The AOTC is not available until February at the earliest of the following year. The college bill will need paid in August and December most likely.
Depending on tax liability, the family might not actually get that money available to spend.
If the scholarship is for tuition, then AOTC can only be claimed for fees and books.
At the most 40% of AOTC or up to $1,000 is refundable.
The parent plus loan has a high origination fee and pretty high interest, compared to direct student loan.
The AOTC can be helpful for college expenses, but shouldn’t be considered to be a given for the college budget.
AGI can be reduced with pretax 401k contributions, FAFSA adds them back.in, but I don’t know if HESC just goes by the AGI on the tax return.
The D might have attended a private HS and likes the smaller size of SBU.
She feels she worked hard and was able to get a good scholarship there.
But the school costs close to $50,000 so even after merit and her loan, the school still costs more than a SUNY with Excelsior, (merit) and loan.
The family income is too high for Pell Grant or TAP. And TAP would replace Excelsior anyway. She doesn’t qualify for need based institutional aid at SBU because costs after merit are less than FAFSA EFC.
It is tough when the FAFSA EFC is much higher than what the family can afford.