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Unraveling the Mysteries of

College Financial Aid

Doris KellerOutreach and Trainingdkeller@csac.ca.gov916-526-8169

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How Much Does College Cost/Yr?

• Community Colleges – Approx $8,000 – $15, 000

• CSU– Approx. $12,000 - $15,000

• UC– Approx $15,000 - $20,000

• Private Schools– Range $18,000 and $48,000

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Where Will I Find the Money?

• Federal Government• State Government• Institution

– (college/university/trade school)

• Private• Families• Earnings• Savings

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Federal Philosophy

• Family is responsible for student’s education– To the extent they are able

• Will be responsible until student– Is age 24– Supports their own children– Veteran of U.S. armed forces, etc.

• Guidelines treat families alike

• Many families need help

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Dependent vs. Independent

• Dependency based on Federal Rules– Not where student lives– Not who claims student on taxes

• Most HS seniors will be Dependent

• Must report parent income

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Professional Judgment

• School is Allowed not Required

• Only done by college financial aid office

• Limited in decision

• Each college makes own decision

• Must be documented

• Not a sure thing

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Types of Financial Aid

• Gift Aid– Grants– Scholarships

• Self-Help Aid– Loans– Work Study

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Federal Grants

• Student must file a FAFSA

• Undergraduate students only

• Eligibility based on need

• Pell Maximum = $5,350

• FSEOG Maximum =$4,000

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Cal Grants

• Must file FAFSA and GPA verification• Undergraduates only • California resident• Must be enrolled in a CA school

– at least ½ time• Pays all or part of tuition at CA

schools

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Institutional Money

• California Community College– Board of Governors’ Fee Waiver

• CSU System– State University Grant

• UC System– University of California Student Aid

• Private Schools– Scholarships, endowments, foundations

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Scholarships• Provider decides

– Awarding criteria– Application deadline– Application forms

• Award amounts vary• Student must search (Internet/other)• HS Career or Counseling office

– Locally available scholarships– Printed information

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Scholarships

Free internet scholarship directories:– www.fastweb.com– www.mach25.com– www.fastaid.com

• Free internet scholarship searches:– Google.com– Yahoo.com

• Scholarships, ____________• Use search box• All that describes the student

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”If you must pay money to get money, it might be a scam.”

Copyright9c0 2004 by FinAid Page LLC (FinAid.org)All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.

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Common Scholarship Scams

• Scholarships that never materialize

• Scholarships for profit

• An advance-fee is required

• Pay a “Redemption Fee” for a scholarship

• A “guaranteed” scholarship

• Free seminar

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Avoiding Scholarship Scams

• Legitimate scholarship organizations do not charge application fees

• Legitimate scholarships organizations cannot guarantee a scholarship

• If an offer seems suspicious, it is usually with good reason

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Scams Rules of Thumb

• If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is

• Spend the time, not the money

• Never invest more than postage or time on the web to find scholarships

• Nobody can guarantee a student will win a scholarship

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Student Loans

• Federal or private• Undergraduates and graduates• Subsidized and Non-subsidized• Money must be repaid• 6 mo. grace period after studies end• Borrow and use wisely• Also parent loans

– Different rules apply

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Work-Study

• Federal or institution program

• Undergraduates and graduates

• Money must be earned

• Either on or off campus

• Funding levels vary at institutions

• Job not guaranteed

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Applications

• FAFSA for Federal, State, Campus money

• GPA verification for State money

• Other applications for private money– Check each source individually

• Other applications for some Campus money– Check each campus web site

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GPA Verification• Needed for Cal Grants

• Encourage electronic filing from schools

• Students must ask:– File electronically? [answer: “Yes”]

• What do you need from me?• Is/Was my name included?

– File electronically? [answer: “No”]• Where is the form?

• Submit October through February

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Critical FAFSA Information

• Who are biological/adoptive parents?• Live with both:

– Count both incomes

• Live with* one:– Count that parent’s income– Count step-parent’s income if remarried

*The “live with” parent is the one you lived with the most in the last 12 months

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More Critical Information

• Be sure to answer the drug question honestly– Worksheet on web site or will be provided– Not eligible if:

• Convicted as an adult• Have not served probation

• Apply between 1/1 and 3/2 of HS Sr. year

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On-Line FAFSA vs. Paper

Recommend On-Line filing• More accurate

• Faster processing

• Easier to make changes

• Electronic copy maintained temporarily

• Parents and/or students may access

• Best to have home computer– Not necessary

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PINs for Signature

• Parent and student both

• Must have name, SSN, DOB and e-mail

• If parent does not have SSN– Does not make student ineligible– Student may apply and parent will sign

• Parent & student may use same e-mail– Permanent e-mail

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PIN Notification

• Will arrive in e-mail within 72 hours

• Will come from “cpsnotify”

• Spam or virus blocker may block message– More later

• Message will refer to a URL

• Click and be prepared to print or write number– May not enter the web site a second time

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Permanent Contact Information

• Students must use permanent information– Usually parent’s information– Phone number– Mail address

AND– E-mail address

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What Happens Next?

Expected Family Contribution (EFC)• Calculated at federal level

• Use data on FAFSA

• Use formula

• Calculate all families

• EFC used to determine amount of aid

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Federal Notifications

• SAR: Student Aid Report

• ISIR: Institutional Student InformationReport sent to:

– Colleges listed on FAFSA

– CSAC

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Will You Recognize Notification?

• If you provided an e-mail address, SAR notification will be sent there– Will come from cpsnotify– Spam and virus blocker may block message– Temporarily stop auto dumping

AND/OR– Check “Junk” or “Trash” files before dumping

• Response within a week

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What to do when Notified?

• When FAFSA is processed a mini-web site for your information is created

• When notified, get on web site and read it– The information you submitted will be

reprinted on one page– This page will be retained for about 45 days– You may print it

• Your EFC will be printed in the upper right– If no numbers (blank), need more information– If all zeros, your family does not need to

contribute

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How to Correct Information

• You need to submit more information if:– There will be message in red or– Certain fields will be marked for changes

• Click in these areas to return to the data entry page and correct or enter data

• Generally both parent and student PINs must be rentered

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State Process & Notification

CSAC (California Student Aid Commission)

• Processes data on ISIR

• Compares to GPA verification

• Determines eligibility for Cal Grants

• CAR: California Aid Report– Mailed to students 3 – 4 weeks later

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• Award letters sent by college– List awards, amounts and sources– Shows COA and EFC– Period of enrollment covered

• Response may or may not be required• Students must read carefully

Awarding & Packaging

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Cost of Attendance

Basic Equation of Need #1(CSU)

Expected Family Contribution

Student’s Financial Need

COA $13,500

EFC $ 864

= Need $12,636

The amount of Financial aidthe Financial Aid Office will try to find (called a PACKAGE).

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Sample Financial Aid Pkg. #1(CSU)

Financial Aid Package Financial Need

$12,636Pell Grant $3,200 $ 9,436

Cal Grant $2,334 $ 7,102

Work Study $2,400 $ 4,702

Loan $2,625 $ 2,077

Unmet Need $ 2,077

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Analysis of Sample Pkg. #1(CSU)

Grants $5,534

Loans $2,625

Work $2,400

Unmet $2,077

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Grants(44%)

Work(19%)

Loans(21%)

Immet(16%)

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Analysis of Sample Pkg. #1

(Revised – CSU)

Grants $5,534

Work $2,400

Scholarships $2,600

Savings $2,102

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Grants(44%)

Work(19%)

Scholar-ships(21%)

Savings(17%)

Outside Scholarships:

Church $ 600Internet $2,000

$2,600

Outside Scholarships:

Church $ 600Internet $2,000

$2,600

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Cost of Attendance

Basic Equation of Need(Private School)

Expected Family Contribution

Student’s Financial Need

COA $25,500

EFC $ 864

= Need $24,636

The amount of Financial aidthe Financial Aid Office will try to find (called a PACKAGE).

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Sample Financial Aid Pkg. #2

(Private School)

Financial Aid Package Financial Need

$24,636Pell Grant $3,200 $21,436

Cal Grant $8,322 $13,114

Work Study $2,400 $10,714

Loan $2,625 $ 2,089

Unmet Need $ 2,089

Campus Grant $6,000 $ 4,714

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Analysis of Sample Pkg. #2

(Private School)

Grants $17,522

Loan $ 2,625

Work $ 2,400

Unmet $ 2,089

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Grants(71%)

Work(10%)

Loan(11%)

Unmet(8%)

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Analysis of Sample Pkg. #2

(Revised -- Private School)

Outside Scholarships:

Church $ 600Internet $2,000

$2,600

Outside Scholarships:

Church $ 600Internet $2,000

$2,600

Grants $17,522Work $ 2,400

Scholarships $ 2,600Savings $ 2,114

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Grants(71%)

Work(10%)

Scholar-ships(11%)

Savings(9%)

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$864 EFC ??

Live at home

Learn to Cook

Rent movies

Toss a frisbee

No pets

Buy used books

Use public transportation

Shop at thrift

stores

Work during school breaks

Ride a bicycle

Savin

gs

($96 Monthly)

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Apply, Don’t Disqualify

Don’t Miss DeadlinesDon’t “Pre-guess”

ComputersDon’t Assume Anything

Create a Safety Net