University of Vermont

I was recently accepted to University of Vermont with the Presidential Scholarship, waiting for Financial Aid. Can anyone who was OOS tell me how much need UVM met?

UVM does not guarantee to meet full need for all. So…what %age of need one student gets met is going to have NO bearing on what another student might receive.

Does your FAFSA EFC make you Pell Grant eligible?

If not, the only guaranteed need aid you will get is a $5500 Direct Loan.

For most students, UVM doesn’t provide need based aid to make up the difference between in and out of state costs…and as you know, their OOS cost is very high.

Good luck…and you will just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, make sure you have an affordable application option just in case UVM is NOT affordable.

UVM meet almost but not all of the 2019-2020 need as determined by FAFSA for my D. Considering that it is merit aid with the presidential scholarship and it does not go away when my oldest graduates ( affecting the need calculation) we are probably within a 3-5 thousand $$ over 4 years.

@vonThunen how much more aid do you need in addition to the Presidential Scholarship?

It sounds like the Presidential Scholarship MET most of the need for @jmk518

@jmk518 UVM gave your kiddo merit aid. Did you get need based aid at all? Because if your kid got merit aid…the school didn’t meet NEED at all…it awarded a scholarship based on merit.

Yes she got the federal loans + merit aid. It added up to an amount that was just short of the fafsa EFC.

@vonThunen Did you run the net price calculator?

It should give you estimated costs for tuition, fees, room and board (might be based on 2018/19 so consider that it will increase).

Subtract the presidential scholarship and student loan of $5,500 from that, what is the remaining cost?

This is really a merit award plus loan…the loans anyone can take as long as taking them won’t exceed the cost of attendance when added to other aid.

It sounds like the OP is expecting significant need based aid in addition to the Presidential Scholarship…which apparently did NOT meet his family need. This just might not happen.

@vonThunen how much MORE aid do you need added to that Presidential Scholarship to attend UVM.

This is on the UVM website…

So…your scholarship will be calculated into your overall package.

The OOS cost of attendance at UVM is nearly $57,000 for THIS academic year. IIRC, that Presidential award is $20,000…is that correct? Add to that the $5500 Direct Loan. So you have $34,000 more to cover.

UVM Pres scholarship is 20,000

For those that might be reading this in the future, know that there is a range of financial awards within the Presidential Scholarship; my D was awarded $17K, not $20K.

@Bubblewrap666 My mistake, thank you!

@thumper1 My Presidential Scholarship was indeed $20,000 and my efc came out to about $12,000.

I’m wondering how much I can expect to receive in aid with these numbers, obviously the more the better!

Well…at the very least, your family will be expected to pay your EFC. At least.

Just wait and see what your financial aid offer is…and make sure you have an affordable option just in case UVM is not affordable.

How much are your parents saying they can pay…per year. Right now…you have a shortfall that exceeds $30,000 or so…and that’s including the Direct Loan. Can they pay most of that? Some of that? None of that?

Your EFC is too high for any federally funded grant money. But your family take home income probably is close to the full cost of attendance at UVM…right? Think about that. Does that sound affordable?

Just keep your options and mind open to affordable options as well. UVM is a great school…but not worth $35,000 a year of undergrad debt, IMO.

“and make sure you have an affordable option just in case UVM is not affordable”

I think that this is the most important point. Second might be to try to relax and just wait and see what the offers look like, and remember that UVM does not guarantee to meet full need.

For us the NPC for UVM was exactly spot on. This does not necessarily mean that it will be for anyone else.

@vonThunen

Did you do the net price calculator for UVM?

Are your parents divorced? Do they own a business? Are they self employed? Do they own real estate other than your primary residence? Are you an international student? If NO to all of these…then do the net price calculator. What does the UVM net price calculator say about your net cost??

@thumper1 my parents are divorced. They almost definitely will not be contributing more than $5,000 (absolute max combined) per year. I would definitely not attend the school if it meant $35,000 a year of debt, I’m hoping for it to be much closer to my efc. I already received my financial aid package from UNH, and it put my cost of attendance at about $15,000 so I’m hoping UVM will be similar to that. I’m willing to be an RA, participate in work study, etc to help make it more affordable.

Are you instate for UNH?

Getting a job will help…but it won’t make $30,000 worth of help per year.

How are you planning to pay $15,000 to attend UNH if your parents will only give you combined $5000? You seem to be $15,000 a year short there…not $5000.

Yes, being an RA will help if you are selected after the very competitive and rigorous interview process…and you can not even do this your freshman year.

I’m not meaning to be a Debbie downer here…but really…where is the rest of that money going to come from?

Even if you get the costs down to your EFC (which is doubtful), you still have a $12,000 EFC and your family is giving you only $5000. You are still $7000 short.

@thumper1 I am not instate for UNH either.

I know I can’t be an RA my first year and that a job can’t pay a full tuition, I’m just saying that’s what I’m willing to do. I’m also applying to as many small and big outside scholarships as possible to cover the difference. Obviously the first year will be the most expensive

No…the first year will NOT be the most expensive. What makes you say THAT? Count on your tuition costs to increase about 3-4% each year. Your Presidential Scholarship is a fixed amount.

And MOST of the outside scholarships are small…and for one year only. They are not renewable. Check that too.

What about YOUR instate public universities…where maybe your costs would be reasonable.

Be realistic…have something affordable in the mix.

@mom2collegekids anything I missed here?

@thumper1 Being an RA, living off campus, saving up money, that equals less expensive.

Outside scholarships are small, that’s why I’m applying to over 40 of them, including renewable ones.

Frankly I’m not worried about affording $7,000-10,000 a year, that’s nothing

I don’t agree.

You are assuming you will ONLY have to pay your family EFC. Keep in mind…that is the minimum you will be paying.

If you think you can pay $15,000 a year for UNH, fine. But it would not be a happy situation if you find that you can’t cover your college costs for futile years. So…don’t be overly optimistic with your cost estimates and your earning potential while in college…and your ability to get an RA job…and also those outside scholarships.

Be realistic also…a realistic person would also have an affordable option on their table. It sounds like you don’t. That’s a mistake…imho.