What does cost of attendance really mean?

Paying for College
1

<p>According to my CoA
-tuition and fees=irrelevant
-housing and meals=7K
-book and supplies=1K
-transportation=1K
-other educational costs=2K
(this is per year)</p>

<p>I get the tuition and fees part, I guess.
But can you all give me insights on the other four like will I hold those money, assuming Im covered with scholarships/grants/loans?
Can I use them on apparel, coffee/drinks/snacks that is not on my meal plan, and how about pillow cases or basically dorm essentials and decorations?</p>

<p>Please add any info that would answer this question...
~Thanks</p>

2

<p>You’re going to have costs that you have to pay, such as room, board, books, etc. The transportation and other costs part is estimated and the actual amount spent depends on your situation. You can use this money for anything becasue it’s your money. As for scholarships covering your morning coffee, that’s a maybe depending on how they pay out your $; if they give you a check, I guess you can spend it on whatever you please, but make sure things you need are paid for first. </p>

3

<p>The 7K for housing and meals is not money that you will hold if you are living on campus. You need to pay for your room and for a meal plan before the start of each semester.</p>

4

<p>The tuition and fees is a fixed cost so the money for that will go directly to the school.</p>

<p>Are you staying in university housing? If yes, then the money for that will go directly to the school. Otherwise the COA estimated amount for off campus housing will go to you. If you spend more you have to come up with the money. If you spend less then It goes in your pocket for whatever you want.</p>

<p>If you stay in university housing then you will have meal plan and the money for that will go directly to the school. Otherwise it depends if you buy a meal plan or not. Some meal plans have something like ‘flex points’ where you can spend some portion for drinks etc in university operated stores/cafes. If no meal plan, the estimated amount goes to you and you have to make it last for the semester.</p>

<p>Books and supplies - an estimate of what you will spend that goes to you. You will purchase/rent new/used books, if you save money you keep it to use as you need.</p>

<p>Transportation - an estimate of what you will spend that goes to you. Use for transportation home and local bus service. If you want to go home more, then you have to come up with the money. Extra saved, you keep.</p>

<p>Other educational costs - an estimate of what you might spend. You may need to save a portion each year to cover a new laptop. You might have lab fees for a special class. If there is extra you keep it and spend how you want.</p>

<p>Note there is no funds allocated for dorm room. You can spend it on that if you have extra, but realize that any extra has to last for the entire semester needs. Note that you won’t get this money in advance to decorate your room. So come with some basics that will get you by until you get your disbursement. Check with the Bursar’s Office for how the timing works at your school. </p>

<p>Note that you will need toiletries, clothes and incidental expenses out of any money above, unless you get extra from your parents.</p>

<p>Note that if you don’t have health insurance that satisfies university requirements you will have an additional expense of about 1.500 to 2.000 to purchase each year.</p>

5

<p>what schools are you applying to? Most schools do not give enough aid to cover coa…not even close. </p>

6

<p>Not only most schools do not meet the need, your need would be based on the CoA and your EFC. So you need to have zero EFC and admitted to a need meet school unless you are getting a real full ride scholarship.
After all, the CoA on the list are your money that need to pay for, not the money the school or government gives to you. Certain scholarships and grant may have their restrictions on what they can be used on. Unless you have scholarships/grant total more than your tuition/fee/boarding, you don’t need to worry about it. Remember, if you use your loan money on something else, you still need money to cover the estimated cost of attendance. Unfortunately, the CoA is often an underestimation of actual cost particularly for engineering or science students. The cost for text books and lab fees are much more than the average amount they used in the calculation.</p>

7

<p>Every school that gets federal aid funds is required to report a Cost of Attendance, the COA That COA is the absolute maximum you can get in need based aid, government backed loans (like Direct Loans, PLUS) and is also offset by any other award, including merit that you get. There are some exceptions, I believe, with PELL, but pretty much, that is the ceiling. </p>

<p>So the school gives out the actual figures for the tuition and fees since that is set, and often uses averages or some other allowable estimate for the other categories. Other than for the tuition and fees, the other numbers are not likely to be exact for any given student. For instance they may use $1K as the transportation figure, but if you are from a distance where you have to fly or the costs simply are a lot for you to get to the school, they can easily exceed that figure. If you live right there, you can “beat” if . </p>

<p>Freshmen are often required to sign up for some meal plan, so that figure is often an average of sorts of what the choices are. Many upperclassmen don’t use the plan, and they can “beat” that figure by preparing their own food and packing lunches and snacks, or they can exceed it if they eat out at pricier places and don’t watch their spending on food. </p>

<p>The way it usually works with scholarships and loans that go through the school, is that they are applied as credits to your Bursar account, and the university gets first go at that amount each semester by taking out whatever you owe in terms of tuition, fees, and other direct bill expenses. With freshmen, that also usually includes the room and board. Yes, if you don’t waive out of the health insurance which you can if you already have it, that is often billed. too. If there is any money left, after the university has “taken theirs” , you can ask them to cut a check to you. It usually takes them a couple of weeks before doing that, so you need seed money to get started. Sometimes, a school gives fin aid students vouchers for bookstore purchases. Some times not. Depends upon the school. Also depends upon the school as to when and how they give you the money left in your account. You have to contact the Bursar’s office and find out.</p>

<p>As for outside scholarships, some send them to the schools, some will send the check directly to you You are nearly always required to report these amounts to the school fin aid office as it is possible that they can affect your federal entitlements and awards and it can be a real problem to run astray of those rules. Also schools themselves have their internal rules on how those are applied. </p>

8

<p>Hummm, good points. I took it that the student is going in the fall and the costs are covered. But dyoung, that is a big assumption if you don’t have the package in hand.</p>

9

<p><<<<
So I got accepted to SJSU,
CalState Long Beach,
Iowa State Uni, and
CalPoly Pomona(but just in the school not in my major)</p>

<p>I am in SoCal and I planning to major in Chemical Engineering.</p>

<p>Can you please tell me in your opinion which would be the best to chose.
*I have not visited any of those schools (it would be a long trip so we really can’t)
*Is it worth the money (not so sure if there’s a diff but I’ll be an OOS in Iowa = more expensive)
*Location: my parents are leaning to somewhere closer but I don’t want them to chose where I will go or my future like what they did to in high school(long story)
*I’m also kinda planning to go to a graduate school (like MIT)</p>

<p>Oh and what are those financial packet that I should be getting?
*sorry new about this even my parents…
<<<<</p>

<p>ok…I thought you were a junior but I see that you are a rising frosh. Where are you going and what exactly was in your FA pkg? and what is your EFC from FAFSA?</p>

<p>none of those schools meet need.</p>

10

<p>Woah, so this is the helpfulness of CC and its members!</p>

<p>When you say home, is it in the dorm or home as in our parents home?
-so does that mean I can use the “transportation money” to buy tickets to go home during holidays and summer?</p>

<p>I got sort of confused now about scholarships and COA
-I’ll just tell my FA pkg
->COA=33k (I’ll go to an OOS)
—>Scholarship from my college and federal(pell) only=20K
—>Loan options=7K
—>work option=2.5K
—>remaining=3.5K
-do scholarships, in general/usually, go to COA or specifically tuition and fees?
-does fed Pell go to COA or tution only?</p>

<p>About the health…
-Im not sure about health insurance, but I think Im covered by the “covered california”. Would that satisfy as my health insurance? (assuming you know about Covered california, will i still be covered since Im going out of california?)
-If I wont, does the health insurance that I will pay be included in COA that scholarships can cover or does my parents need to pay that out of their pocket?
-And can I go to to health center or something of my college and ask for some meds (like pain reliever…), eye check up or general check up, teeth cleaning, etc?</p>

<p>PS: Sorry if I worded my original post that I am fully covered by my school, but Im trying to say if I will be full covered by scholarships not from school(college) but the one I applied for.</p>

11

<p>Home means your home with your parents. Transportation is meant for ticket home during holidays and summers yes,</p>

<p>All the money should be allowed for COA uses since it is Pell and from the school. The college will deduct the Direct Costs (fuition, fee, room, board) first.</p>

<p>If you are applying for additional scholarships, you will have to check with the issuer for what they can be applied for. You will also have to check with your school. Usually they can replace loans and work study, but after than the school reduces its grant. Your family will still have to pay its portion.</p>

<p>It does not seem that you will be covered out of state as there are no network hospitals or doctors out of state who take your insurance. Only emergency seems covered. See this post and double check:
<a href=“Uh oh. This page does not exist.”>Uh oh. This page does not exist.;

<p>Health insurance is usually not included in COA. This is an extra expense. Once exception to this is UCs. Check what is listed in COA on your award letter, I see you did not list it above.</p>

<p>Your college will require you to have proper insurance or they will bill you and sign you up for the student plan if you can provide proof. Dental and vision may or may not be covered in the school plan. Look online for information about the school plan. (The school health center will not do vision checks or teeth cleaning! But they might give you an aspirin, a band aid or counselling services.)</p>

12

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<p>In your case, it will go for tuition because that gets covered first. direct college costs get covered first. Your free aid is barely covering tuition.</p>

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<p>you have a remaining $3500…so that needs to come from your parents or a summer job to cover that…and that would be used for tickets home and summer. If your parents want you to come home for holidays, then they need to figure out how to pay for that. </p>

<p>You also have 2,500 in work study. You have to earn that in a job during the school year. So, with that 2500 plus the 3500 remaining, YOU and your parents will be coming up with much of your non-school costs (travel, books, personal expenses, etc). PLUS, you have 7000 in loans.</p>

<p>so…YOU will essentially be paying for 13,000 yourself (or with parents) with loans, work, and a summer job or parents.</p>

<p>so, it doesnt look like the school is giving you any free money to cover any non-school costs.</p>

<p>is this Iowa state? Your scholarship and Pell are almost covering OOS tuition. Your loans are almost covering R&B. </p>

<p>you wont be getting money back from the school for those other costs. </p>

<p>Tuition and fees $20,278<br>
Room and board $8,082
Books and supplies $1,043<br>
Estimated personal expenses $2,029<br>
Transportation expenses $401 (this estimate is way tooooooo low for a Calif student! this will be 1000+)
Estimated Total $31,833 …your 33k is more accurate (and costs will go up each year!!)</p>

<p>your merit and Pell will stay the same, but tuition, etc, will rise each year.</p>

13

<p>In a nutshell, all the money you get in scholarship and loans, unless you get them privately, will go to the college who will take out what they are billing for tution,fees, room and board and anything else direct billed. If you get more than that covered, you can get that back in accordance to your school’s procedures for that and use them as you please. You are not likely to get any money back for a couple of weeks at least,after the term begins, so you will need seed money to get started, for supplies, books, transportation. You may even owe money if those charges are more than you get. Work study, by the way, you don’t get until you get the job, work the hours and you get that by paycheck like any other job as you put in the time. </p>

<p>COA is just the figure the college gives to the government to set a limit on what loans, aid you can get from govt back agencies. </p>

14

<p>If it’s ISU, the airport is in Des Moines, an hour away from Ames. To each round trip plane ticket add $60 for 2 airport shuttle trips.</p>

<p>They sell a student health insurance policy for about $1500 per year. They will not force you to buy it as a domestic student, but if you choose not to, the student health center will be quite expensive. Some universities sell cheap policies that bring the cost of using the health center down to $10-15 for each service-exam, x-rays, labwork, etc. ISU does not appear to have anything intermediate like that and even charges $25 for flu shots, the sort of thing some universities give free in the interests of reducing infection rates. You should call the health center and try to get an idea of what prices would be if you opted not to buy the insurance. Also, the insurance policy is likely to have deductibles/copays, need to check that in making up your cost estimates.</p>

15

<p>…
If it’s ISU, the airport is in Des Moines, an hour away from Ames. To each round trip plane ticket add $60 for 2 airport shuttle trips.
…</p>

<p>those round-trip shuttles really add up. A $400 plane tix home now becomes 520 once you add in the shuttles.</p>

16

<p>Sorry, I wasn’t clear. It’s $30 per shuttle trip x 2 = $60. </p>

<p>The rm/bd estimates seem fair. That is always something to check as many schools match an unrealistically low price meal plan to a standard room. There is a wide variety of rooms available. Don’t know what freshmen get, but the cheapest room and the most expensive dining plan paired come in under the COA estimate. </p>