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My daughter just got off the phone with Financial Aid. She was told that USC had not adjusted the "Expected Student Contribution" for several years and that this year, because of the increased demand for financial aid, they made the decision to increase the Expected Student Contribution by $3000 "across the board."
Unfortunately I don't think they have communicated this to the student community, or we wouldn't have had to hear the news on the phone, unless we somehow missed an announcement.
She was told that also, as a senior, she is expected to contribute another $1000 to the cost, which combined with the $3000 increase explains her missing $4000 from her University Grant.
Unfortunately, of course, USC's cost goes up, so the gap will actually be wider, as our EFC didn't change... (And although the FAFSA doesn't account for this, Californians like our family are being hit with a roughly $2000-4000 tax increase with raised income taxes, car taxes, sales taxes, and a major decrease in the child tax credit...so we're being hit coming and going, falling further behind. I'm sure people in other states may be dealing with this as well.)
She was told that her merit scholarships, including the Smith Scholarship from the University, should post in July and that the small scholarships tend to be posted later.
Hope some of the above info is helpful.
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