<p>Financial aid is ridiculous, and schools that claim to meet 100% need rarely do. For example, my EFC was around 6-7K. Brown wanted 30 K from me. Columbia and Dartmouth wanted 17K. By comparing my financial aid packages, I can see that they are all significantly off from my EFC, and I did not make any mistakes on my financial aid forms. Obviously, schools determine what your need is. You don’t.</p>