Does anyone know the details for qualifying? I was really hoping we would get that. We didn’t qualify for pell (would have if he had chose a more expensive school, he decided to go to a CSU to save money) and we didn’t qualify for a MCS. We make 100K a year and have 4 kiddos. Just wondering why so it will help me get over it.
Pell qualification has nothing to do with the cost of the school.
The wording on the CSAC website of who qualifies is very vague. I would recommend contacting CSAC directly at 1-888-224-7268 to determine why you did not qualify. Its a complicated system they have over there.
If your expected family contribution is higher than you think it should be, you can talk to the school. Keep in mind that people with a lot less money than you are having a much harder time affording any school.
Also (not 100% sure about this) but I do not think you are notified of the MCS right after completing the FAFSA. The commission will notify the student directly. Have you gotten confirmation from the commission that you did not qualify?
onceuponamom- yes, I do keep that in mind.
middkid86- Then I am confused. We qualified for a pell grant for a CSU that was 20,000 but didn’t qualify at a CSU that was 17,000 (the school closest to us that we plan on attending).
kgos- you might be on to something. We received our cal grant award status update and once I logged in, after reading about the pell grants, I looked at the MCS section and it says “No data found on the database”. So maybe there is still hope? It is very confusing. Couldn’t find much when searching.
Thank you all for responding. This is the first person in our family to go off to college. It’s so new to us and I don’t want to miss anything.
Unfortunately I can’t give direct advice regarding the MCS because I don’t work at a CSU/UC but I would venture to guess that CSAC and the schools haven’t given the final say on who is to be receiving it. I know the preliminary Cal-Grants have been awarded, but the MCS might come later on. I would just call the commission to be on the safe side to confirm the possible award dates.
Eligibility for a Pell grant, and the amount of the grant, is based on FAFSA EFC, which is the same in any given year no matter the school, and student status (full-time, half-time, etc.). I must modify my previous post and say that the amount of the Pell grant can depend on the cost of the school, in that if the cost of attendance is less than the amount of the Pell grant, the excess grant amount will not be awarded. But I’m guessing that doesn’t apply in your situation.
http://www.ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/attachments/GEN1502Attach.pdf
Cal Grant awarded for Cal Poly was $5,472 and for CSUMB and CSUF it was $0.
I was under the impression that if you qualify for the Pell, you do not qualify for the MCS. I thought that was the whole point of the MCS. I am probably totally wrong and would appreciate any clarification anyone has to offer.
I do not believe you qualify for a federal Pell Grant with that income and family size. Also if you qualify for Pell, it is a federal entitlement and is awarded regardless of which CSU you are accepted to… You can check your SAR to see if you have a Pell.
You have a difference in Cal Grant awards. Perhaps Cal Poly is able to award some to cover ‘away’ living expense, just a guess. You can read details to check further why there might be a difference, I’m not sure:
https://www.calgrants.org/index.cfm?navid=11
MSC are not set amounts and vary by student. It also seems to vary depending of availability any year.
If you are selected to receive a MCS, you will be notified by the California Student Aid Commission.
For additional information about this scholarship access the California Student Aid Commission’s website or contact the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) at 888-224-7268. WebGrants 4 Students (WGS) is your portal for the Middle Class Scholarship award. The California Student Aid Commission contacts students via email so it is critical that you keep this information current on your WGS account.
Thanks Brown parent- I am looking at my report right now. Son applied to 3 schools, and he is awarded the Cal Grant A for Cal Poly only.
Thanks for your responses. It is all very confusing for my simpleton mind.
I’ll go read the links.
Cal Grant is NOT Pell.
What is your FAFSA EFC?
a Pell award is based on what your EFC is regardless of school.
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We make 100K a year
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Sounds like you don’t understand FA. With that income, I don’t think you qualify for Pell Grants or Cal Grants. Neither has ANYTHING to do with the cost of the school…at ALL.
The Cal Poly award may be an error that would be corrected.
As for the MCS, I don’t think Pell has anything to do with it except that the amount of MCS may be reduced. Isn’t it based mostly one income (maybe assets a bit?)?
The Middle Class Scholarship (MCS)
The Middle Class Scholarship (MCS) is a new program beginning in the 2014-15 academic year that provides undergraduate students with family incomes up to $150,000 a scholarship to attend University of California (UC) or California State University (CSU) campuses. Initial 2014-15 awards were processed in September.
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ell grant can depend on the cost of the school, in that if the cost of attendance is less than the amount of the Pell grant, the excess grant amount will not be awarded.
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@middkid86 I don’t think that is true. Pell is an entitlement and you get it, even if more than COA, even if you have other aid that covers COA.
Look at the link that I put in that post and tell me what you think. Anyway, to be more precise based on what that link shows: Pell + EFC cannot exceed COA.
A family of 6 can have a 100K income and qualify for Cal.
@ManyXsBlessed OK, so we are talking Cal Grant you are missing from 2 schools (not Pell)
The Cal Grant A is allowable for 100,800 income with a family of 6, and assets up to 67,500
http://www.csac.ca.gov/facts/2015-16_income_and_asset_ceilings_for_new_applicants.pdf
I suggest you call the number for CSAC 1-888-224-7268 and ask why you got Cal Grant for CP SLO but didn’t get the Cal Grant for the other CSU, and also ask about the MCS.
I will. I will let you all know what I found out. Thank you.
Cal Grant - I also think that some of the colleges put ‘university grant’ in their aid package and later
on the title will change to cal grant after they get everything finalized and verified.
Also from my understanding, the MCS for last year wasn’t awarded until Sept because it all
depends on how many students are eligible and how much money is approved in the budget. I
don’t remember the exact number, but people got somewhere around 1500 -2500.