The real deal on financial aid

Paying for College
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<p>alynor posted this in another thread and I think it’s such a great and simple summary of the system that it’s worth its own thread.</p>

<p>[The</a> real deal on financial aid (Muhlenberg College)](<a href=“http://www.muhlenberg.edu/main/admissions/realdeal.html]The”>http://www.muhlenberg.edu/main/admissions/realdeal.html)</p>

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<p>Thanks for finding, alynor, and thanks for starting thread, ohiobassmom. This is so valuable to current seniors and looking juniors. It’s almost worth a thread on the college search forum.</p>

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<p>Indeed this is info you want when putting together a list of colleges to apply to. After that, it’s kind of too late.</p>

<p>If a mod wants to move it that’s fine by me.</p>

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<p>The REAL deal … preferential packaging is practiced by some colleges, but by no means by the majority of colleges. I do not have the statistics to back up my guesswork, but I am guessing that there are more public colleges than there are private schools … let alone private schools with enough money to meet need, with or without preferential packaging.</p>

<p>In the real world, it is wise to make sure you find a college you can afford in case the preferential aid is not going to be there for you. And it is wise to find a college you can afford in case you are a regular kid (LOTS more of those than there are kids colleges “must” have). It’s absolutely fine to try for a school that just might come through for you & be affordable … but make sure you have the “for sure” school in your arsenal.</p>

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<p>If Infoplease is to be trusted, there are actually more privates. Not that all are in a position to give aid beyond federal grants and loans.</p>

<p>I agree a no-FA financial safety is a good idea.</p>

<p>Public 4-year institutions 629
Private 4-year institutions 1,845
Public 2-year institutions 1,070
Private 2-year institutions 596</p>

<p>[Number</a> of U.S. Colleges and Universities and Degrees Awarded, 2005 Infoplease.com](<a href=“Columbia Encyclopedia”>Number of U.S. Colleges and Universities and Degrees Awarded, 2005)</p>

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<p>THANK YOU! I am so grateful that I stumbled onto the College Confidential forums, because parents like you keep feeding info like this to newbies like me. :)</p>

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<p>People also need to realize that need is defined by the college, not the family. Usually the family will see their need as a lot greater than the college does. For example, family thinks they can afford 10K per year, college thinks they can afford 18k per year.</p>

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<p>I was a newbie only months ago…amazing how much I have learned since then. But whether I really know and applied that knowledge will, I guess, be evident in a month to 6 weeks :D</p>

<p>One book I found very helpful for FA info was the Princeton Guide called “Paying for College Without Going Broke”. I picked up a slightly older edition for $1 last year, most libraries will have it or be able to get it as well.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Paying-College-Without-Admissions-Guides/sim/0375427414/2[/url]”>http://www.amazon.com/Paying-College-Without-Admissions-Guides/sim/0375427414/2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>It has some good info that you can use years before senior year, advice about whose name any assets should be in and retirement and home value and debt, etc.</p>