Who else got an amazing FA package?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>I thought it looked bad on USC's part for CC'ers to wander into this forum and immediately get bombarded with all of those "Horrible FA" threads, so I decided to start this thread to prevent horrified future USC applicants from scurrying away before they really looked into the wonderful university that is SC.</p>

<p>I'd like to repeat: The purpose of this thread is just to show that USC can be extremely generous, despite the issues some acceptees currently have with the FA office. It's for the benefit of future applicants as well as for those who truly cannot make sense of why they got what they got in FA, so it can serve as a tool to determine whether you should appeal. However, do understand that everyone's financial situation is different and even if your EFC may be similar to that of someone who posts on here, there may be other circumstances causing your aid to be smaller.</p>

<p>For those who did not get enough, I am very sorry about your situation. I can understand what it's like to get accepted to one of your top choices and then be forced to pass it up due to financial reasons. I've got several close friends who are in the same predicament, and I wish so much I could do something about it for them. BUT, know that even though you may not end up at USC, you can still be just as successful in life and have just as much fun at your future school. College is what you make of it after all, right?</p>

<p>To future applicants: PLEASE research financial aid before you apply to colleges. It will save a lot of trouble and potential heartache. Many kids apply and get in to schools thinking they can worry about the finances later on...Well, when later on comes around and you have your heart set on somewhere you can't afford, it really sucks. I knew my parents could not afford much money for my education, so I applied to my preferred schools that had the best financial aid. And it worked out. But ALSO, get familiar with how financial aid works so there leaves no room for surprises. Even if a school has "great financial aid," if your family makes a lot of money, it's very likely you won't get a whole lot. The best thing to do is to sit down with your parents NOW, and go through the research process together. Know what you will be able to afford, and while you cannot predict the amount of aid a college will give you, if you're well-informed you'll know what to expect. Lastly, CHECK OUT THE FINANCIAL AID FAQ THREAD! If you just read the first few pages that alamemom has so wonderfully put together, you'll save a lot of time asking the same questions that have already been answered.</p>

<p>So...to those of you who received satisfactory financial aid from USC, I need your help :)</p>

<p>Please post the details of your packages (scholarships, grants, loans, etc.)!</p>

2

<p>University Grant Total $28632</p>

<p>Scholarships/Fellowships/Other Awards
Deans Scholarship total $10096
University Scholarship total $2500</p>

<p>Loans
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan total $3500
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan total $2000</p>

<p>TOTAL
$46728 </p>

<p>Not too bad</p>

3

<p>Trustee Scholarship: $40384
University Scholarship: $2500
ACG - $750
Pell Grant - $5500</p>

<p>Scholarship and Grant Total: $49134</p>

<p>Sub. Stafford Loan - $3500
Unsub. Stafford Loan - $2000</p>

<p>Total:
$54634 - Really happy with my package.</p>

4

<p>NYC nice me too.</p>

5

<p>Arg, couldn’t access the website for some reason so I had to hunt up my letter copy.</p>

<p>I recently received another scholarship that gives me half-tuition in addition to Presidential, so I receive full-tuition + university in scholarship money from USC. It hasn’t been updated yet, so this was my old FA package.</p>

<p>Scholarships:
Presidential $20,192
University $2500</p>

<p>Grants:
Pell $5500
ACG $750
SEOG $1200
University $23,036 </p>

<p>Loans:
Sub. Stafford Loan $2500</p>

<p>Total $55,728</p>

<p>I’m not gonna lie…I was pretty dang ecstatic.</p>

6

<p>Here’s our package. Our $20,000 grant is nice. And, we might be able to squeeze out the family contribution of $27,584. But, our daughter graduating with close to $30,000 in loans before she even gets to grad school just doesn’t make fiscal sense. :frowning: And the loans go up $1,000 a year until senior year, reducing the grant. I really question whether it’s worth “going out on a limb for a BMW or Mercedes” when we can “buy a perfectly good Honda for a lot less money and still get from point A to B.” :wink: But, hey, we’re grateful to USC for even offering us 20K for free! We appreciate it, believe me.</p>

<p>Financial Plan Summary </p>

<p>Federal Work-Study (Fall 2010) $1,250<br>
Federal Work-Study (Spring 2011) $1,250<br>
University Grant (Spring 2011) $9,997<br>
University Grant (Fall 2010) $10,147<br>
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $1,750<br>
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $1,750<br>
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $1,000<br>
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $1,000<br>
Total Financial Aid $28,144 </p>

<p>Estimated Total Amount Covered By Family
$27,584</p>

7

<p>I think alamemom will appreciate this thread immensely. :D</p>

8

<p>:) You are very correct!</p>

9

<p>I’d prefer not to post specifics, but I think we were offered a very good FA package from USC.</p>

10

<p>My child did not get “Amazing” FA but did get academic merit which none of the IVY’s give nor does Notre Dame nor MIT…I am sure there are other who do not give academic merit. She got a Dean’s scholarship $10,000+ per year, and University scholarship $2,500 per year…so not amazing but certainly more generous than any of the other schools she got in to. And…this $12,500 per year certainly was part of the decision to attend USC. I assume many of the grants are need based?</p>

11

<p>^ Yes, I’m pretty sure grants are need-based aid only at every other school as well. HYPSM and similar schools do not have merit-based scholarships, so only students from less-privileged backgrounds get the most money from them. Students from fairly-extremely rich families usually have to pay close to if not the full price.</p>

12

<p>my university grant is 27k/year
university scholarship of 8k/year
pell grant 6k/year
federal seog 2k/year
work study 2500
federal loans 5500
total: 49k+
other loans 4500/year</p>

13

<p>sooo originally my f.a. package was</p>

<p>Grants
Federal Work Study - $2500
Estimated ACG - Freshman - 750
University Grant - 28110 (free money yaaay)
Estimated Federal Pell Grant - 3700
Federal SEOG - 900</p>

<p>Loans
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan - $3500
" Unsubsidized " - $2000
Total - $41460</p>

<p>EFC - $14268</p>

<p>which was subpar for my own expectations considering my economic situation… Sooo my mother called today and they made an assumption that my father (with whom I am estranged) would contribute 10,000 a year… With that cleared up? an additional 10 grand in grants resulting in a final EFC of 4400 dollars a year…</p>

<p>um… 4400 dollars a year for 55,000 dollar private university?
if that aint fantastic, not quite sure what is hahahaa FIGHT ON</p>

14

<p>I originally was going to have to go to Rutgers because, even though I’m out of state, they’re cheaper and I was getting a merit scholarship. BUT! I talked to the head of the school of theater, where I’m going, told them about my situation, and my FA package was so mind-blowingly amazing that I’ll only have to pay 15000 a year. Hello SoCal!!!</p>

15

<p>But, in actuality you should probably count the loans as part of what it costs a year. And, I believe those will go up $1,000 each year until senior year, hence decreasing your grant by that much. Just remember you’ll have loans totalling around $27,000 when you graduate. Still a bargain, considering your EFC is so low. Congratulations to you!</p>

<p>**Loans
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan - $3500
" Unsubsidized " - $2000</p>

<p>…which was subpar for my own expectations considering my economic situation… Sooo my mother called today and they made an assumption that my father (with whom I am estranged) would contribute 10,000 a year… With that cleared up? an additional 10 grand in grants resulting in a final EFC of 4400 dollars a year…**um… 4400 dollars a year for 55,000 dollar private university?
if that aint fantastic, not quite sure what is hahahaa FIGHT ON</p>

16

<p>I got all my stuff in finally 4/22/2010. So much later than it should’ve been but my dad was really lazy with tax stuff since Michigan didn’t require it and they already offered me a great package.</p>

<p>EFC for USC was $0, FAFSA said $1650, so I’m happy about that.</p>

<p>Estimated ACG - Freshman (Fall 2010) $375
Estimated ACG - Freshman (Spring 2011) $375
Estimated Federal Pell Grant (Fall 2010) $2,775
Estimated Federal Pell Grant (Spring 2011) $2,775
Federal SEOG (Fall 2010) $600
Federal SEOG (Spring 2011) $600
Federal Work-Study (Fall 2010) $1,250
Federal Work-Study (Spring 2011) $1,250
University Grant (Spring 2011) $18,789
University Grant (Fall 2010) $18,939
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $1,750
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $1,750
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $250
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $250
University Scholarship (Fall 2010) $2,000
University Scholarship (Spring 2011) $2,000</p>

<p>Total Awards $55,728</p>

17

<p>All these great financial aid packages are making mine look crappy in comparison. Especially these university grants that are better than my presidential scholarship.</p>

18

<p>Got a great package on top of my Presidential scholarship. Am very happy.</p>

19

<p>Very late and sudden offer … </p>

<p>Presidential Scholarship - $16,076
University Scholarship - $2,500
National Merit Scholarship - $1,000
University Tuition Remission/transfer - $32,307
Unsubsidized loan - $3,845</p>

<p>Total: $55,728</p>

<p>I’m so pumped right now</p>

20

<p>I was worried when I saw our income and heard about all these people not getting aid… This package is actually manageable for my family! :)) </p>

<p>Federal Work-Study (Fall 2010) $1,250<br>
Federal Work-Study (Spring 2011) $1,250<br>
University Grant (Spring 2011) $6,487<br>
University Grant (Fall 2010) $6,637<br>
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $1,750<br>
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $1,750<br>
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Fall 2010) $1,000<br>
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (Spring 2011) $1,000<br>
University Scholarship (Fall 2010) $2,000<br>
University Scholarship (Spring 2011) $2,000 </p>

<p>Total Awards $25,124 </p>

<p>Estimated Family Contribution
$30,604</p>