<p>I’m a junior in high school. My family is low income, my dad makes around 22,000 a year, maybe a little more, working for a not-for-profit ministry, and my mom doesn’t work. I’m the oldest by two years, so I’ll be the only one in college for a while. I’d prefer not to have student loans. My ACT score is 30, I haven’t taken the SAT yet, but my GPA is ok, around 3.8, so I might be able to qualify for some scholarships as well. I’m woefully ignorant of all the requirements of financial aid, or what colleges could help me the most, so that’s why I’m posting here.</p>
<p>Right now, it’s hard to tell.</p>
<p>While your family is low income, most schools don’t have a lot of free money to give out. And, most schools put loans in packages.</p>
<p>If you have an EFC of 0, then you would get about $5550 per year grant from the federal gov’t. Obviously, that’s not enough for college.</p>
<p>Do take the SAT and take the ACT again. </p>
<p>To get accepted to the schools that give the best aid and to the schools that give the best merit, you have have the highest scores you can.</p>
<p>Get some ACT and SAT practice books. You can get some from the library or maybe your GC will lend you some.</p>
<p>Also, be sure to get fee waivers for your tests and your apps.</p>
<p>Take the ACT again and 2 subject tests.</p>
<p>It is a good thing that you are only a junior. Read up on Questbridge so that you can apply for their scholarship program next year.
[QuestBridge</a> Home Page](<a href=“http://www.questbridge.org/]QuestBridge”>http://www.questbridge.org/)</p>
<p>Also read their resource page more more general information about financial aid and getting ready for college.
[QuestBridge:</a> Student Resource Center](<a href=“http://www.questbridge.org/resources/index.html]QuestBridge:”>http://www.questbridge.org/resources/index.html)</p>
<p>Several of the top colleges/universities have programs that will exempt low income students from taking out student loans or limit the amount. This list is a couple of years old so you will need to double check the school websites.
From Wikipedia:</p>
<p>[edit]No-loan financial aid
In 2001, Princeton University became the first university in the United States to eliminate loans from its financial aid packages. Since then, many other schools have followed in eliminating some or all loans from their financial aid programs. Many of these programs are aimed at students whose parents earn less than a certain income the figures vary by college or university. These new initiatives were designed to attract more students and applicants from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, reduce student debt loads, and provide the offering institutions with an advantage over their rivals in attracting commitments from accepted students. This is an attractive way for students to relieve the amount of debt he or she is in after college.
As of March 25, 2008, the list of colleges and universities offering such no-loan financial aid packages includes the following:
Post-secondary Institution No-loan financial aid for families meeting these eligibility requirements:
Amherst College No max income
Arizona State University Arizona residents with family income of up to $60,000[7]
Bowdoin College No max income[8]
Brown University Family income below $100,000[9]
Caltech Annual income below $60,000[10]
Claremont McKenna College No max income[11]
Colby College No max income; all students[12]
Columbia University No max income[13]
Cornell University Annual income below $75,000
Dartmouth College Annual income below $75,000[14]
Davidson College No max income
Duke University Annual income below $40,000[15]
Emory University Annual income below $100,000
Haverford College First-year students with financial need[16]
Harvard University No max income
Lafayette University Annual income below $50,000[17]
Lehigh University Annual income below $50,000[18]
MIT Annual income below $75,000[19]
University of Maryland, College Park Maryland resident with 0 EFC[20]
Michigan State University Michigan resident with family incomes at or below the federal poverty line[21]
Northwestern University Family income lower than approx. $55,000[22]
North Carolina State University Income less than 150% of the poverty line. Requires the family to have “limited assets,” regardless of state residency.[23]
University of Chicago Students who demonstrate financial need and whose annual family income totals $75,000 or less[24]
UNC Chapel Hill 200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
University of Pennsylvania No max income[25]
Pomona College No max income[26]
Princeton University No max income
Rice University Annual income below $80,000
Stanford University Annual income below $45,000
Swarthmore College Anyone with financial need[27]
Tufts University Annual income below $40,000[28]
Vanderbilt University No max income[29]
Vassar College Annual income below $60,000[30]
University of Virginia 200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
Washington and Lee University No max income
Washington University in St. Louis Annual Income below $60,000[31]
Wellesley College $60,000[32]
Wesleyan University $40,000[33]
College of William and Mary $40,000 (VA residents only)
Williams College No max income
Yale University No max income</p>
<p>[edit]Loan cap
Some universities have opted to have a “loan cap” program, which is a maximum loan either per year or for the four years combined designed to reduce the cost of attendance for low-income and middle-class students. The following schools have a loan cap program:
School Loan Cap for students meeting these eligibility requirements:
Brown University Family earning less than about $125,000: Caps total loans to $3,000 per year. Family earning up to $150,000: Caps total loans to $4,000 per year. Family earning up to $150,000: Caps total loans to $5,000 per year.
University of Chicago “Those whose families make between $60,000 and $75,000 will have 50% of their loans replaced.”[24]
Cornell University Undergraduates with family incomes less than $120,000 will have loans limited to $3,000 per year.
Duke University Undergraduate students with family income between $40,000 and $100,000 will have their loans limited on a graduated basis ($1,000 to $4,000 per year) and loans “frozen” at the freshman level. [15]
Emory University “Annual assessed incomes of $50,000 to $100,000 who demonstrate need for financial aid. The program caps total need-based loans at $15,000, assuming on-time progression toward graduation with up to eight semesters of study.”[34]
Grinnell College “Beginning in the 2008-09 academic year, need-based loans for all eligible students will be capped at $2,000 per year.”[35]
University of Maryland, College Park Students with need-based financial aid will have their loans capped at $15,900 for their four years of attendance.[20]
Middlebury College Family income below $40,000: $1,500 per year; family income $40,000 to $80,000: $2,500 per year; family income above $80,000: $3,500 per year. [36]
Rice University Students with a family income below $60,000 will not have loans. Families with incomes over $60,000 will have their loans capped at about $14,500.
University of Virginia 200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000). Need-based loans are capped at 25% of the in-state cost of attendance, regardless of state residency.
[edit]Outside the United States</p>