CSS Profile - FM160A Total Cost of Attending for Other Family Member in College.

Paying for College
1

<p>I’m filling out the 2014-15 CSS Profile for my college junior daughter and I have another daughter entering another school as a freshman in 2014-2015. </p>

<p>Question FM160A asks “What will be the total cost of attending the educational institution (school, college, or university) this person will attend during the 2014-15 academic year?” in reference the family member entering college as a freshman. But the instructions don’t specify whether they are expecting the total list price before any financial aid (the total cost posted on the school’s website), or the price we will actually pay after financial aid. </p>

<p>For example, let’s say the freshman sibling college’s listed total cost of attendance is $60,000, and her financial aid award indicates we’ll get $20,000 of grants for a net price of $40,000. Is question FM160A expecting the $60,000 or the $40,000 number?</p>

<p>Also, does anyone know if and how CSS Profile schools use this number to set financial aid for the other sibling (in my case, the junior)?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance.
SJP</p>

2

<p>From their web site. I would say based on those responses you would enter the total COA for 160A: </p>

<p>FM-130B</p>

<p>Enter all scholarships, grants, and gift aid (money the student does not have to repay) this person received for academic year 2013-14, including those from the college, university, or school he or she is attending. If this person received a competitively awarded Tuition Exchange Scholarship, or other competitively-awarded employer-sponsored scholarship, report it here. Do not include money the student earned from work and/or has to repay, such as loans (including subsidized loans) or money earned through work-study.</p>

<p>FM-135A</p>

<p>If this person attended a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university during academic year 2013-14, enter or estimate the amount of money your parents paid or will pay towards educational expenses, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, and room and board (housing and meals). Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band. Do not include amounts your parents borrowed or plan to borrow for this student.</p>

<p>FM-135B</p>

<p>If this person attended a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university during academic year 2013-14, enter or estimate the amount of money your parents paid or will pay towards educational expenses, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, and room and board (housing and meals). Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band. Do not include amounts your parents borrowed or plan to borrow for this student.</p>

<p>FM-160A</p>

<p>If this person will attend a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university in 2014-15, enter or estimate the total educational cost of attendance, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board (housing and meals), transportation, and personal expenses. Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band.</p>

<p>FM-160B</p>

<p>If this person will attend a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university in 2014-15, enter or estimate the total educational cost of attendance, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board (housing and meals), transportation, and personal expenses. Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band.</p>

<p>FM-165A</p>

<p>If this person will attend a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university during the 2014-15 academic year, enter or estimate the amount of money your parents paid or will pay towards 2014-15 educational expenses, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, and room and board (housing and meals). Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band. Do not include amounts your parents borrowed or plan to borrow for this student.</p>

<p>FM-165B</p>

<p>If this person will attend a tuition-charging school (elementary, middle, high, or secondary school), college, or university during the 2014-15 academic year, enter or estimate the amount of money your parents paid or will pay towards 2014-15 educational expenses, including tuition and fees, books and supplies, and room and board (housing and meals). Only include expenses directly related to this student’s education, not to extracurricular activities such as sports or band. Do not include amounts your parents borrowed or plan to borrow for this student.</p>

3

<p>Put down the total price of the school. Many schools call to verify a sibling is in that school, and may even ask for the actual costs. For now, just list the highest price of school being considered. You don’t know what the future holds. SIbling may even not go to school for whatever reason, but make sure the max possible is on record.</p>

<p>CSS Profile schools use the information in different ways. Usually, the cost of the school doesn’t make any difference. What they usually do, is take the expected contribution for the parents from their formula and multiply it by …6 and that is the new expected contribution on part of the parents and then they add on the expected student contribution to get the total expected contribution for the family. FAFSA would take the parents’ portion and cut in half for 2 kids, but PROFILE formulas are less generous. </p>

<p>Some colleges will check on what school the other sibling is attending and will verify that info if that other sibling is currently a college student, or wait till the fall if the other sibling is a rising freshman. Some adjustments are made if the sibling is at a community college or vocational school, sometimes if commuting or at a state school, or no adjustment at all. Some may request the estimated cost for the other student, now more precise since one knows where he is going and what aid is received. THat is not so often done, but things could be changing. </p>

4

<p>@cptofhehouse…thank you for the above info. I am sending twins to school and a CSS Profile school more than doubled my EFC. I was thinking it was their dad’s info, which I am not privy to, that caused the significant increase. He has not offered up a dime… big sigh. </p>

5

<p>Thanks everyone for the quick replies. For FM-160A, I’ll enter the “sticker price” Total Cost Of Attendance listed on the website of the college my younger daughter will likely attend. That seems like the most literal interpretation of the FM-160A instructions as well.</p>

6

<p>On question FM-165A (family member, sibling) : How much will your parents pay for this person´s education for the 2015-16 academic year?<br>
I have a rising college freshman Son and another one in his junior year of College. While filling out CSS PROFILE for my youngest Son, should we answer this question as the amount we paid for my oldest Son college expenses least year divided by two considering that we expect that our EFC will be “almost” (depending on the College profile formula) half now that my youngest Son would be a freshman?</p>

7

<p>The thing is, if an aid package put together has to be adjusted, the school can take away so quickly it’ll make your head spin. Getting more, is not so easy when certain funds are gone. So any estimates, make them to get more aid in the initial packages based on those numbers. Just keep in mind that they will be adjusted, if you end up with less of an expense. Sometime aid adjustment after the fact could be as simple as making a subsidized loan unsubsidized or adjusting the work study award. But you try getting MORE grants. That disappeard early.</p>

8

<p>Knowing that the school will adjust the financial aid package base on REAL numbers (documents sent via IDOC), you mean that if we use in this year css profile question FM-165A the actual last year college expenses number paid for my oldest Son, would probably increase our financial aid that if we use the lower (maybe half) “expected expenses” (due to the fact that we would have 2 kids in college) for the next academic year ? I am not familiar with CSS since our oldest Son´s college does not use it.</p>