heyyou

my parents make around...$240ish and we got about $33 from yale and harvard and even more from stanford.

granted there were some extenuating circumstances (like medical bills, private tuition, etc) but most of my schools were very generous.

if you are good enough to get into the very top schools, then everything will work out.

thumper1

>>we got about $33 from yale and harvard >>

Are you saying that Harvard and Yale awarded you $33 in grants?

cptofthehouse

It really depends on what assets are, age of parents, private tuitions, lack of pensions, other kids in college etc. Though income is what drives the aid number the most, there can be other mitagating factors. That's why sometimes this whole thing can be so unfair.

My friend whose son went to Harvard did not get money because the school felt that his apartments that he owned which are the sole source of his income and are his retirement could be liquidated to pay the costs. Possible but not a wise move on his part to do this. THere were folks who were better off than he was, but with their money in a company pension which does not have to be reported and not self employed that got some aid. If you fall within a pocket that gets favorable treatment through the process, you can make out. Otherwise, you pay.

pnthrs11

at harvard if your parents make under 180k and have reasonable assets than the max theyll make you contribute is 10%

cptofthehouse

The story is that there is no maximum income for stafford loans. That is true for the unsubsidized staffords. However, for the subsidized stafford, I BELIEVE that you can get up to the maximum amount of subsidized up to your family EFC. In other words, if you have an EFC of $2000, you can get the subsidized stafford up to that amount. If you have a large EFC, you can get the maximum subsidized stafford, and the go on to the unsubidized Stafford if your school does not offer Perkins money or other funds. There are also special exceptions for kids whose parents do not qualify credit wise for PLUS.

thumper1

cptofthehouse....there is a limit per year on ALL Stafford loans. I'm not sure of the exact amounts (someone else can post those), but for freshmen, the total is somewhere in the $3500 range. Students receive subsidized stafford loans if they have financial need. Students without financial need receive unsubsidized loans. Perkins loans are usually reserved for students with need who also are not high income. Colleges have some discretion awarding the Perkins...but if you have a high EFC and don't have much need, you probably are not going to get a Perkins loan.

If you have a high EFC, that means that your family can contribute a LOT to your college education. You probably will get an unsubsidized Stafford (no need) not a subsidized one (where you have need).

Almost everyone who has no financial need (or very little) will be offered an unsubsidized Stafford loan IF they complete the FAFSA.

If the student's family is denied a Parent Plus loan, the student CAN apply for stafford loans in excess of the maximum usually allowed.

CountingDown

UChicago sent us a letter recently stating that new legislation has been passed and that the max subsidized for a freshman is still $3500, but one can take an additional $2000 in non-subsidized Staffords, for a total of $5500. Strudents getting non-subsidized only can also go to $5500.

From the email and letter we received:
"Effective for the 2008-2009 school year: increased loan limits for undergraduate students.

On Wednesday May 7, 2008, President George W. Bush signed legislation that increased the loan limits for undergraduate students. Effective for the 2008-09 school year, students may borrow an additional $2,000 from the unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan program. You may have already submitted your 2008-09 Federal Stafford Loan Instruction and Amount Request Form. However, if you want to borrow additional unsubsidized funds based on the new loan limits, please complete the revised 2008-09 Federal Stafford Loan Instruction and Amount Request Form by accessing it online:

http://collegeaid.uchicago.edu/pdfs/...oanrequest.pdf.

Indicate the total amount you want to borrow for the year, including any amount(s) previously requested. Be sure to check the unsubsidized box on step three. Based on federal regulations, we will determine the maximum amount you are eligible to borrow when we certify the loan application.

Dependent Undergraduate Students
Base Amount Additional unsubsidized loan amount prior to July 1, 2008 Additional unsubsidized amount effective July 1, 2008
Freshman $3,500 $0 $2,000
Sophomore $4,500 $0 $2,000
Junior or Senior $5,500 $0 $2,000

* Students considered independent by federal guidelines may be eligible to borrow an additional $4,000 in their first and second years and an additional $5,000 in their third and fourth years under the unsubsidized program.

P.S. The link is for UChicago students -- check with your own FA office for updates/forms.

cptofthehouse

Yes, I know there are Stafford limits, but if parent's are denied PLUS loans, kids can get additional amounts. I do not know the absolute overall limits. The subsidized limit is $3500, I know and you can get that only if your EFC is shows unmet need of that amount. I never did understand Perkins loans and FSEOG monies and how they are distributed, though I do know that you need to have extensive need and Pell eligible kids are first in line for them. I do not know on what basis colleges are eligible to get those funds to give out and how much they are. The only thing the FAFSA EFC can guarantee are the Pell grants and subsidized Stafford loans at various need threshholds. The rest is up to the school and possibly the state.

philoglossia

does anyone have experience with applying for FA with "atypical" assets? my grandparents have all died & two of them had houses in boston (they bought decades ago) that got my parents a substantial inheritance. now all of this is tied up in extremely illiquid investments. it looks as though FAFSA & PROFILE couldn't care less about the massive amount of money we would lose liquidating them to pay for my education. our income is about 170k.

do i still have a hope of financial aid? we ran the princeton aid estimator to get a sense of the top tier's aid-- it said our need was 0. i'm looking at ivies, stanford, & swarthmore.

cptofthehouse

No, you are not going to get financial aid when there are assets sitting there. THat would not be fair. Your parents can borrow against the houses, until they put them on the market.

Otherwise you need to look at schools that give merit aid. If you are looking at those top schools and are a qualified candidate for them, there are some possibilities at less selective schools that could give you scholarships. You would also be eligible for a subsidized Stafford loan and your parents can take out PLUS loans to tide you over until you can get your atypical assets liquidated.

thumper1

Second (and third) homes are viewed as assets on the FAFSA and Profile. The reality is that they can be sold...and yes, I know the real estate market isn't great. But the prices can be reduced. And your family CAN take out home equity loans using those homes as collateral.

The thing is...IF you suddenly sell one of those homes, you would likely have hundreds of thousands of dollars at your disposal to use for college.

Your primary residence isn't used as much. BUT those private schools you are looking at do require the CSS Profile which does take into account home equity on your primary residence as well. The amount protected on home equity varies by school.

kelsmom

To try to clarify the sub/unsub Stafford thing: A subsidized Stafford may be awarded, up to $3500 freshman year, UP TO THE AMOUNT OF UNMET NEED. Example is COA=30,0000, scholarship=8000, EFC=10,000. In this case, COA-scholarship-EFC=unmet need of $12,000. A subsidized loan of $3500 would be awarded, along with an unsubsidized loan of $2000.

Now, try this example: COA=25,000, scholarship=12,000, EFC=11,000. COA-scholarship-EFC=$2000. A subsidized loan of $2000 would be offered. In addition, the student may borrow $5500-2000=$3500 unsubsidized loan. This is because an unsubsidized loan may REPLACE the EFC.

Here is an example of no Stafford: COA=10,000, Pell=2600, private scholarship=10,000, EFC=1000. In this case, the total of Pell+scholarship exceeds the COA by more than the EFC. No Stafford can be borrowed, as EFC is offset by the Pell & scholarship.

cptofthehouse

Kelsmom, don't many colleges other than the no loan schools tend to throw in the max subsidized Stafford before awarding one of their scholarships? It seems to me that the packages I have seen tend to award max subsidized Stafford permissable before giving out its own college money. I know Pell would come first, but I have not known any Pell kids. Question, if kid gets a private scholarship from outside organization after package is received, does it have to reduce the subsidized Stafford?

ack27

sounds like you guys are having a fun discussion . I seriously have little idea what you guys are talking about. I have to do some research!

kelsmom

cptofthehouse, every school has its own rules for awarding aid. Some will max the subsidized loan before awarding grants, others will award grants first. Obviously, schools have to maximize limited resources, so those with lower endowments will have to be more frugal in awarding gift aid.

For great info regarding your question of the private scholarship coming in after the subsidized loan is awarded, check out the overawarding rules f/a administrators need to know:

http://ifap.ed.gov/sfahandbooks/atta.../0809V5Ch1.pdf

In short, if the loan proceeds have not been fully disbursed, the loan needs to be adjusted. Since the scholarship will generally be received before the second half of the loan is disbursed, the second installment would definitely be corrected. Most likely, the first installment can be adjusted, because it isn't actually disbursed until the funds are due. If all loan proceeds are disbursed & then the scholarship comes into play, the school does not have to get it back. However, schools are allowed to set some rules as far as this is concerned. F/A is really confusing, even to f/a professionals!