Financial Aid for Upper MIddle Class

cptofthehouse
Mon, 13 Jul 2020 15:25:17 +0000

The definition of upper middle class is meaningless when it comes to financial aid. What counts is what your parents’ 2019 income is, whAt assets they have on the day the FAFSA is filed, and if they own any businesses, rental property, other income producing assets, or assets altogether. If a parent is going through a bankruptcy at the time the FAFSA is being filed or that bankruptcy has changed the 2019 income situation, this can be brought up on an individual basis with each college, and it will depend upon the various financial aid offices as to how that will be treated. If current income is anywhere close to the amounts OP has given, and there are no other kids in college, it is unlikely there will be any financial aid at most colleges, other than the Direct loans.

If $18k a year is your budget, you might consider looking at commuting to a local college. Even the $5500 Direct Loan you can take freshman year accrues interest, and if you are determined to go to medical school, your best bet is to not to accrue debt while an undergraduate.

In fact, I recommend you commute, get whatever your parents will pay ,get a part time and summer job as soon as you are out of high school and start saving. Your parents are what this system expects to pay for your education and they will be expected to be able to pay more than the are willing. I don’t think $18k is going to cover room/board as well as Tuition for college. You stil need books, supplies , fees , and living expenses, transportation , etc etc

You can also start looking for colleges that offer hefty merit money. Still, full tuition which is pretty much what you need or danged close to it, is very difficult to get. My one son did get a wonderful half cost award from Tulane which came to ~ $35k freshman year, but still left $35k to pay, and that’s not including travel, personal necessary and discretionary expenses, etc. That was a hefty award, and still comes up short with $18k, $55k direct loan and summer and pastime work. He did get a full tuition award from a local school and $18k would have covered room, board, books, supplies, necessities and a extra spending money, and would have been an affordable option, had he been in your situation.

My son did get free tuition options from our state schools, a full tuition scholarship from a local private school, and two full ride scholarships from OOS public schools that would all be options had he been under your constraints. Four of his schools did not offer a dime in merit money, though one of that batch did put him up for consideration for scholarships (up to full ride) that would be awarded at the end of the app season. Highly unlikely, he’d have gotten one of those very competitive awards. Penn State offered something around $6k off of a $50k OOS cost This is a real life scenario here for a 4.0 student with a 34 ACT composite.