My dad works two full-time jobs. Will this help me through allowing for me to get a more generous financial aid package? I don’t really see it fair to award aid based off of what our income is on paper, without considering this while assembling the aid grant package.
Also, my EFC is $12,000… will this mean that I will pay $12,000 at the UCs, seeing that they only require the FAFSA (not CSS profile)?
The more income your parents have, the less need based financial aid you will receive. Are you a California resident? If so, then you will pay at the minimum $12,000 to attend the UC’s but most likely more depending upon your parents income. If you are out of state for the UC”s, then expect to pay full fees at $65K/year with little to no financial aid.
The best way to determine what your costs will be to attend, use the Net Price calculator for each campus. UCs give good need-based aid to California residents but little merit aid.
Here is UCLA’s Net Price Calculator so see what kind of costs estimates you get: https://app.financialaid.ucla.edu/FASEstimator/Dependent.aspx
You say you are instate for California.
What is you parents adjusted gross income?
@Gumbymom So does this mean that his two jobs wouldn’t be considered and solely the income?
Also, yes, I do live in California. Coincidentally, UCLA is my closest UC and I have ran net price calculators on it.
All of these net price calculators simply waive the tuition price (incomes under 80k get free tuition), bringing my costs to about $17,000 / year (Board+transport+food). This is a $5000 difference from my FAFSA EFC of $12,000. So my question was why I didn’t get a net price closer to the FAFSA EFC? I know UCs only take the FAFSA and so I’m guessing that they would give aid near the EFC from this tool? Am I mistaken? I ask because my friend’s sister pays $11,000 at UCSB, which is definitely closer to the EFC value than what the net price calculator told her (the same $17,000 it told me).
@thumper1
My Parents’ AGI is $63,800. We receive a $8520 untaxed income on top of this for taking care of my grandfather, but it doesn’t go into the AGI. With this income in regard, total household income would near $71,000.
By the way, thank you and @Gumbymom for the quick and helpful responses! Appreciate it a lot as a first gen who has no help during this process.
That is correct. FAFSA doesn’t ask how many jobs a parent has or how many hours are worked.
Yes, you are mistaken. A school has no obligation to use a FAFSA EFC as the student’s net cost. The FASA EFC is primarily used to determine eligibility for federal aid – Pell grant, subsidized federal loans, and work study. A school that only requires FAFSA can use the numbers on FAFSA in any way it wants to determine how institutional aid is distributed.
The money for taking care of grandpa… is that money really given to grandpa? If so, why are you counting it? What I mean is if grandpa is getting that money from, say, social security, then it’s grandpa’s income. Where does that money come from? And whose name is on the payment?
As stated above, FASFA only determines if you are eligible for Federal aid such as the Pell grant which you are not due to your family’s income.
EFC is just an estimate and again as stated above, any school can determine your financial need based on their own criteria.
UC’s are not “Meet needs” schools, so they will gap you and they do not meet EFC. UCLA’s expects you and your family can pay $17K/year from your family’s income and savings to attend. If you are within commuting distance and you happen to be accepted, then you can keep your costs lower by not for paying room/board.
You are eligible for the Cal Grant as a California resident which will cover your tution. You could also be eligible for the Blue and Gold Scholarship so until you actually get accepted and a financial package, you will not know your actual costs. They may be lower than quoted on the NPC or the same.
You cannot compare your family’s financial situation with other people you know since no one’s finances are the same but run the NPC on UCSB to see if you get the same cost estimates.
You can make up the gap by taking out student loans $5500 Freshman year, $6500 Sophomore year, $7500 for Junior/Senior year. You could also work summers and have an on-campus job during the school year to help out. Your parents are also eligible for Parent Plus loans to help pay the costs.
I would run the NPC’s on a couple of other UC’s and CSU’s along with privates to see if your estimated costs are the same.
The reality is most schools expect you to help fund your college education. Do you have a college savings account to help with expenses? Do you have any personal savings?
If you and your family are unable to meet the expected costs, then you have to apply to schools that are more affordable or consider going to community college for 2 years and transferring to help save costs.
Presumably it is, as OP says, untaxed income they get for taking care of Grandpa.
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/certain-medicaid-waiver-payments-may-be-excludable-from-income
Thanks for posting that. This is a somewhat newish program, and it’s wonderful.
^^^
Ahh
If you have a $5,000 gap between the net price and FAFSA EFC, you can cover that with a student loan and summer earnings.
Well…unless the net price calculator includes the federally funded loans in the financial aid projection…some do.
^^. Yes…and typically…MOST do. Only a handful of colleges don’t package loans in their FA. Most schools do.