FINANCIAL AID 101… Ann Marie Gruber Associate Director of Financial Aid Lakeland Community College

Financial Aid Myths  “The college with the lowest price tag is the cheapest to attend”  “We make too much money to qualify for financial aid”  “We are receiving less (no) financial aid because we have saved”

Calculating Your Financial Aid Eligibility... Cost of Attendance -Expected Family Contribution (EFC) =Financial Need

Cost of Attendance  Tuition and Fees  Room & Board  Books & Supplies  Transportation  Miscellaneous Expenses

EFC Factors  Parental Income  Parental Assets (excluding primary residence, retirement accounts)  Age of Older Parent  Family Size  Number in College  Student Income  Student Assets  Federal Means Tested Benefits

When is the EFC Calculated?  EFC calculated when Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is submitted  EFC estimator available at

Both the student and one parent of a dependent student need a pin.

After April 25, 2015… PIN will be replaced by FSA User ID and password will be asked for PIN (if have one) during user ID account creation link of PIN and new user ID if information matches will be able to link to prior FAFSA submissions when user ID account is created

Financial Need  Varies depending on the cost of the school  Compare how and how much of your financial need has been met at each school

Determining Need

Sources of Aid  Federal  State  Institutional  Private

Types of Financial Aid Gift Aid - aid which does not need to be repaid (usually) Grants - usually need based Scholarships-merit based

Examples of Gift Aid  Federal Pell Grant  FSEOG  TEACH Grant

Examples of Gift Aid  Ohio College Opportunity Grant (OCOG)  Endowed Scholarships  Institutional Scholarships  Outside Scholarships

Types of Financial Aid Self Help - aid which must be repaid or earned Loans Work Study

Examples of Self Help  Federal Perkins Loan  Direct Loans  Direct PLUS  Alternative Student Loans  Federal College Work Study  General Student Employment

ABC College Cost of Attendance 19,500 EFC Financial Need 17,500 Federal Pell Grant 3780 SEOG 1000 Ohio College Opportunity Grant 920 Federal College Work Study 1800 Direct Subsidized Loan 3500 Direct Unsubsidized Loan 2000 Total 13,000

XYZ College Cost of Attendance EFC Financial Need Federal Pell Grant 3780 SEOG 1000 Ohio College Opportunity Grant 2568 President’s Scholarship XYZ College Grant 1000 Federal Perkins Loan 2000 Federal College Work Study 1800 Direct Subsidized Loan 3500 Direct Unsubsidized Loan 2000 Total 37648

123 College Cost of Attendance 21,598 EFC -15,000 Financial Need 6,598 XYZ President’s Scholarship 2,000 Direct Subsidized Loan 3,500 Direct Unsubsidized Loan 2,000 Total 7,500

Special Circumstances –Job loss –Loss of other income (example: child support received) –Medical expenses –Other unusual expenses –Parent in college paying for their own tuition

The Process... 1) Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on-line 2) Complete an institutional application and/or the PROFILE if applicable 3) Provide any additional documentation requested by the college in a timely manner 4) Receive award letters from schools 5) Compare and make a decision

Tips to Applying u Apply early u Be aware of deadlines u Use accurate information u Keep copies of everything you submit u Search for outside scholarships u Think before you spend money on financial aid consultants, scholarship search companies, etc. u Ask questions…get the student involved!

Questions?