No, I haven’t seen the invitation yet. I’m not first gen, though. Both my parents went to university. I am BIPOC, though. We aren’t dirt poor, but we have a lot of expenses, I guess.
What does your portal say - is there new info in the FA tab?
(You don’t have to tell us the exact content but search thoroughly).
Just checked: nothing new. Same financial aid award letter from the day of acceptance.
At the back of the letter under additional information it says this:
- Eligibility for federal aid has been estimated at this time due to the late release of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Any offer of federal aid is subject to change upon receipt and review of the FAFSA information, as well as in accordance with annual federal funding levels.
- Your entire financial aid offer is contingent upon the receipt of the FAFSA and review of all family tax records. The College reserves the right to revise a student’s offer if this review reveals income or assets not considered at the time of the original notification.
Does this mean anything significant??
That’s why you don’t know your FA package - they don’t have the exact numbers thus could only provide an estimate (or, in your case, no estimate - we know they’re missing financial info because they didn’t get the info you’re Pell eligible. Pell is not CSS dependent.)
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But at best I’m getting the full Pell grant. Even if I get that I’ll still be on the hook for 55k at HC.
I also found this really confusing:
- The Faber Scholarship is awarded on the basis of both academic merit and financial need. It is renewed for four years provided you maintain good academic progress and a satisfactory disciplinary record.
Yes, how they list it even on their website is confusing. They make it sound like merit - but it’s listed above the merit subcategory.
Another great question to ask.
They seem a little dodgy with the whole aid process. They’d be more transparent since they’re a 100% met needs-based school.
Your expenses really don’t matter in terms of your need based aid award.
But really…it’s my opinion that if this is IT, there is something very different between your Profile and your FAFSA. You need to find out what that is.
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The whole page lists merit scholarships separaterely from need-based aid:
Merit=
1° named scholarships (Magis, Faber)
2° scholarships for specific groups (Worcester residents, music&classics majors)
Then they list, under INSTITUTIONAL GRANTS, what the majority of their FA is, ie.s, need-based. It is CSS based and can be supplemented if there’s more than 1 kid in college at the same time.
Then they list FEDERAL GRANTS, Pell and SEOG.
Loans are on a separate page and include a clear presentation of federal loans and HC loans to replace Perkins (phased out a few years back).
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It can’t be: even if there were a discrepancy between FAFSA and CSS (and there may well be)… a processed FAFSA would list the Pell Grant.
Wrt expenses, hopefully they’re not of this kind 
" once we’ve bought food for the horses, paid the groom, the chauffeur, the cook and the maid, there really isn’t much money left" (real quote from a former classmate).
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I completely agree. And the scholarship given to this student mentions financial need is part of the basis for the award, right?
That being the case, this kid should be getting some need based aid from HC, I would think.
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I think poor @ravk06 has been caught in the FAFSA mess. And having to handle it on his own must make things super stressful. 
FA directors are already worried some FGLI kids will wrongly conclude they can’t afford this or that college. 
At least @ravk06 reached out here and should be reassured -and hopefully will continue trying to get some clarity from HC (and Oberlin).
HC and Oberlin will come through. There WILL be some FA - perhaps not enough but there will be some.
Talking to the FA rep in charge of his case may help. Especially if ravk mentions he’s low income/BIPOC/Pell eligible/dealing with this on his own.
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Gift link: students, college, FAFSA
@ravk06 - @MYOS1634 has given you a great outline here (and I know others have given you ideas too). I just want to chime in as a parent and someone who works at a university (not in admissions or financial aid) to encourage you to reach out to the financial aid offices. This is really hard stuff, and I’m sure frustrating - but you are NOT bothering the folks in financial aid. You were admitted - they want you to attend. They have the jobs they do because they want to help students. They may be exhausted and overwhelmed right now, but they want to help, and will help. You have lots of legitimate questions - it really sounds to me like there should be more money coming your way. Absolute worst case, they’ll tell you, clearly, what the situation is and you’ll be able to compare your options without making any guesses. Best of luck.
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So, is the best plan of action for HC to ask the counselor to set up a meeting to review what they used in my CSS to determine aid because I’m Pell eligible 0 SAI but billed COA is 65k?
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Yes. 
But start by pointing out confusion and the key elements I listed (ie., you don’t have a college adviser or parents who can navigate this for you).
Be polite because they’re probably getting lots of questions, cf. The above WaPo article.
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Ok guys how is this??:
Would it be possible to schedule an appointment? I am confused with this whole process, and I’m mostly navigating without the help of my parents or an advisor. I’m a US citizen living in Canada eligible for the max Pell Grant with an SAI of 0, but I did not see any acknowledgment of the Pell Grant on my aid letter. I read on the back of the letter, under additional information, that the federal aid was an estimate. Would this be updated? I was also hoping we could go over what was used on my CSS form to determine my COA because there is a massive discrepancy between it and my FAFSA, and my COA for a year is nearly double my parents’ entire college savings, leading me to almost certainly believe there’s an error on the form. I understand it’s a hectic time, and I greatly appreciate your help. Thank you!
I haven’t sent it yet; just waiting for feedback.
The college won’t care that much what your parents college savings are, but if you can compare it to your parents income that would make a bigger difference. Earlier in the thread you said your parents’ income was about $26,000 per year, I believe. Can you compare the yearly cost of attendance to that?
ETA: here was where you talked about your parents AGI
But looking back at the beginning of the post, you mentioned that your parents income is about $150,000 per year. I’m wondering if this is where the mismatch is coming in? Somehow your parents income is $150,000 per year, but your AGI is only $26,000 per year? I’m thinking the schools might have seen that in the CSS, and perhaps there is some problem with your FAFSA, that gave you an SAI of zero mistakenly?
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