Paying For College Presented by Bob Breum Member, National Association for College Admission Counseling Earned a graduate certificate in College Counseling from UCLA (2003)

10 Most Expensive Colleges Each >$55,000/year: #1 Sarah Lawrence #2 Wesleyan Univ.  #3 Columbia Univ. #4 Johns Hopkins #5 Georgetown Univ. #6 NYU #7 Barnard College #7 Harvey Mudd  #9 Bard College  #10 Trinity Coll. (CT)

10 Most Expensive Colleges #2 Wesleyan Univ. Jan, Lyman ’07 Single parent #5 Georgetown Univ. Yasmin, Lyman ’09 Free lunch #9 Bard College Sami, Lyman ‘11 #10 Trinity Coll. (CT) Roger, Lyman ’06 Presidential Scholar “Semester Abroad” @ #6 NYU

Other Well-Known Private Colleges Univ. of Penn (Ivy) TJ, Lyman ‘10 Dartmouth (Ivy) Becky, Lyman ‘10 Brown (Ivy) Marielena, LHHS ‘11 Cornell (Ivy) Ramon, Lyman ‘09 Duke Safkat, Lyman ‘12 U. of Chicago Blake, Lyman ‘09

Other Well-Known Private Colleges Vanderbilt Nikki, Lyman ‘08 Emory Alexa, ’11 Jilly, ‘11 Carnegie Mellon Chris, ’06 Aimee, ‘10 Vassar Jesus, ’09 Berklee Coll.of Music Erik ‘08

Florida Prepaid Tuition Plan What IS covered Tuition Local fees (optional) Dormitory (optional, not all dorms are available) What is NOT covered Books, supplies, meals, clothing, transportation, computer costs, or other living expenses

Florida Prepaid Tuition Plan Benefits Scholarships do not reduce the amount of the annual award Transferable to siblings and cousins May be used for schools outside the state Drawbacks Only pays current Florida state university costs Tuition = $103.32/credit hr. Fees (optional) ≈ $57.85/hr. Dorm (optional) ≈ $5,300 ? Reduces eligibility for financial aid by an equal amount

Bright Futures What is covered Academic Scholars $100/credit hour (4 yr.) $61/credit hour (2 yr.) Medallion/Gold Seal Scholars: $75/credit hour (4 yr.) $61/credit hour (2 yr.) Typical 15 hr/semester with so-called 75%: $2,250/yr. at the univ. $1,830/yr. at state coll.

Bright Futures What is NOT covered Books, supplies, dormitories, meals, clothing, transportation, computer costs, or other living expenses 2011/2012 Award Amounts for students at private 4 year institutions Academic Scholar: ~$3,000 annually Medallion/Gold Seal Scholar: ~$2,250 annually

Bright Futures Benefits Drawbacks May be used in conjunction with other scholarships Drawbacks May NOT be used at schools outside the state

Cost of Attendance Components Total = $20K to $60K Tuition & fees ($5,700 - $45,000+) Room & board ($8,800 - $15,000+) Books & supplies ($1,070 - $1,500) Computer costs ($1,240) Transportation/travel ($530 - $1,200+) Living expenses ($650 - $2,500+) Insurance ($1,840+) Total = $20K to $60K

Cost of Attendance At UF, Bright Futures pays between 11% and 15% of the annual costs UF estimates the annual COA at $19,830

Financial Aid “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.” Karl Marx

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) www.fafsa.ed.gov Must be filed annually, but not before January 1 Requires completed Federal Income Tax returns for custodial parents/stepparents Does not require information from non-custodial parents Online FAFSA is faster and eliminates errors

SAR (Student Aid Report) Compiled from your FAFSA Reveals your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) When a family has multiple students in college simultaneously, the EFC will be adjusted for each student, i.e., two students only cost a little more than one

CSS/Profile profileonline.collegeboard.com The College Board’s financial aid application that is used by many private institutions in addition to the FAFSA May require additional information, possibly including non-custodial financial disclosure May be completed online

Financial Aid Drug convictions may affect your eligibility Male students must register with the Selective Service If you are not a US citizen, you must have an I-151 or I-551 Alien Registration Receipt Card (not an I-171 or I-464 Notice of Approval to Apply for Permanent Residence) to be eligible

Independent Student Criteria My parents don’t want to pay their EFC. Can I file a FAFSA as an independent student so that I can receive more financial aid? To qualify as independent, you must meet one of these criteria: Born before 1989 Married or legally separated Already completed a bachelor’s degree Provide more than half the support of your own children or other dependents You are an emancipated minor, orphan, ward of the court, or a homeless unaccompanied youth You are a veteran of the US Armed Forces (or on active duty)

Special Circumstances Students or families with special circumstances may appeal their EFC through the Financial Aid office of their institution (not through the Federal Government) Unusually high medical expenses Sudden change of earning power

Financial Need Financial Need is defined as the difference between the Cost of Attendance and your Expected Family Contribution (COA minus EFC)

Need-Based Financial Aid All colleges offer need-based financial aid from the Federal government Most states, including Florida, offer need-based financial aid programs that supplement the Federal programs Some colleges supplement Federal aid with institutional aid (their own money)

Types of Need-Based Financial Aid Grants These are gifts, sometimes called scholarships, that do not have to be repaid Loans Subsidized loans have interest deferred until after you graduate Federal Work-Study Hourly wages paid directly to you Jobs typically arranged on-campus Supposed to be relevant to your course of study Usually about 10 hours per week

Meeting Financial Need Some colleges guarantee that they will meet 100% of Financial Need (COA minus EFC) This is usually done with a combination of Grants, Loans, and Work-Study Schools with large endowments (big pockets) can usually offer more attractive financial aid packages, i.e., larger grants, smaller loans

No-Loan Schools Guarantee no loans: Amherst Bowdoin Claremont McKenna Colby Columbia University Davidson Harvard Univ. of Pennsylvania Pomona Princeton Swarthmore Vanderbilt Washington & Lee Williams Yale

No Loans to Low Income Students Brown ($100,000) CalTech ($100,000) Cornell ($75,000) Dartmouth ($75,000) Emory ($100,000) MIT ($75,000) U. of Chicago ($75,000) Rice ($80,000) Vassar ($60,000) Wellesley ($60,000) Many other schools with a max of $50K family income

Beware of Gaps Each school receives a fixed amount of Federal financial aid money each year Well-endowed schools supplement this money to meet 100% of need Other schools cannot meet all of your need, leaving a GAP between your financial NEED and your financial AID.

Your Fair Share Your family is expected to pay your fair share (“from each according to his ability”) Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) equals your fair share

Expected Family Contribution Your EFC does NOT change whether you attend community college or Harvard, no matter what the Cost of Attendance (COA) is Although your EFC does not change, the manner in which your Financial Need (COA minus EFC) is met may change dramatically among institutions

Private Schools Can Cost Less If your EFC is less than the COA ($20,000) of our state universities, you can probably attend many private colleges and universities for LESS than you would pay at our state universities, because many private institutions will offer you more attractive financial aid packages with lower loan amounts.

Ignore the Sticker Price The school’s “sticker price”, i.e., its advertised cost of attendance, is meaningless unless you are rich or not eligible for Federal aid.