It’s more difficult to gauge the income of other people than you think. Do they own their home or are they renting? Did they get family help to buy in a good neighborhood? Have they been there 20 years when the costs was a fraction of what it is today? Do they put their money in cars but live frugally in other ways? Do they support other family members?
Most kids don’t really know their parents income or are given very generalized info. Many kids are uncomfortable telling others what they do know. I can say we make a lot less than 200k and we got 1050 from UCSD. Unfortunately, It’s not likely a mistake that you didn’t receive any aid. More than likely, the people you are hearing about make less than your father does.
So many folks on this board make assumptions about other people’s income which is just wrong. They might live in a very expensive area and cannot move due to work. Many parents still have student loans or a high mortgage. Many may have hit a bump in the road ( medical issues, lost a business). So while you might live in a state where 150K house are the norm and so are 40K salaries, someone else might live in an area where 900K houses are the norm and so are 200K salaries ( in the end after expenses both families might have the same disposable income). For many, the cost of education is astronomical. Don’t make the assumption that someone who makes a lot of money has a lot of money to spare and don’t make the assumption that someone who earns a little and lives in a lower cost state doesn’t have money saved. Families have to figure out college costs long before the kids are in high school or deal with the consequences.
OP, the way that your parents, and you, hold assets affects your EFC. For example, FAFSA calculates a much larger percent of a student’s assets (savings, checking accounts etc) as “available” for paying tuition, compared to parental savings. So, it makes sense to “spend down” these assets first. There are some good overview articles out there (Forbes, etc). Your public school system may have free seminars on the FAFSA that will explain how it works so that you can make sure you have filled it out correctly. If you can afford a financial advisor, it is another route to consider but make sure that they are savy as to this specific topic.
@ericbadmon – a family with a $200K income and more than one child in college might qualify for financial aid at a private school, where cost of attendance can be $60-$80K per year. That’s because the FAFSA EFC establishes eligibility for federal loans, but is also used in conjunction with CSS Profile to establish eligibility for need-based scholarships and grants awarded by the private colleges. In a high income area like yours, it is quite possible that many families are sending their kids to private colleges.
But aid eligibility is determined by subtracting the EFC from cost of attendance. So if a family’s EFC is $50K, and cost of attendance at a private college is $70K – that family would be eligibile for need based aid. But for a public, in-state colelge - let’s say that COA is $30K. If EFC is $50K, then that is well above the COA, so no aid eligibility.
The reason it matters if more than one child is in college is that the EFC is then reduced. For example, lets say a family has an EFC of $60K based on parental income/assets alone – but has 3 kids in college at the same time. That would mean a $20K EFC for each child, which would make all 3 available for some need based aid.
Keep in mind that you really don’t know what other families in your area are getting in aid. When they say they are receiving financial aid, they could also be referring to merit scholarships that are not based on need. It’s very common for people to confuse need/merit when talking casually to others. So if some neighbor says that XYZ college gave $20K in financial aid – that very well could be a merit scholarship, not a need-based award.
Even without need, you are eligible to a federal loans of $7500 if you are transferring into UCLA as a junior and your parents would like you to take responsibility for some of your college costs. Loan payments would be deferred until after you graduate, but interest would start running on the loan right away.
At most schools, financial aid starts with loans and work-study before any cash grant money is awarded. So kids who get financial aid $$, also are usually taking loans and working part-time while in school. You would not be eligible for jobs funded with work-study --but there are plenty of other work opportunities in LA, and there may also be campus jobs that don’t require work study eligibility – so you also have the option to work while you are in school. Also, if you don’t live on campus, you might be able to save on the cost of attendance depending on what your living arrangements are.
I’m getting the feeling from @thumper1’ 's postings that some people think that I came off as a spoiled brat complaining that I didn’t get financial aid. This is the problem with communicating on the Internet, everything is reduced to words which usually only account for less than half of our communication. I was merely making an attempt to educate myself further so that I know I’m not making mistakes. Again, the American college experience is something I am very unaware of, all that I know is through the Internet and forums like this. My family and I have no idea how financial aid works, so naturally when people who live in the same neighborhood as me, or my dad’s coworkers, tell us that they received X amount of financial aid, it naturally makes us curious. Which is why I made the post, I need to learn more about how financial aid works.
@calmom Thank you for the info, makes a lot of sense now. I’m pretty sure what I’ve heard people talk about are merit based scholarships rather than need based aid.
@gallentjill Thank you. I clarified myself on a separate post but I have no idea how financial aid works. I guess my words came off in a way that made people think that I was complaining about not getting financial aid. I didn’t even know merit-based vs. need based but I know now.
FAFSA helps colleges determine if your family has financial “need”, as determined by their formula.
The UC’s are public schools, supported in part by Calif taxpayers. They do not have multi billion$ endowments that can spay for generous FA programs for upper middle income families.
Anyone making $200K and apples to a UC, is going to have to show a tremendous number of unexpected and unavoidable expenses, such as catastrophic medical bills, or having many kids in college at the same time, in order to qualify for any additional financial aid to go to a UC, beyond the $7500 in federal loans.
@ericbadmon --thanks for your reply. I do think people talking about / bragging about merit aid makes the most sense. Upper income people who understand the financial aid process are well aware that merit aid is the way to go.
This is why colleges consider gross income, not net. The situation of a family earning $200,000 is nothing like that of a family earning $40,000. The lower income family isn’t less likely to have medical or financial issues. They just have fewer resources should they encounter them. The $200,000 family would have to spend $160,000 (four times the entire yearly income of the $40k family) just to get to their gross. In no way is the financial situation of the $200k family similar to the lower income family.
OP, lots of things can affect financial aid packages. If your friends’ parents are divorced, that might affect aid. Some schools offer merit aid, so you may some of those grants too. It’s nice you want to help pay. One way to help is to search for schools that offer merit for your stats. If your parents are comfortable paying but you want to help, you can take the ~$5500/year federal student loan and work summers. That’s a nice contribution.
Really…what other folks are getting for financial aid has no bearing on what you are receiving.
And I would suggest you not believe everything others are telling you. It’s very possible they aren’t giving you accurate or complete info.
I think my answer in post 4 was very similar to what others have posted to you.
I doubt you made a mistake on your FAFSA. With a $200,000 income, your EFC likely exceeds the cost of attendance at UCLA (your EFC is on the SAR you got when you completed your FAFSA).
You didn’t qualify for merit aid at UCLA. It’s a very competitive school as you know…and even getting accepted is not a slam dunk…so congratulations on that.
Too late to edit. What i meant above…don’t believe everything your neighbors and friends are telling you. It’s very possible that info is inaccurate or incomplete.