Financial Aid 101 Fall 2016

Financial Aid Night Where: Northern High School Auditorium When: October 26th, 2016 at 6:00 PM Who: All are invited! Speaker: Mr. Dave Reeder, Director of Financial Aid Mount St. Mary’s University Please consider joining us to learn more and ask questions!

What is financial aid? Financial assistance that helps to cover college expenses Money that helps students and families pay for college

Two Forms of Financial Aid Merit-based Meaning the student earned it based on some kind of exemplary achievement or exceptional involvement in something (Ex. High academic achievement) Need-based Meaning a student and his/her family demonstrate financial need

Where does Financial Aid come from? There are 4 sources: Federal Government State Government Schools (Institutional) Private Sources

What types of financial aid are available (from those 4 sources)? There are 4 main types: Grants Scholarships Loans Work Study

Grants Gift money that doesn’t need to be repaid – FREE! Federal Examples: Pell Grant – up to $5,775 Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant – up to $4,000 TEACH Grant - $4,000 How do you get a grant? File your financial aid forms!

Scholarships Also gift money that doesn’t need to be repaid – FREE! Often merit-based, but financial need may be considered Examples: Dillsburg Area Business Association’s Scholarship Rotary Club Scholarship Merit Scholarships from schools

Money that you will have to repay with interest Loans Money that you will have to repay with interest

Work-Study Where you qualify for the college to employ you Part-time work on campus that offers flexibility with your class schedule Earn a pay check

Cost of Attendance (COA) This is the total cost to attend an institution WITHOUT financial aid factored in. Factors considered in calculating COA: Tuition Fees Housing Meal Plan Transportation Books & Supplies Personal Expenses

$9,765 x 2 = $19,531/year *Doesn’t include any personal expenses

Net Price This is what you actually pay AFTER financial aid Every school has a Net Price Calculator on their website for you to use to estimate your own COA!

How do I know how much financial aid I will receive? You will need to do the following things: #1 Federal: File your FAFSA! #2 State: File the PA Financial Aid form directly after filing the FAFSA – it will prompt you to do it! #3 Schools: File any financial aid forms needed at the colleges you are applying to #4 Private: Fill out scholarships every week

There’s Financial Aid & There’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) What is Expected Family Contribution? An estimate of the student and/or parent’s ability to contribute to post-secondary education. The government uses the EFC to determine how much need-based aid you qualify for. EFC is determined off of the FAFSA After you file the FAFSA, you will learn what your EFC is on the Student Aid Report, which is the way FAFSA follows-up with you in a few days after filing.

FAFSA Filing Workshop Northern High School Library Computer Lab Date: November 10th Time: Come anytime between 4:00-7:00 PM! Call the Guidance Office to register!

What is your “Financial Need”?

Fast forward, and let’s assume you’ve been accepted to different colleges and they have sent you your AWARD LETTER that tells you what your NET PRICE is.

COA: $35,000

The Gap COA: $35,000 Financial Aid will cover: $29,750 The Gap = $35,000 - $29,750 = $5,250 Remember that loans are YOUR money too: $5,500 So, $5,250 + $5,500 = $10,750 out of your pocket/year $10,750 x 4 years = $43,000 total gap

How do we meet the gap? Student Loans? Parent PLUS Loans Private Loans – Higher interest rates Scholarships Or consider a different college that is a better financial fit. Freshman Year $5,500 Sophomore Year $6,500 Junior & Senior Year $7,500

How many loans are too many? The rule of thumb is that you do NOT want to take out more loans than your starting salary will be upon graduation. Bureau of Labor Statistics Website Find the salary of the job you want to pursue. Example: Total loan amount = $43,480 Computer Programmer Salary = $79,530 Athletic Trainer Salary = $44,670 Pharmacy Technician Salary = $30,410

Estimated Repayment Total loan amount = $43,480 Computer Programmer = $79,530 Athletic Trainer = $44,670 Pharmacy Technician = $30,410 Computer Programmer $514/month for 6.5 years (Total paid w/ interest $49,192) $432/month for 10 years (Total paid w/ interest $51,753) Athletic Trainer $224/month for 14 years (Total paid w/ interest $57,451) Pharmacy Technician $157/month for 17 years (Total paid w/ interest $62,130)

Scholarships Remember, filing the FAFSA, the PA Financial Aid form (PHEAA), and the colleges financial aid forms are very, very important to see if you qualify for grants and scholarships! WATCH FOR DEADLINES! Look to see if your colleges offer merit scholarships, and if so, what are they? Naviance > Colleges > Scholarship List FastWeb (Endorsed by College Board) Peterson’s (petersons.com)

Scholarship Transcript Requests Must pay $2 per transcript request Must request transcripts in the Guidance Office for scholarships All college transcript requests go through Naviance

Scholarship Search Tips The more awards you apply for, the more awards you will likely receive. For ever 10 you are eligible for and apply for, you will receive 1. A bunch of small awards add up to a big one. Smaller awards have fewer competitors. Scholarship searching should become a part of your weekly responsibilities.

Scholarship Search Tips Avoid scams: Money flows to the student, never the other way around. Search the web Narrow your search. Instead of searching Google for “scholarships,” search for “Dillsburg, PA scholarships” or “Shippensburg University scholarship deadline” Use magic words in your searches like: Grant Financial aid Foundation Trust

Example of Google Scholarship search Music scholarship Music scholarships Music scholarship application Music scholarship deadline Music scholarship grant Boston music scholarship Boston music scholarship application deadline

Why is it important to apply to multiple colleges? Are you open to a community college for 1-2 years? (Example: HACC is $3,690 for 12 credits) What are your goals? Are you open to having a job in college? Will you live on or off campus? What expenses can you control?