Bethorama33

I have two kids going to college at the same time. One looks great and should be a NMF, qualifies for lots of merit aid. The other seems like he could possibly not go to college or end up dropping out. This is a huge impact on our EFC as a family.

So do I really strive to go for schools offering merit based aid? I'd also like to go back to work once my youngest is in school and I know that could affect financial aid packages...

I really like MIT but they are all needs based scholarships. NEU would give him full tuition based on merit alone. Also, NEU is a five year university, do you know if that means full tuition for five years?


Thanks!

sylvan8798

What would your situation be in terms of need? Expected EFC? And are both of them going to be in college for the SAME 4 years, or is it a 2-3 year overlap?

notrichenough

Northeastern is a co-op school, and one of those five years will be spent working. So he will only need 4 years' worth of tuition spread over the 5 years.

Erin's Dad

^ And he can bank his coop earnings.

Bethorama33

They will overlap all four years and our EFC is $11,000 with 2 in college full-time. Thanks for the info on NEU!

bhmomma

Northeastern has two co-op options. The most popular is the three co-op option which is a five year program. After freshman year the students spend 6 months on co-op, 6 months in class. Tuition is not billed during co-op periods, and the co-ops are paid positions. Students graduate with bachelor's degree and 18 months (3 separate co ops) of experience. Some students who co-op near home or where cost of living is lower can bank quite a bit of savings. Some students choose to remain in university housing (which is available if on co-op in the Boston area) which is more expensive.

There is also a less popular 4 year/2 co-op program.

carmen617

What's he planning to study? My son's friend at NEU just finished his first co-op in software engineering where he was paid $20.00/hour and earned $15k. This kid is a full pay student and I am sure he spent his earnings on gadgets and electronics, but I can see co-op earnings like that pitching in big time if you are on a full tuition scholarship!

dodgersmom

Given the circumstances you describe, I'd focus on merit aid. Relying on need-based aid when your EFC could skyrocket halfway through school (due either to Child #2 dropping out or to your increased income) could really leave you in the lurch.

Focus on the merit-aid schools. And don't worry that you're "passing up" MIT . . . even if your child applied, the odds against admission are pretty astronomical!

Bethorama33

He wants to be a math teacher. Does having the co-ops ie. kids leaving for months at a time affect the social life on campus? He's very shy and brainy, I was hoping the right college with similair kids would give him more opportunities to be social.

Thanks dodgermom, that's what I thought but worried I was "overthinking" it.

sylvan8798

There are a number of other NMF schools - Fordham, for example - I would seriously investigate all the other options.

mom2collegekids

???

EFC is per child....so $22k total for two kids ($11k each)...and since most schools don't meet need, then you'd likely be paying more than that.

Your EFC will not be $11k each if one drops out or doesn't go to college. Then the EFC would be $22k. also, if you return to work, then your EFC will even be higher.

I think looking for merit scholarships is a great idea in this case. Then, income/EFC won't matter.

However, be aware that NEU doesn't meet need, so a full tuition scholarship would still leave you with about $15k per year to pay for this child. If that's ok, then good.

What are the test scores/GPA for the NMF kid?

mom2collegekids

Keep in mind that merit gets applied to NEED first. So, it won't reduce the amount that YOU have to pay unless it's sooooo HUGE that it covers all of need, and then cuts into EFC.

So, NEU isn't going to determine need, give aid, and then add the NMF money on top. It's very likely that NEU will only give the NMF award and maybe a student loan.

Bethorama33

He has 221 PSAT, 2250 SAT (760/760/730) Top 20% of class, 3.60 GPA.
He really wants to stay in New England though...

If he gets all but $15K taking care of by full tuition at NEU, I was thinking some of the rest could be made up from our in-state teacher grants and the national TEACH grants and then a Stafford Loan. Or am I totally confused and those things would not have an impact on our EFC?

cptofthehouse

Bethorama, here is how it works in terms of financial aid.

You and your kids will have to fill out FAFSA on or after 1/12013 if they are starting school in fall of 2013. All three of you need to apply for FAFSA PINs and each son will fill out his own section, and you and/or your spouse will complete the parents section for each son. It is smart to have as little money in your accounts as possible on the day you fill out the FAFSA. Though the information is what should go on your 2012 tax returns, the actual dollar amounts of assets are reported as of the date you fill out the FAFSA. So payday is not a good day. Make sure your bills have all cleared when you fill this out. If your kids have savings, they should reimburse you for their expenses and you should have a savings account for them under YOUR name and ssn because kids get hit 20% of their savings with no allowance, whereas parents get an allowance and are hit about 5%, a big difference .
Primary home equity and non custodial parent's financials are not needed for FAFSA. However, if you are remarried--your spouse regardless of how he feels about it or whatever agreement has been made about it, has to include his financial info. Federal rules trump it all.

Each son will get a FAFSA EFC which is 1/2 of what your total EFC is plus whatever their portion of the form comes to. If they earn less than $6k in a year, and have no assets, their EFC will be zero, and both kids will have the same EFC.

That EFC will be what is used for federal aid, usually state aid, if there is any, and for those colleges who also use the FAFSA for their aid. At $11k your kids will NOT get an PELL grants. $11K also means that your son who you think might be going to community college or local school, is unlikely to get any financial aid if he commutes since the cost of most state schools for commuters is around that price or less, and these schools don't tend to meet need anyways, so that if they cost more, the chances of getting the amount over EFC is small. Maybe, some local private school or any school that finds his stats "up there" compared to most of their students will throw in some aid money, but this is all up to chance. He will be eligible to borrow up to $5500 in Direct Stafford loans in his own name, and if the COA (cost of attendance) is higher than the EFC, some of the interest may be subsidized.

Your other son appears to be considering schools that have a greater chance of meeting full need, are very expensive in terms of sticker price, and selective in admissions. Still even for him, the most important pick or picks on his list are those school that are sure to take him, that you know you can afford. Financial aid is like playing the frigging lottery. Something I want to mention, is that if he truly wants to be a math teacher, the most direct path to getting a public school position in teaching is probably your state schools. MIT, and NE, though excellent schools are hardly the best place to go to become a high school math teacher. In order to get hired by most public schools, which is usually where the money is in teaching, there is often a certification process that differs from state to state. I know any number of kids who went to highly selective, expensive private schools, did well, and when they decided they wanted to go into teaching, they were at the end of the line BEHIND those who went to state school and specifically studied to become certified teachers. Those private school kids often had to complete a certification/education regiment at additional expense, taking more time , and still most often are teaching at private schools for far less money than those who went to a local state teachers' college (or what used to be such--most have changed their names to be of broader focus). There are private schools that do have teaching programs that have some form of certification as well, but they may be good only in that state, so if your son goes OOS that can be an issue. I find that these certification programs are very confusing to understand, and if this is truly a path your son wants to consider, he needs to talk to his guidance counselor and get precisely what the reqs are for this state. That is something most public school guidance counselors can give in terms of info better than most anyone. He can also get a list of those schools that have such programs and if he is a high caliber student, there may be some scholarship possibilities there. Going into math as the subject he wants to teach, there are often incentives as there tends to be a shortage in that field.

If your son(s) are considering private schools that require PROFILE as well for financial aid, that also needs to be completed. A lot of schools that guarantee to meet need, define it using PROFILE, not FAFSA. Fill out some Net Price Calculators for such schools and see what they define as need for you son, and that will give you some idea of the fin aid packages from those schools, particularly those that guarantee to meet need. Also ask if loans and work study are part of their aid packages when you get down to making a list, because when those are so used, you lose that as a buffer.

A school like MIT meets full need and does not use loans, I believe Things change, so you always have to check the current situation. The problem with schools like MIT, is getting accepted. My guess, and this is a guess only, is that what you will be expected to pay will be a bit higher (and it could be lower even) with PROFILE school, so, say your need will be about $15-20K. That means that for those schools that cost $60K, the financial aid package will have to be $40K+. That's a big chunk of change, that only the top schools in terms of meeting need will be likely to meet,OR schools where your son is in the very top echelon of students at that school where he is likely to get some merit money, and what is called merit within need. Even schools that don't usually meet 100$ of need often do meet it for the students they want the most. But this is all up to chance, unless you find some schools that have guaranteed awards at certain threshholds that your son meets academically and with his test scores. IF he got into MIT, they are likely to meet his full need generously. NE....I don't know. Those kids I've known, even some who had some impressive numbers did not get the most impressive aid/merit packages. Yes, you can save some money with the co-op program, overall if you work it right, but that first year bite can be hefty. Not saying to leave it out, but to bear in mind the possibilities and make sure you have a lot of different kinds of eggs in the basket.

And, yes, co-ops do affect social life. NE does not have the same social life as a school like Syracuse might. City schools, schools where the housing tends to be off campus early on, without a sport team that brings the school together, OOS where you son may not know many kids but the kids often know each other, are all schools were the social scene is affected. That is a drawback of where my son chose to go to school. Only kid in his school to go to this city located OOS public. It's been a bit rough socially for him, yes. Had he gone where a number of classmates and others in the area choose to go, or to a private school that doesn't have a large group of kids from one state, he would have probably found it a bit easier socially.

notrichenough

Bethorama - Do you live in MA? If so a 221 may not even make the cut for NMSF, let alone NMF:

National Merit Scores | National Merit Qualifying Scores