? Also keep good records of the online codes for accessing the bills. They are lengthy and weird.
Also, Davis has its own bus system that was developed, originally, by the students of Davis.
The buses are free to students, with ID, and travel all over the town of Davis, so, students who live in off-campus apartments can choose to bike in, or take the bus to campus and get dropped off at the MU. The campus and town are very safe. Make sure you go to admitted student’s day.
Every student has a bike. There are ~40K bikes on campus. Buy a cheapie bike (they do get stolen often), with a Kryptonite lock, and be sure it has a back fender to avoid the “freshman” stripe.
Good Luck!
If she is not going to live on campus and experience freshman college life, then why not go to a much cheaper CSU or community college? Davis isn’t in a tier above those, except maybe for a couple specialty majors, so why pay for that if not living it? The CSUs are much cheaper and just as good in this situation. Try to visit, I know many that don’t like Davis because of all the bikes and the many broken collar bones every year! 
I personally know two that crashed recently - one ankle and one shoulder injury.
Obviously the least expensive route, and maybe the best with as many kids as you have to get through college is to do the cc route and transfer after two year. 125K isn’t much in a lot of CA areas with a good size family so I get not having a lot put away. That is starting salary for 20 somethings with no expenses but rent and a car in SV tech companies these days.
The town of Davis is so small she WILL experience college life because almost everyone in the town is a student. It will take her 5 minutes to get to the main campus from either side of town.
It is a very different college and is really different from a large CSU or community college.
In the 4 years that my daughter was there, I hadn’t heard of one accident with injuries.
Forgot to add: Ultimately, it all depends on your costs^^^.
What is her ACT/SAT/PSAT/EFC? Did she apply elsewhere? What did the NPC for Davis show?
Did her HS guidance counselor send her GPA verification for Calgrant money before March 2?
Has she checked her UCD portal for financial aid information? If she has potential Calgrant money, it might show as pending.
You keep saying “she didn’t get anything”. Are you referring to merit aid?