“If the student’s parents are divorced, separated, remarried or never married, Yale assumes both parents will be funding the student’s cost of education regardless of their marital status, and will collect non-custodial parent information. Yale also considers the stepparent’s financial information in our official need analysis.”
What the website does not make clear, however, is whether the non-custodial stepparent would also be expected to provide financial information. The statement says “the stepparent,” so does that mean simply the custodial stepparent? I assume in most cases the non-custodial stepparent is required to provide information. Yale’s website, from what I’ve gathered, doesn’t make that clear. Could someone help me clarify whether Yale requires the non-custodial stepparent’s income, or simply the incomes of both custodial parents (stepparent included) and the non-custodial biological parent?
When non-custodial parent information is collected…It includes the finances of the non-custodial parent’s spouse if that person is remarried.
If you have a question about how Yale uses the non-custodial parent form information, contact their financial aid office…and ask them.
It sounds like you have a non-custodial parent and their spouse with significant income…and you are concerned how that will impact your need based aid.
Perhaps you should concentrate on schools that do NOT require the non-custodial parent Profile.
Yes, that corresponds to my situation @thumper1 . I ask that because some schools ask for both custodial and non-custodial biological parent information but NOT stepparent information. Princeton comes to mind there, which only requires custodial biological + non-custodial biological parent information. I recognize each school is different, and I assumed that not all schools require noncustodial stepparent information just because they require noncustodial biological information.
On a related note, do you know much about the 568 schools? I read in another forum that all 568 participating schools only require two sources of income. I was wondering if you could confirm that.
I agree that I should concentrate on schools that don’t require the non-custodial parent profile. Still, I want a comprehensive view of my prospects. I still feel like some schools have exceptions, Princeton in particular.
Princeton is very unique in its financial aid application process and how it uses the info from non-custodial parent spouses. There is a caveat about parent marriage as part of that…but I don’t remember the details. In any event…it is a unique way of dealing with this. Princeton also uses its own financial aid form, not the Profile.
Re: the 568 schools…I have NEVER heard of what you are saying about only requiring two sources of income.
To find out what each college requires…you need to look at THAT college’s website…and read very carefully.
There are some colleges, for example, that do not ask for non-custodial parent info up front…but reserve the right to do so later.
Also…you didn’t ask this…but I’ll add…the schools you have posted about so far have VERY low acceptance rates…very low…like under 10%. Their financial aid policies won’t do you any good unless you are one of the 10% or less accepted…and that’s no guarantee at any of these schools.
@thumper1 Currently a junior. And yes, the colleges I’ve mentioned have exceptionally low acceptance rates. That’s not to say I’m unwilling to apply.
As for the 568 consortium, I read that information on a separate CC thread, regarding some colleges only requiring two incomes. I can understand why you haven’t heard of it, it seems quite unusual.
I find it interesting that Princeton specifically mentions that the non-custodial parent should omit the income and assets of the non-custodial stepparent on its institutional non-custodial profile. I also noticed that Duke and Georgetown have similar policies. I suppose it’s a matter of consulting each college’s website, but even then not all of them are 100% clear. I struggled to find an answer for Claremont, for example.
keep in mind that HYP are not part of the 568 consortium. They are also in a unique position of having endowments that allow them to give need based aid to families at income thresholds where they would not be eligible for need based aid at Georgetown and Duke.
The base mission of the 568 group is that they all commit to admitting students on a need blind basis. they also agree to use a consensus methodology
Just because you apply to schools that are part of the 568 group does not mean that you will get the same financial aid package from each of these schools. My D applied to and was admitted to 3 - 568 schools and got 3 different financial aid packages. there was a wide range in the EFCs we received. in addition our packaging was different at each of the three schools.
Your goal is to sit down with both of your parents to see how much realistically they can and are willing to pay for college. Many schools look at the income of the stepparent because they are part of the household.
While they are not “responsible for paying for their stepchild’s education”, they are looked at as part of the household and contributing to that household that will allow the biological parent to free up some resources for their child. for example: In the marriage if both parents are working one parent is not paying all of the housing expenses, food costs, cars, etc., they are most likely shared expenses.
Could you please link that thread here that says only two incomes are used for the 568 schools? That is simply not true. I’d like to see what was posted.
One poster noted that “not to confuse the issue, but 568 schools will look at only two parents’ income.” I suppose that could have been a mistake, it just stood out to me.
Yes that seems of relevance, @sybbie719 . Thanks for sharing.
I understand that most colleges providing need-based aid do take stepparent income into account. I simply wonder whether those colleges distinguish between custodial and non-custodial stepparent. Some colleges, such as Princeton, state that they do not consider the non-custodial stepparent’s income. That’s what I was wondering, since I only have a non-custodial stepparent and my financial situation goes from next to impossible to manageable at schools not requiring the non-custodial stepparent’s income.
Do you know whether the methodology is any different at need-based schools (568 schools in particular) between the non-custodial stepparent and the custodial stepparent? Thanks very much for your help. I will keep your words in mind.
@picknroll222 for many, many reasons, I would not take any advice from threads older than a few years. Things changed drastically during and after the financial collapse in 08ish.
That thread is 11 years old…and I’m not sure the info on it was 100% accurate in that post even in 2006.
As I said upstream…please do NOT use Princeton as your poster child. Princeton has a very unique way of dealing with the spouses of divorced parents. In addition, Princeton does NOT use the Profile. Princeton uses the FAFSA and a Princeton Financial Aid Application Form. That is how they get info about incomes…from whomever they use.
And again I say…look at the college websites. They will very clearly state whether they require the non-custodial parent Profile form. That form includes both non-custodial parent and a spouse if there is one. The Profile includes the custodial parent and spouse if there is one.
The FAFSA includes the custodial parent…and spouse if there is one…and all spousal,support andmchild support received.
I don’t believe that the 568 schools just use 2 incomes. That either is old news…or,it,was never true to begin with.
This forum has fabulous information…but a lot has changed in recent years. If you are looking for information, I will boldly suggest that 11 year old threads are too old to consider accurate.
For example…NOW…both FAFSA and Profile use prior prior year tax year information…that is new this year.
Other changes…biological parents who live in the same home BOTH are included on the fafsa even if the parents are not married. That was not the case in 2006.
Please…read current threads…not 11 year old ones.
And mostly…look at the financial aid sections for colleges of interest. If a college is asking for financials from parent spouses…then they will be using them in the computation for need based aid.
@romanigypsyeyes I’m sure you’re right. It’s difficult to determine where that line should be drawn, but I suppose your advice regarding the financial crisis is most accurate. Thanks for the input!
@thumper1 I agree that an exception to the norm like Princeton should not be used as the standard. Still, I started this thread and the identical one for UChicago to see if anyone on CC had experienced my situation with those schools.
I’ve found that the language on certain websites is vague. Yale, in this thread’s case, states very clearly that both biological parents are expected to contribute. That’s fine. However, I find no mention of their procedure for stepparents. From what I’ve gathered from your responses, I can safely assume that the non-custodial stepparent is factored in if the school requires the Non-Custodial Profile to go along with the PROFILE. Is that right?
As for the 2006 thread, I agree that only new threads will do. The absence of more current information on the topic of 568 schools drove me to look at that particular thread.
Thank you for clarifying the factors involved in each particular aid form.
I also responded to your University of Chicago thread. Their policy changed only a couple of,years ago. Chicago is now a fafsa only school, it uses the fafsa which will,have your custodial parent, and their spouse on it. Those are the fafsa rules. NO EXCEPTIONS. If a custodial parent is married, their spouse info is required in the fafsa.
Chicago has a short form of their own.
Chicago does not ask for non-custodial parent information.
It is,the ONLY FAFSA only school that guarantees to meet full need for all,accepted students.
Hey OP! I’m a current admit into Yale 2021 with a very generous financial aid package. I have divorced parents and was able to not submit my noncustodial parent’s income. Granted, although I was a QuestBridge applicant, I think Yale FA Office should still follow the same process for other applicants…
I submitted a “Noncustodial Parent Waiver”, that is, a form which explains why my noncustodial parent’s information should not be included when considering my financial aid package. For me, my biological mother never provided my father with child support funds, so she would also not provide any money towards my college fund. In addition, I have not talked with her for two years and haven’t visited her in five years, for reasons that remain personal. This disconnect between me and my biological mother gave reason for the Office to not consider her financial status while considering my financial aid package… This form is a chance for you to tell Yale that (if this applies to your case) your noncustodial parent’s income should not be included in your consideration for financial aid because they did not contribute towards your current financial status and therefore will not provide additional money for your college education.
If this situation does not apply to you, where you have a specific reason to remove the noncustodial parent’s financial information based on personal/financial reasons, I think that you have to submit your noncustodial parent’s forms like what the above comments say.
I hope this helped… I would message the Yale Financial Aid Office, definitely the best way to go if you’re lost/finding your way.
@thumper1 Thanks for the clarification. I figured that was the case, that requiring the Non-Custodial Profile implies requiring non-custodial stepparent income. I will keep that in mind moving forward. I appreciate the help!
Hi @ekkocentric , thanks for the reply! Congratulations on your admittance to Yale as well… what an incredible opportunity for you! I completely sympathize with your situation… though mine does not entail a lack of contact between my biological parents, I can understand the challenges you and others face when it comes to identifying financial needs.
I’m glad to hear your waiver worked out for you and you were given plenty of aid… I don’t plan on submitting a waiver (if I apply to Yale) for the simple reason that my situation is not as financially complex as yours. With that said, I very much appreciate the input. I will consider messaging the Financial Aid Office closer to the process to clarify any concerns.
With that, best of luck at Yale this fall! Thanks again :)>-
No where does this @picknroll222 indicate that he would be eligible for a non-custodial parent waiver. Plus…just because @ekkocentric got one at Yale is NO guarantee that @picknroll222 will get the same consideration.
Unless there is a non-custodial waiver (which they he OP agrees is not the case), there is no option regarding submitting non-custodial parent information.
@picknroll222 have you discussed college financing with your parents? This is a very important step. If they have a budget for,your college costs…you will need to look for colleges within that budget.
If you are really a competitive applicant for Chicago and Princeton, you could garner significant merit aid at schools out if the top 20 that award merit aid. The Ivies don’t. Chicago does.l.but not very many…and you would need to be a tippy top applicant.