<p>my efc is 6977.. does that mean ill only have to pay 6977?? or what..? >.< I'm planning to go to a UC. so yea..</p>
<p>That means your FAFSA determined EFC is 6977, your UC will probablky have a cost of attendance around $25k, you will not get a Pell grant, but should get a Cal Grant and some loans, you may get other university $ too.</p>
<p>I believe it means that the max you can recieve is 6977 less than the total cost of tuition... Lets state it in a simple manner.....</p>
<p>If, like the post above states, your UC will cost 25k then the max aid you can get is 18k rounded.... That includes everything from grants, Government subsidized loans, and scholarships</p>
<p>Most probably wont even get 18k in scholarship and grants, so lets say you are a good student and all, I would say roughly 5k-10k a year in loans or your money... </p>
<p>I.E that figure is only a speculation but it does include outside loans, such as a parent loan</p>
<p>Each school has a COA (Cost Of Attendance) - you should be able to find it on the school web site somewhere. The COA is made up (generally) of average annual student expenses tuition and fees/books/room and board/travel/miscellaneous</p>
<p>The school takes your EFC away from their COA to find out your 'need' on which financial aid is based. So if your EFC is 6977 and their COA is 20,000 your 'need' is 13,023. Your financial aid package may consist of grants, loans and work study. Many schools do not meet full need so there may be a gap (ie your need is 13023 but you only get aid of 10,000 that would be a 'gap' of 3023). If you have any merit scholarships that reduces your need. So, for instance, if you have a $5000 merit scholarship your 'need' would be 8023. (20.000-6977-5000).</p>