<p>Well.. I just got accepted. I was wondering what should I expect from USC.
I currently have an efc of 0 and I want to know how much I most likely will have to pay. Anyone know any estimates?</p>
<p>USC is my first choice school I've been accepted to. UCSD is 8,000 a year for me and LMU has given me a basically full ride.</p>
<p>I'm willing to take out some loans, but not too large. I really want to go to USC and am beyond excited I got in. I am just worried I won't be able to afford it.</p>
<p>Congratulations on your acceptance!</p>
<p>Lots of financial aid info here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/839970-faq-usc-financial-aid-2010-a.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/839970-faq-usc-financial-aid-2010-a.html</a></p>
<p>Hey Wowie,</p>
<p>Congrats on your acceptance! Your finaid situation sounds a lot like me. Let’s just put it this way, when I graduate this May I’ll have only about $10,000 in loans. That being said, I did work at least 1 job my entire undergrad experience, including 3 jobs during one summer and an RAship my junior/senior years which take care of housing and food.</p>
<p>^ @josebiwasabi (haha funny username, btw)
may i ask if you received a merit scholarship? since that should significantly reduce the amount in grants USC gives a student. just trying to get a better idea of how much i should expect to get in FA with or without a scholarship. thanks!</p>
<p>blissfulting,</p>
<p>No merit scholarship (I didn’t realize the deadline was so early lol). I have a couple scholarships from outside sources for $1000-2000. The rest are federal and university grants, with the aforementioned small portion of loans.</p>
<p>Also, if you believe that your finaid statement is too small (with a legitimate reason to complain–not “my family only makes $100,000 a year we can’t afford $20,000”), I would really recommend appealing it. With the exception of freshman year where I didn’t know about it, I’ve successfully appealed for 3 years in a row, and I’ve gotten approximately $5000 more in grants and work/study each time, and one time I almost managed to get my subsidized loan increased and unsubsidized loan decreased.</p>
<p>Hi blissfulting - to add to josebiwasabi’s answer, USC merit scholarships are considered a resource in financial aid calculations. If, for example, you have a USC-determined need of $40,000 and you receive a Presidential scholarship for $20,000, the scholarship is considered a resource and your need is then reduced to $20,000. Aid will be awarded on the reduced amount.</p>
<p>Outside scholarships can usually be used to replace subsidized loans and work/study before reducing need-based grants.</p>
<p>*Be sure to remember that USC will use both the FAFSA and the CSS/Profile to determine your need, so the amount you are expected to contribute may differ from your FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>See the thread linked above for more information. Good luck!</p>
<p>Oops, just a correction to what I wrote earlier: I didn’t “almost” managed to get my loans changed, I meant to say “I even managed…”</p>
<p>lol</p>
<p>Thanks for the info! You guys have been really helpful :)</p>
<p>Congrats on your acceptance, Wowie! Hopefully we’ll both be satisfied when our FA package comes in.</p>
<p>Thanks guys! Fingers crossed! My entire family is pushing me to go LMU because I have a full ride, but my hearts set on USC. We shall c what happens :D!</p>