I have worked through the NPCs for Stanford and Yale on their web sites–the 2 schools my kids are applying to as early action. Each NPC says that I won’t get any aid. The schools ask for the CSS Profile as part of the application process, but does it make any sense to complete the CSS Profile when the NPCs are saying I’ll get nothing? I’d rather not have such sensitive data in the hands of another party (College Board) unless it’s absolutely necessary.
Do you have twins?
With two in college, you would have to have a huge huge income and probably assets too to not qualify for any aid at all from Stanford and Yale.
If you are fully prepared to pay the full cost of attendance, there is no need to complete the financial aid forms.
Yes, they are twins. We don’t have a very large income–I think it’s the home equity plus the 529s that are killing me. Also, the NPCs, unlike FAFSA, did not ask how many kids I’ll have in college.
What I’m asking is this: If the school’s NPC said I won’t get any money, is there any reason for me to fill out the CSS Profile and send it to that school?
Yes, there is. The online NPCs are a rough guess, and they could be off from a little bit to a lot.
If the NPC doesn’t ask for number of kids in college…then I would suggest you complete the financial aid application forms. You very well could be leaving some need based aid money on the table at these two very generous schools.
But like I said…if you are prepared to pay the $70,000 plus cost of attendance in full for two kids, then there is no need to complete the forms.
@BelknapPoint I thought Yale and Stanford didn’t assess primary home equity…or if they did it was very small.
529 accounts…yes…those will affect net price…but what a wonderful thing to have those 529 monies…really!
Some NPC are good but others are really just a rough guess at what FA might be available. I’d be suspicious if your income is low and your 529 plans don’t have millions in them. If the FAFSA EFC is in a reasonable range for 2 in college($40k or so), I’s spend some time talking to the FA offices before I just decided not to file the CSS.
According to data that’s about a year old, Stanford and Yale both assess primary home equity up to 1.2x income.
http://www.thecollegesolution.com/will-your-home-equity-hurt-financial-aid-chances/
I found NPC to be really accurate. We decided to apply FA after U Chicago EA admission. The results we got was the same as NPC, after wasting my time with all the forms, W2s, etc…nada! FWIW. YMMV!
Another check is EFC on FAFSA. Our EFC was super high! Well, we are savers!
The accuracy of individual school NPCs can vary greatly, and the only way to know how accurate (or inaccurate) a particular NPC is would be to run the NPC and then apply for financial aid and compare the results.
Using the FAFSA EFC to check the accuracy of a school’s NPC generated EFC would be an exercise in futility. A school EFC from the NPC is typically based on the school’s unique formula, using criteria that are different than those found in the FAFSA formula.
I think my EFC from FAFSA was around 47k. But for some reason when I did the NPC for Cornell, Yale, Stanford, and Rice, they all seemed to say that my required contribution plus my daughter’s (student) contribution exceeded the yearly COA.
The FAFSA does not consider home equity at all in your primary residence.
The schools you list use the CSS Profile which takes a much deeper look at your finances than the FAFSA does.
Do you have a lot of home equity?
And again…if these schools are assuming only one in college on the NPC, it’s possible that if you submit the real forms with two in college, you could get some need based aid from these very generous colleges.
Very important point: the EFC as calculated by a school’s NPC is not the same thing, and is not meant to be the same thing, as the FAFSA EFC for the same student. If it were, there would be no need for every school to have an NPC on their website, right?
I was not using EFC from FAFSA to check NPC, but rather in our particular case, the high EFC suggests that we should just stop wasting time applying FA.
Up to you. If you don’t think you’ll get anything, don’t take the time to fill out the forms. All we are saying is the NPC can sometimes be off if everything isn’t based on income and common assets (savings, 529 accounts).
*** Both the S and Y NPCs ask how many kids in college. I just checked.
Just making sure to drill this in (others have already mentioned it). If it’s true that the NPC’s did not ask for number in college AND you will have 2 in college, you could be leaving cash on the table if you don’t apply for FA.
If I were you, I’d check the NPC again to make sure whether it asks (I’d be surprised if it doesn’t), make sure you enter it correctly if it does and see what happens. If it still comes out that you are full pay, then you can ignore the FA application. (Personally, I would want to be sure and apply anyway, but that’s just me)
Important question: If I fill out the CSS Profile, is the parents’ financial information viewable by the student through their account? Is there a way for the parent to open an account, fill out the CSS profile for the student and parents, and have the parents’ financial information be private?
Yes. Don’t share the access code.
@LMK5 Go back and rerun the NPCs. I see they ask how many in college.
I see that when you sign up for a CSS account, it asks for the students info, including their email address. I know my daughter already has a CollegeBoard account. If I sign up and choose my own password, will the information I fill out for the CSS Profile be credited to her, or must I use her existing account to do the CSS Profile?
Did you count the 529s as a parent asset or child’s asset???