<p>So how will I pay for the EFC then? This is very frustrating. </p>
<p>If you find a school that offers a full tuition scholarship for your stats, then you’d have room and board, books and other expenses like travel left. That might be around $10,000. If you take out the freshman limit of $5,500 in federal student direct loan and work in the summer and during the school year, you might have enough.</p>
<p>I understand your parents saying they can’t pay the efc, but can they help you at all, with money for books, supplies, travel?</p>
<p>No, they won’t help me out at all. I don’t even think they understand that if I can’t cover the EFC I won’t be able to go to college. This has to be the worst moment of my life, realizing my college dreams are being swept down the drain. No school is going to offer full tuition scholarship for me. I guess I can no longer go to college. What can I do? I’m literally gripping at straws here. I don’t want to be uneducated the rest of my life, I can’t accept that idea. </p>
<p>Take a deep breath, there is a saying where there is a will, there is a way.</p>
<p>There are lots of knowledgable folks here. </p>
<p>Which state do you live in, are there any colleges nearby you could commute to?</p>
<p>What major are you interested in?</p>
<p>Are your parents saying that they will pay nothing towards your college? Or are they saying "they will not pay the EFC: quoting from your title? There could be a big difference between those statement in terms of dollar amounts.</p>
<p>First thing you should do is understand how financial works. You imply with your “whatever it is”, that you don’t know what the EFC is. You should not only know what it is, but how it is calculated and the implication of it. </p>
<p>The EFC is the Expected Family Contribution as calculated by FAFSA which stands for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. In order to be eligible for any financial aid, a student has to fill out this form which is available on line. It basically asks for the student’s income for the calendar year before starting college, and the assets as of the date the form is completed. It also asks the same for the parents if they are living together or for the custodial parent if the parents are separated. The Income figures on the FAFSA are usually directly verified by checking against the federal tax returns filed. What is important is the EFC that is generated which is often the least amount a student/family can expect to pay before getting any federal aid including subsidized loans, work study and need based grants. So if your EFC is $20K, and you are looking at $40K schools, you and your parents are expected to come up with the $20K before financial aid even thinks about kicking in any money your way. If your EFC is below the $5K level, you may qualify for the PELL grant that has a maximum of $5730 for a zero EFC. All students who are cleared by FAFSA can borrow up to $5500 a year (if the cost of the college so warrants) with up to $3500 subsidized if there is defined need. Need is defined as Cost of Attendance (COA) minus EFC. </p>
<p>So do your parents know what your family EFC is? Do they have any idea? Do you? There are EFC estimators that you and your parents can use to get some idea what this EFC is that they are saying they will not pay. A lot of parents will not, cannot pay their EFC. EFC could be $99999, or it could be zero. So that statement of yours makes no sense unless your parents know what the family EFC is, and have determined they cannot pay it. More important than what they will not pay, is what they WILL pay. How much are your parents willing to pay for your college? </p>
<p>The reason it’s important to find out what your parents are willing to pay, and that includes through borrowing, is because there isn’t a college in this country (outside of some military academies and other special situations) that guarantee to meet full need as defined by EFC. So you can have a zero EFC and the school can just offer up the PELL grant and those Direct loans I was referring to in the above paragraph for less than $12K for the year, which will cover many local state schools and most community colleges, but isn’t likely to pay the full cost of any sleep away college or private school without some supplementation.</p>
<p>If your EFC is over that $5K mark, you are only guaranteed those loans. </p>
<p>One way around this whole EFC and what parents will pay, is if you can get merit scholarships. Most of them are not based on need, and if you can get a full ride from a school because they want you, you can be a Rockefellow, for all they care There is a sticky on top of this forum with lists of some big time merit awards. Some are guaranteed if you have certain numbers, some are discretionary and you have to wait and see if you get anything. </p>
<p>If your parents have an EFC that you cannot meet with merit money or otherwise, then that school is unaffordable to you. You should be looking at local options as living at home with parents is a $7-15K benefit in terms of room and board. They might even be able to help you out in rides and here and there with expenses while you are living at home Many parents have put them selves in a financial situation where there isn’t a dime left each month after paying for everything, so they cannot see committing to any college costs because the money is just not there If they are in such straits, then borrowing would not be a good option for them even if they could get the loans. Those who have not saved in the past and can’t come up with any money from current income are highly unlikely to be able to repay loans from future income. Those parents who draw that line right now, are less delusional than some who blithely borrow whatever they can in spite of their history and current financial situation.</p>
<p>I don’t know my EFC, but I know it is not going to be zero. My parents combined salary is around 100k. I have one sibling. So I am looking at a potentially high EFC. My parents have told me not to expect any money from them. Those are the facts. No school in Oregon, the backwater state I’m living in, offers my major. Everybody keeps telling me that I cannot use merit scholarships for the EFC and that I cannot use loans for the EFC. Based off of charts I’ve seen, my EFC is going to be somewhere around 20k, give or take 1k. </p>
<p>Okay… let’s talk about loans. As a student, you can only take out loans for a total of $27,000 as an undergrad. These are federal loans (the best kind if you are going to take student loans, they have more protections than private loans). You can take out $5,500 freshman year, $6,500 soph year, and $7,500 jun & senior year. Any other loans have to be cosigned by an adult or your parents have to take them out.</p>
<p>Regarding earnings to pay for college, realistically most students can’t earn more than about $5,000/year. A few get high paying internships late in their college careers, but you can’t count on that, and it doesn’t help your first couple of years.</p>
<p>I assume you are in California, since you calculated your UC GPA. </p>
<p>Just a comment, EFC is a confusing term. It is the term the FAFSA uses, but that is just used to figure out your eligibility for federal grants and loans, it isn’t something most colleges use to figure out your cost. When you run the Net Price Calculators for colleges (which I assume you are doing for every college on your list, very important), some will use the term EFC and some will use COA (cost of attendance) for the bottom line number. What you need to know is that number for every school on your list.</p>
<p>Honestly, many students CAN’T cover their EFCs at colleges they wish they could attend. Especially if their parents can’t or won’t contribute to their educations. Options students use:
- Getting high stats (grades and test scores) and attending some of the schools with guaranteed scholarships (mostly Southern publics, <a href=“http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/”>http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/</a>).
- Going to community college for two years, then transferring.
- Convincing their parents to cosign loans (if the parents qualify). This is really NOT advisable to do much of this. Some people find a relative who is not their parents to cosign – also risky for the relative, not really a great plan.
- There are a few full pay scholarships (both from colleges and some you can find on scholarship search sites), but they are insanely competitive.
- Attend college in state at a less expensive state college. Look at CSUs as an option.</p>
<p>No, I live in Oregon. I am going out of state because no Oregon schools offer my major. I need to talk to my parents about co-signing a loan, they might be willing to do that. </p>
<p>You appear to be hung up on the EFC. The number you need to know about is Cost of Attendance. How much will the college cost? From that number, you need to figure out what you will get. Say the total cost is $50,000. The school awards you $25k in merit money. That leaves $25k for you to come up with. You fill out the FAFSA and it gives you an EFC of $15k. The school MIGHT give you $10k in financial need money, you can borrow $5500 as a for sure, guaranteed Stafford loan, and then you are $9500 short. How are you going to pay that?</p>
<p>Most likely the school will not give you financial aid of $10k. Most likely they will expect you to pay the $15000, borrow the $5500, and ‘gap’ you the $4500. How do student pay that? There are sometimes state grants and awards (Hope, Zell Miller, Bright Futures), other local scholarships, savings, work, etc.</p>
<p>Or, plan 2, go to a state school. COA at $20,000. A merit scholarship of $4000. Stafford loan $5500. State grant of $3000. Work, family contribution (I know you said there won’t be any but it is still expected by the colleges). Some kids got ROTC, others take a gap year and work, some go to community college first (I know, you don’t want to but some people do that).</p>
<p>Plan 3, get a full tuition scholarship because you have excellent grades, and use the loan money for living expenses. This may not be available at the school you want to go to.</p>
<p>Most schools don’t really meet everything but the EFC anyway, so while it is an important number to know because it will determine if the Stafford loans are subsidized or not, whether you will get a Pell grant, school financial aid, etc, it is not the amount you have to pay the school. Most people pay much more than their EFC.</p>
<p>I’m just going to use all the federal student loans I can get and then have my parents co sign a private loan if they can to cover the rest. I can also do a part time job near campus. </p>
<p>^So your parent won’t pay your EFC but willing to borrow for your school?</p>
<p>Here is the thing: if your parents aren’t going to pay anything, not one red cent towards your college education, then it means that you have to come up with the money yourself somehow. Unless you can get a full ride merit award or win the lottery, you aren’t going anywhere. Where do you think you are going to get the money to leave home, go to a school, pay the tuition and fees, buy the books, and, oh, who’s going to feed you and put a roof over your head? You really did not think the government or the school was going to do that, were you? Unless you have something that a school really wants, like top stats, athletic recruit for a money sport, a situation that fits some scholarship they have to “:buy” that attribute, no, they are not going to pay for you to go there. They have thousands of students applying for seats that CAN pay. </p>
<p>As for no school in Oregon not having your specific area of study, you are going to have to generalize Look up what courses comprise that area, and take what courses you can at an affordable school. You may have to make it up later if that is what you still want to do. You are a teenager, and the likelihood of changing your mind is very, very high. You need to be flexible to get what you want in this life and sometimes it means going at things indirectly. </p>
<p>You can look for merit awards, but unless they guarantee them for your stats, it’s all a crap shoot. You need to find some sure things. The school that will definitely take you and you know you can afford are your safeties. The rest are your lottery tickets. No problem applying to those schools, as long you have options that are affordable and will take you, even if they are not exactly what you want. People want Mercedes, the European tour, the mansion, but the they get a used Chevy, go to a local camp site weekends, and save to buy a small tract house as the realities. So it is often with colleges as well.</p>
<p>Don’t dis the CCs. My third son went off to a nationally known university but decided to pick up a math class this summer at the CC so he can breath alittle fall semester. His math classes at the university were huge. His math classes at the university freshman year were taught by TAs who didn’t speak English. His CC class was taught by a professor with a doctorate in math and a doctorate in education. There were 6 kids in his class because it was an upper level math class (for a CC). He said that guy was the best teacher he has so far encountered in life. Why not knock off 2 years and then transfer somewhere great. Your first two years of college are basically into classes and gen-ed requirements. Just work with the CC to figure out where you want to transfer, make sure the classes transfer and save some bucks. Believe me universities, even flagships, wouldn’t take CC kids if they didn’t think they were 'prepared" to fill their schedule with 30 or 400 level classes. Save some money. The only degree that matters is your terminal (end) degree and the only undergraduate degree that matters is the one institution that grants the degree. CC is a stepping stone. </p>
<p>My sons had the same experience with a local school and calc courses. I agree with Momofthreeboys fully.</p>
<p>You cant borrow your efc. You can only borrow 5500, </p>
<p>Kat’s post can be misunderstood.</p>
<p>Merit only reduces EFC if it is so HUGE that it covers all of need and also then cuts into EFC.</p>
<p>so if …</p>
<p>50,000 = COA
18,000 = EFC
32,000 = need</p>
<p>so you would need a merit award that is larger than $32k to reduce your EFC.</p>
<p>So, if you got:</p>
<p>$45,000 merit award (not likely)</p>
<p>then you would have $5k left to pay…and you could pay that with a student loan of $5k.</p>
<p>ask your parents if they can help a little bit…like $5k per year.</p>
<p>Maybe I missed it in an earlier post, but what is your desired major?</p>
<p>It is not advisable to take out huge loans beyond the federal loan levels. And just not very mature to think you can just solve the problem that way – it just kicks the can of paying the bill down the road, and can hang over your life for years. Making it harder to buy a house, get married, have kids, etc. while you try to pay down that $%& debt. </p>
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<p>what is your major and what is your career goal? Sometimes there is more than one way to get to a career goal.</p>
<p>and what would the likely earnings be for a newish grad??</p>
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<p>The fact that you wrote that you dont mind taking out student loans to pay for your EFC and then say “my EFC is only going to be in the 19k-22k range”…as if that is a small amount. You are talking about borrowing $80k+ for undergrad!!! That is more than twice the amount that you should borrow.</p>
<p>In an earlier thread OP says he/she wants to major in Aerospace Engineering or “computer programming”.</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>And no college in Oregon has either major? That seems unlikely. And, even if true, sometimes a similar major works just as well, such as MechE or Computer Science or Computer Engineering.</p>
<p>I know for a fact that OSU (not Ohio State) definitely has a decent engineering department. It offers a wide variety of engineering majors…just not his/her intended.</p>
<p>OP, have you considered majoring in MechE as an undergrad, fulfill prereqs, and switch majors for grad school? It’s been done before.</p>