Hello, I am an international student from Japan, planning to apply to Oberlin ED.
I am currently working on the Certification of Finances, and stuck on section 8.
My family does have a savings account, but we do not have enough money in the bank to pay for all four years of college (minus what we plan to apply for aid).
In this case, is it better to write in 8a that we have assured support from our savings account for the first year, and write in 8b that we will provide the tuition for the next three years from my parents’ income? (meaning, we leave blank the last three boxes of 8a)
Or, should I write the estimated amount of savings I will have for the 2nd, 3rd, adn 4th years of college?
I am confused because the term “savings” seems to differ from what we think as “savings” in Japan…
Thank you in advance.
“Savings” refer to how much money (or quickly liquifiable assets like stocks/bonds) you have NOW.
Thank you for your reply!
So is it okay if we don’t have enough money in our savings for four years?
Maybe you do have enough. But you won’t know for sure until you get the financial aid offer.
Yes, maybe…
Specifically, we are planning to apply for a $22000 financial aid out of a $63500 tuition for the first year.
Will it seem strange if we say we can only pay for $41500 when we have slightly (but not that much)more in our savings account?
You don’t apply for a specific amount of aid here. You apply for aid and the school computes what your need based aid award will be. This is based on parent income mostly…and assets.
You are saying you can lay $40,000 a year? This implies that your incime and assets are on the high side.
It is very possible you won’t qualify for need based aid at Oberlin.
What IS your parent annual income? They will be expected to show that they can pay the amount Oberlin computes they should pay…not what they think they can pay.
You don’t apply for a specified amount of aid. You just provide all your family’s financial data to the school, and it decides how much it is willing to give to you.
My parent’s annual income is about 115k.
The problem is, my father’s turning 67 next year and I assume he won’t be able to work for much longer.
Also, considering that $1=120 yen at the current rate, he will have to work a LOT.
However, he is willing to pay full tuition if need be.
How much aid do I qualify for?
Sorry for my ignorance. My parents do not know anything about U.S. colleges, and neither do I…
My guidance couselor at school does not know anything about the financial process or situation of US colleges.
GMT plus- Thank you, I understand. Oberlin claims 100% meet-need, so I am counting on that.
What are your assets too? Those count! In other words, do you own a house that is paid for, or how much is the equity in that house. That will count. How much do your parents have in regular savings…the total amount. That will count.
Based on your income alone…your parents will likely be paying about $30,000 plus a year for you to attend college here.
But I’m guessing based on incime alone. Any assets will add to that. If they have $100,000 in the bank, it will add an amount to your family contribution. If they own a house that has $400,000 in equity, that will also add to your family contribution.
Also…that $115,000 a year…is that net income (after taxes) or gross income (before taxes)?
thumper1-
We don’t have any assets. We don’t own a house - we pay rent.
We only have 5K in regular savings.
(Wait, isn’t regular savings the same as the “savings” on the Certification of Finances form?)
The $115000 is after taxes!
GMTplus7-
Thank you so much! I never knew there was an office in Japan!!
@mocowolf55, you misunderstand what ‘meets 100% of need’ means.
As @GMTplus7 said, it means that they look at your family’s financial situation and they determine how much your family can afford (called the Expected Family Contribution-EFC) and then they give you a scholarship for the difference. So, if a college that usually costs about $50K/year reviews your financial statement and decides your EFC is $30K, then your Net Price will be $20K. That amount gets reviewed each year, and if your family finances change your EFC can change. There are net price calculators (NPC) for every college (google that + college name) that will give you an EFC. It’s worth running a few, but do NOT count on them being accurate, especially as you are international.
What is your parent income before taxes?
collegemom3717-
I just did the EFC and the amount came out $27200.
However, since I am an international applicant I believe the amount will be a lot higher.
Thank you so much for clarifying! But I am still unclear- why do we fill out the expected amout of tuition we will be able to pay for each year, when the school’s going to estimate the amount we pay, anyway?
thumper1-
The income before taxes is about $136000
The NPC calculator only gives u a rough estimate to help u make a decision whether it is even worthwhile to apply.
GMT plus-
Yes, and I just went through the whole calculation and saw a whole bunch of taxes deleted from the income, so I guess the EFC will be very high…
But I believe it is worthwile to apply, anyways, because
- Oberlin is an expensive school, even for high-income families
- Int’l students cant apply for financial aid after they get in if they haven’t applied for aid at time of admission
Apply for the aid…and see.
BUT…get your other applications for admission completed…ASAP.
If you get admitted to Oberlin with a sufficient aid package, then fine. you can withdraw the other applications.
If not, you will turn down the acceptance, but at least your other applications will be submitted.