<p>The average non-need based aid is $25,000? Or that 96% of the student body received aid. These are meaningless numbers. Why don't schools break down the actual numbers to more specific terms. We received yet another flyer from a school, NYU, that was about financial aid. They listed the average freshman award as $28,448. But the money came from scholarship(fine), work(OK), and loan(uhhh?). I'm sorry. Maybe it's me, but I don't think of an award as either work or a loan. If I pay by credit card I can say NYU gave me an award? LOL</p>
<p>Yep, financial aid considers loans a part of aid- I do not and I am really glad now with one in grad school and one a senior, that I did not take any of those packages offering heavy loans!!</p>
<p>Work study is a help, it is a chance to get a good campus job which is flexible and the earnings do not count for the next years aid determination as they would from an outside job</p>
<p>There is not enough college aid available to meet all needs. In general, schools are trying to enable as many needy and deserving students to attend as possible. Students are expected to be willing to invest in their own futures by accepting loans, and to be willing to work a few hours.</p>
<p>Loans are financial aid in that the interest rates are subsidized by the government. Even loans that are not subsidized are backed by the government, and the interest rates are kept low. I know that it is disappointing that most financial aid seems to be in the form of loans, but it is true that there just isn't enough money to help everyone. The middle class really gets the hit - too <em>rich</em> to get any gift aid, too <em>poor</em> to afford to pay from income/savings. I wish it were easier for people to afford college.</p>
<p>It's not easy to find out the breakdown of financial aid at a school, but it can sometimes be done. Search the school's website for the common data set & look at the financial aid breakdown pages. Also search for institutional research - sometimes, you can find reports with financial aid breakdown info.</p>