Top 10 Things to Know About Financial Aid for College Jerry Cebrzynski Lake Forest College

Choosing a College Best Fit  Program  Location  Size  Mix of Students  Academics  Extracurricular  Facilities  Financial Considerations

1. What is Financial Aid?  Scholarships  Grants  Student Loans  Work-Study

Undergraduate Student Aid by Source and Type (in Billions), SOURCE: The College Board, Trends in Student Aid

Four major sources of funding College Private Organizations Private Organizations Federal State

Private Scholarships  : $6.6 Billion awarded  > 1.5M scholarships available  4% of undergraduates  $2,500 average award  Most Colleges do not reduce institutional $s

 82% of all FR receive some form of financial aid  92% at private colleges; 76% at public institutions  Nearly half (48%) of FR received a Pell Grant  In , average aid package $15, Everyone should apply for aid

Two Categories of Financial Aid  From College as well as from foundations, etc.  Based solely on the student’s credentials  Calculated from FAFSA and other aid applications  Sources can be federal, state, institutional  Types include grants, student loans, work-study Merit-based Need-based

3. Cost of attendance (COA)

Average Undergraduate Budgets SOURCE: The College Board, Trends in College Pricing 2011, Figure 1. $18,000 $40,000

Sticker Price vs. After Financial Aid/Scholarship Price Net Price Calculator

Net Price Calculators  Online, College-specific estimator  Average grant/scholarship available to a family like yours  Average student loan and work-study eligibility  Estimated award is not a promise, a guarantee, or an actual aid offer

 To the extent they are able, parents have primary responsibility to pay for their dependent children’s education  Students also have a responsibility to contribute to their educational costs  Families should be evaluated in their appropriate financial condition  A family’s ability to pay for educational costs must be evaluated in an equitable and consistent manner, recognizing that special circumstances can and do affect its ability to pay  The Financial Aid Office is your advocate! 4. Financial Aid is “A Partnership”

So... how does the process begin?

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) collects basic financial data and is used to determine the student’s eligibility by calculating an “index” # The Free Application for Federal Student Aid 5. To apply for all federal and state aid, families must complete the...

Overview of the FAFSA  available January 1, 2015  7 Steps  Signed and submitted electronically electronically

FAFSA on the Web (FOTW)  FAFSA.GOV  English or Spanish  Skip logic and online editing  Electronic signature (PIN)  notification  19 million (99%) FOTWs processed 14/15  FOTW Worksheet

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Supplemental Financial Aid Applications  The College Scholarship Service Financial Aid PROFILE  A College’s own application for financial aid

6. Special Circumstances Matter  When the numbers don’t tell the whole story  When the situation is expected to change (or has)  Must be able to document  consideration will vary from school to school

Special Circumstances  Change in employment status  Health expenses not covered by insurance  Change in parent marital status  Other considerations

Cost of Attendance Cost of Attendance Family’s Contribution Family’s Contribution Financial Need Financial Need -= How much aid can a student receive? Financial Need

7. The Financial Aid Award Letter (or “package” ) Will contain a combination of scholarship, grant, loan and work-study funds scholarship, grant, loan and work-study funds Why might “packages” be different? cost of attendance cost of attendance scholarship criteria and availability scholarship criteria and availability institutional philosophy and funding institutional philosophy and funding

Common Financial Aid Award Letter proposal & College Scorecard

Decoding the Award Letter Compare  COA  Total amount of aid  Types and sources Ask questions  Is aid renewable?  Terms for renewing?  Will aid change from year to year?  Will costs increase?  Is more aid available if EFC decreases?

8. Appeals  Can request change in aid if there is a valid reason  Will it make a difference?  Is need already fully met?  Is more aid available?  Valid reasons  Special circumstances

9. Deadlines are essential

Deadlines  Know each College’s priority deadlines  Read and retain all communication you receive  Contact school  Merit scholarship deadlines  Early Action/Early Decision/Regular Decision deadlines  Deadlines for supplemental documents (tax returns, etc.)

10. Ask for  The College Counseling Office at Stevenson  A College’s Financial Aid Office  The Internet     College Web Sites