I was in shock the first time I saw what our EFC is. Schools seem to expect for a family to live on bread and water during the college years of their children. That being said there’s schools that advertise to meet the need of virtually all their students. Most schools do include a loan and work study component in their aid package. I think this is reasonable, it’s to make sure that the student has skin in the game too. A college education after all is contributing to their future… With our D we didn’t take the loan component since we felt we could swallow the cost. With our son, we’ll see what his offers are. If it’s a lot more costly than D’s we could tell our S he can take out that 6K loan with us instead, interest free. 
I am definitely not opposed to the work study - I just had already planned on and accounted for my D working so for them to lump it in with the “package” can be misleading. Parents need to be aware that EFC of $34,000 (for example) may actually mean EFC of $40,000 when you back out the $6,000 in “loans and work study.”
“However, a “need blind” college can still be aware of the level of financial need it is willing to cover for its expected class of students.”
Agree that’s how it’s done, but at some point isn’t going to come down to the individual.
I think I am as cynical as @intparent - colleges may or may not be “need blind”, but they sure aren’t “wealth” blind. It’s not hard to suss out who can pay full tuition (and perhaps make donations on top), which must be very attractive in an ED candidate who is therefore committed to the school.
And I guess the kid that attends the wealthy private high school on scholarship (unbeknownst to the college) potentially slips through in the ED round without the Admissions Office realizing they require need?
I think the colleges know that private high schools give out a lot of scholarships, so it’s now no longer the automatic sign of wealth that it once once. But you look at that, then you look at what the parents job is, and you can start to get a picture.
@Kayak24 I would think that in many, if not most, cases, such a student’s situation would, via essays, recs, etc., be discernible. Also, private schools have sophisticated guidance counselors who would likely caution a student for whom financial aid is an issue about applying ED.
@pantha33m , what about if the student is there on academic scholarship though? Good recs, test scores, etc. in that case.
@melvin123 , good points. I wish I had left DH’s official title in there (I removed it bc I thought it was misleading and sounded more prestigious/wealthy than his actual position). Oh well.
Federal direct loans and work study (the student contribution) are not hidden. Even the best financial aid colleges include some student contribution. This should be visible in net price calculators and actual financial aid offers.
Of course, the definition of “need” based on parental finances can vary from one college to another. Net price calculators can help estimate expected financial aid for many families, although those with complex financial situations may find many of them less reliable.
Actually, what you see here is a net price of $40,000 = parent contribution of $34,000 + student contribution of $6,000.
When colleges are trying to shape their admissions class with respect to financial aid need, they are not concerned about individual students. They may know that, based on past statistical analyses, that a large percentage of students from those private schools come from wealthy families, but a smaller percentage come from less wealthy families and attended on financial aid or scholarships there, so that they have a decent idea of what to expect from a financial aid need standpoint when they admit a number of students from those private schools.
Our college didn’t package loans. Some don’t expect freshman work study.
You don’t get into a top need blind school for being poor or wealthy, but for your accomplishments and match. You show it - or not.
There’s a ton of speculation going on in this thread. Doesn’t help much. The admission process is highly subjective and imperfect exercise. I’ll leave it at that and enjoy my S’s last few months as a high school senior! 
@pantha33m, you missed my point. Although I am cynical about many aspects of it, I believe need blind means need blind.
@intparent , that really is part of what I wanted to figure out. I wanted to know if it’s a likely scenario that the FA office at a “need-blind” selective college may pick up the phone/email, etc., call Admissions and say, “Student #1234 has a PITA Financial Aid app.” Rejection Pile.
@Kayak24 Regarding meeting need, as noted above, I think it’s useful to differentiate between the student contribution (to be met by federal student loans + work study) from the inclusion of parent loans in a FA package. That type of student contribution has been a common expectation for decades. I had that myself and did not consider it onerous.
Not.
You aren’t the first. And the fact so many need blind selectives do give generous aid, when they are meet full need, have the money, and see need, per their formulas, makes it simpler. But we don’t know how they’ll view your picture.
No, that doesn’t happen. Some schools say they sometimes have the conversation – Carleton, for example, says for students on the cusp of admission they do look at financial need. Something like that last 5% of the class they admit. I am not sure what you mean by a “PITA” FA form. It has nothing to do with the complexity. But if a school says they DO look at need, then you can assume that higher need translates into a lower chance of admission. I do not think need blind schools say, “Hey, I don’t have info from the FA office, but I see the dad is a lawyer – so let’s admit them because they will pay the bills.”
Many students attend private day and boarding schools on full to partial scholarship. Zip code helps but doesn’t tell the whole story either.
I don’t recall a parent employer question on the Common App…
Okay, so when a school meets full need and includes say a $2500 work study and a $3500 loan, what is that? Does it mean e.g. working at the School Book store for X hours without pay? Or do you earn a salary that you may or may not choose to put towards tuition?
As for the loans, are we talking 8% interest? 11% interest? 4% interest. Obviously it varies but are they generally a reasonable rate compared to outside student loans? Who is the loan grantor? You’re paying the college back? Or do they hook you up with XYZ bank for it. Are you pre-approved?
Sorry for all of the questions. I just want to have as much understanding as I can before a decision release (Dec 15th) so that we can proceed with an informed decision and not an emotional one. I don’t want to ask the school because I’m trying to fly below the radar until they reach a decision so as not to interfere with that outcome.
Do families with an EFC of $35k qualify for Work Study? I thought that was only for Pell eligible students (whose FAFSA EFC would be less than $5k).
“I don’t recall a parent employer question on the Common App…”
@OHMomof2 , good. All of these forms and applications are running together now.
@austinmshauri , it may be a school-initiated work study. We had a Pre-Read done at this school and our EFC is well above Pell eligible. The Pre-Read outcome mentioned a $2500 work study in its calculations (whatever that means).