2015 Guide to FAFSA, CSS Profile, College Financial Aid, & EFC

Use the article from Forbes to answer these questions in complete sentences. Please
change your responses to another color or bold.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/troyonink/2014/11/28/2015-guide-to-fafsa-css-profile-collegefinancial-aid-and-expected-family-contribution-efc/

Applying for College Financial Aid

1. What are the 2 possible forms to complete to apply for need-based financial aid?
Two possible forms to complete for need-based financial aid are the FAFSA (Free
Application for Federal Student Aid) and/or the CSS Profile.
2. What form do most colleges and universities nationwide use to determine need-based
financial aid?
The FAFSA is the form most colleges and universities use to determine need-based
financial aid.
3. What is the CSS Profile used for?
The CSS is used to assess the students eligibility for the colleges own
institutional aid dollars.
4. What colleges require the CSS Profile?
Ivies, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, William & Mary, Georgia Institute of
Technology, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are all colleges that
require the CSS Profile.
Calculating Your Expected Family Contribution
5. What is the process for applying for and obtaining financial aid?
The process for applying for and obtaining financial aid is EFC or Expected
Financial Aid.
6. What is the EFC?
The EFC is a processes when you provide your financial information on the aid
forms, submit the forms online to the processing centers for each respective form,
and the information from the forms goes into the aid calculations
7. How is EFC calculated?
The EFC is calculated by a dollar amount.
8. What factors determine a persons EFC?
The factors that determine a persons EFC are assets and income of the parents
and student, family size and the number of dependent children enrolled in college
in a given year to assess the familys ability to pay for college using the income
and assets that they have.
9. Why might a person get 3 different EFC amounts?
A person might get 3 different EFC amounts because all 3 factors calculate EFC
differently.
Using EFC to Determine the Need for Financial Aid
10.How is EFC used to determine if a student qualifies for need-based financial aid?
By using a simple formula that subtracts the students expected family
contribution from a colleges total cost of attendance.
Cost of Attendance

What elements add up to the cost of attendance?

The elements that add up to the cost of attendance are the total cost of enrolling
at a college, including tuition, fees, room & board, books, travel and personal
expenses.
12.What is the national average cost of attendance for:
a. 2-Year Public College?
$20,000
b. 4-Year Public College?
$28,000
c. 4-Year Private College?
$55,000
d. 4-Year Elite College?
$65,000
11.

Putting EFC into Perspective

13.When would a student qualify for need-based financial aid?
Any child could qualify if their parents AGI is 100,000 or lower.
14. What are students eligible for when they qualify for need-based financial aid?
If students qualify for need-based financial aid, they are eligible to receive needbased grants, scholarships, work-study and student loans
15.Why is it incorrect to assume a student will get financial aid if s/he is eligible?
It is incorrect to assume a student will get financial aid if s/he is eligible because
you would have to wait and see what form of aid the student gets and how much
its worth.
16.When would a student be denied need-based financial aid?
A student would be denied need-based financial aid if the parents AGI is $250,000
or higher.
Eligible for Aid at One College, But Not at Another
17.What is eligibility for need-based financial aid dependent on?
18.Why might a student be eligible for aid at one college but not at another?
Predicting the Financial Aid Award
19.When will students know their financial aid package amounts?
20.What types of resources are included in a financial aid package?
What to Do if Your Family Has Special Financial Circumstances
21.What form does not include a place to explain special situations?
22.What form does have a place to explain special situations?
23.What can parents do if using the FAFSA to explain their financial circumstances?
How College Selection Impacts Financial Aid
24.What factors make a student more likely to get an aid package that meets a higher
percentage of their need?
25.Why is aid more complex at elite private colleges?
Merit Aid
26.What is merit aid based on?
27.Why is merit aid so great?

28.What is important to know about merit aid at elite colleges?

Student Gets Merit Aid But No Need-Based Aid
29.What will happen if a student qualifies for merit aid but not need-based aid?
Why Merit Aid Reduces Need-Based Aid Eligibility
30.True or False: If you qualify for need based aid and merit aid, you subtract both of them from
the college cost to determine how much you will pay.
False
31.True or False: If you qualify for need based aid and earn a scholarship, you will have a lower
cost to pay than if you did not have the scholarship.
False
The Out-of-Pocket Cost of College
32.What information will be given at the end of the college admissions and aid application
process?
33.What elements are included in the financial aid award letter?
34.What factors contribute to the total cost of attendance?
35.What is the formula for out-of-pocket cost?
36.Why might the out-of-pocket cost be greater than what is calculated using that formula?

Extra Credit: At home, speak with your parents and review the chart in the article 2015 EFC
Quick Reference Table for College Aid and answer these questions.
A. Is it likely you will qualify for need-based financial aid?
B. What is the plan to pay for college?
C. Are there any colleges your parents will not let you go to? Or, are there any limits they
have for where you can go to college? (Distance, cost, 2-year or 4-year, etc.)