<p>I've been looking at some colleges that US News says fulfill 100% of demonstrated need - but nowhere can I find exactly what they mean by this. Does this typically include room and board and books and such as well, or is this just 100% of the tuition costs? Room and board is REALLY expensive at some places, and is definitely going to have to be a criteria for narrowing down my list if it's not covered.</p>
<p>Yes, 100% means everything but keep in mind that they decide what your need is. Some people are shocked at what the college or university determines to be their “need”. Also, be careful of school that meet your need with loans only!</p>
<p>Colleges do consider room and board, as well as textbooks (and other costs) in your cost of attendance. The tricky thing is that colleges decide how much your family is capable of paying. Different colleges may determine that your family is capable of paying different amounts. Not all families find the amount expected to pay reasonable or feasible. </p>
<p>Also, colleges that “meet need” can meet it in different ways. Loans are considered need based aid. Colleges that meet need usually expect a student contribution, and for students to hold a job during the school year to cover personal expenses.</p>
<p>Thanks for the quick replies. Luckily I have a twin sister also going to college so hopefully that’ll lower our demonstrated need overall. Also, is there a resource that gives a good breakdown of where specific colleges find their financial aid? Getting loans obviously isn’t anywhere near as good as grants… why is this even considered aid?</p>
<p>Luckily I have a twin sister also going to college so hopefully that’ll lower our demonstrated need overall.</p>
<p>Have a sibling in college will lower each student’s “family contribution” estimate, but the total that your family may have to pay may be higher than what your family CAN pay.</p>
<p>So, find out how much your parents will pay for each child…and then find out what your “estimated family contribution” will be for each child…using Fed and CSS Profile methods.</p>
<p>If you have a non-custodial parent, often the schools that meet need will look at that family’s income as well.</p>
<p>I agree with NC Mom…If you can find for each school how much of that 100% need is loans or grants, that’s really important. Because you could end up with mainly all loans and just owe them a lot of money, whereas what you really want ideally is grants.
Also it’s a 100% of need you demonstrate - closely related to your family’s annual income.</p>
<p>Thanks so much everyone who responded. I’m going to have my parents use one of those EFC calculators and start looking into what kinds of financial aid certain give out - before this I just assumed 100% of need meant 100% in grants… argh. At least I found this out now instead of later.</p>
<p>At the schools that “meet determined need,” “need” is often met in several ways…grants, work-study, and student loans. Some schools will even put a Parent Plus loan in and consider that aid that helps meet need.</p>
<p>Also note that schools that meet need usually require two different forms-- the FAFSA and the CSS profile. Only the FAFSA will give you an “expected family contribution” (EFC), but that is a misnomer. The FAFSA number is an “index” for federal aid, and is no guarantee of what a family will actually pay. The CSS Profile is a lot more comprehensive, and doesn’t yield an EFC, because different schools use the results of the Profile in different ways. When you try the different financial aid calculators make sure you try the FAFSA one as well as institutional ones. </p>
<p>Finally, you might find this resource useful: [Project</a> on Student Debt: Financial Aid Pledges](<a href=“http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_institution.php]Project”>http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_institution.php).</p>
<p>College ruled, THANK YOU SO MUCH for that link.</p>
<p>Since you have a twin who will be going to college as well…and because most schools don’t meet need, you and your twin need to proceed with caution…otherwise, one or both of you could end up with no affordable schools.</p>
<p>Each twin needs at least 2-3 schools that you each know FOR SURE are affordable. </p>
<p>As I mentioned in Post #5, you need to figure out how much EACH twin’s family contribution will be (for FAFSA and for CSS PROFILE). Each twin will have his/her own EFC. So, if your EFC is $15k…then it’s likely that your twin’s EFC will also be about $15k (unless you each have assets). That means that your parents would be expected to pay AT LEAST $30k total…and very likely more than that.</p>
<p>Again…most schools do NOT meet need. And, many schools will expect a family to pay more than it can afford to pay.</p>
<p>Yeah we’re both applying to the local flagship and places in other states that offer reciprocity… but I’ll definitely look at some other options that are cheap now. Though at least I figured out some tentative good news last night - our combined EFC is only $2000 more than it would be if only one of us had applied. I know that colleges use it differently and all, but still, good news.</p>
<p>our combined EFC is only $2000 more than it would be if only one of us had applied</p>
<p>Unless your EFC is low if only one were in college (like an EFC of about $2000), then your combined EFC would not be only 2000 more for two.</p>
<p>You may have made a mistake…unless one of you has assets/large income and the other doesn’t.</p>
<p>How much is your EFC if only one was in college?</p>