In addition to buying a home, funding a college education is probably one of the most expensive purchases you’ll ever make. According to the CollegeBoard, the cost of a private four-year college education is about $109,000, while a public four-year college costs $30,420 for in-state students and $47,960 for out-of-state students. However, parents and students have found creative ways to finance their education. Among them are volunteer programs offering college graduates money to repay loans based on the number of hours worked, and working in careers with a loan forgiveness benefit such as teaching elementary school in underserved neighborhoods.
Most students receive financial aid. The CollegeBoard reported that in the last school year more than $154 billion in financial aid was awarded to undergraduates. On average, full-time undergraduates receive about $11,500, including more than $6,000 in grants.
However, it takes some effort to get a better package if you’re not satisfied the first time around. Karen and Ronald Burks Sr. of Mitchellville, Maryland, have three children in college–Ronald Jr., a 21-year-old senior at Virginia Military Institute; Trá, a 19-year-old sophomore at Coppin State; and Brandolyn, a 19-year-old sophomore at Temple University. With a fourth child, 16-year-old Katherine, entering her senior year of high school this fall, the Burkses set out to get the best financial aid packages they could get. So when Karen, 49, saw Brandolyn’s $8,000 award from Temple, she said she had to “go back and explain†why they should increase her daughter’s financial aid. Her argument, which she put in an appeal letter: Fifty-one-year-old Ronald’s recent layoff left the family in need of more assistance. She also explained that she had two other children in college, and altogether, tuition for the three schools would total more than $75,000 per year. Though Ronald Jr. had received scholarship money to pay for most of his education, the family couldn’t afford to pay $32,000 to Temple and $11,000 to Coppin State. The financial aid office got back to the Burkses 30 days later. When the verdict came in, Brandolyn’s financial aid package, made up of scholarships, grants, and loans, increased to $13,000. Karen repeated the process for Trá, once again writing a letter asking for more money. About a month after she sent her appeal letter, Trá was awarded an additional $1,800, bringing his financial aid package to $6,700. “The schools saw the number of children we had in school, and our salaries, and they took all that into consideration,†Karen says.
When it comes to paying for a college education, “You are consuming a product,†says Gary Carpenter, executive director of the National College Advocacy Group, an organization that helps families plan for college. “And as a consumer you have to make a wise decision about what the best value is for the amount of dollars you’re going to pay.â€
In today’s challenging economy, families must be particularly proactive to bring the costs down as much as possible. As the Burks family discovered, you don’t have to settle for the first financial aid offer you get. Here’s how to make your case for a larger college financial aid package for your student.
Tackling the Basics
In order to be considered for a financial aid award, a family must fill out a couple of forms. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid , or FAFSA, filed with the U.S. Department of Education, is used to calculate the amount of federally funded financial assistance for which your child is eligible. The FAFSA collects information about your income and financial situation, which determines your expected family contribution, or how much your family can afford to pay. The PROFILE, an application of the CollegeBoard, is used to calculate your child’s eligibility for institutional financial assistance at private colleges and universities, also by coming up
Once these forms are completed and your child’s college applications have been submitted, he or she will begin receiving acceptance letters in the spring, along with award letters outlining the financial assistance the schools are willing to offer, says Carpenter. Students who choose early decision get access to a larger pool of aid. The aid can come from scholarships, grants, and loans. “The schools will look at the financial need and the merit of the student,†Carpenter says. Need-based assistance will depend on family income, while merit awards could recognize a child in areas such as academics, athletics, or music. Families can accept the entire aid package, a portion of it, or none of it, Carpenter adds.
Naturally, the more money you earn the less financial aid you’re likely to get. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 85% of students whose parents made $20,000 or less received federal aid, while 53.2% of students whose parents made $60,000 to $79,000 received federal aid in the 2007—2008 school year, the most recent year for which statistics are available. The percentage drops to 39% of students whose parents made $100,000 or more. While merit awards aren’t based on need, they can be competitive. For example, the National Merit Scholarship Program, which awards scholarships for academic achievement, accepts more than 1.5 million applicants each year to come up with about 8,400 winners of financial awards.
If you’re not satisfied with the amount of financial aid your child has been offered by
his or her first choice school, the first thing you want to do is compare it with the financial awards offered by other institutions. If there is a large disparity, “Go back and ask the school if they have all of the family’s financial information, because their award is significantly less than what other schools have awarded,†says Carpenter. Anecdotally, Carpenter has seen cases where schools realized they made an error when calculating the amount for which a family was eligible. He’s also seen cases in which schools have been willing to adjust an award upward for desirable students. Be ready to show documentation (such as an award letter) of the other awards. If that doesn’t work, the next step is to provide additional information that paints a better picture for financial aid administrators of why your family needs additional assistance.Making Your Case
“There is recognition both by Congress and by the colleges that the FAFSA is a one-size-fits-all form that doesn’t capture every specific circumstance,†says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of scholarship and financial aid sites Fastweb.com and FinAid.org and author of Secrets to Winning a Scholarship (CreateSpace; $9.95). As a result, a process called “professional judgment†was established that takes place when a family believes that an unusual financial circumstance was not adequately addressed by the FAFSA. Professional judgment could be requested, for example, if a family’s income is largely made up of a one-time bonus, meaning it’s not reflective of the family’s day-to-day financial situation. It could also be requested if a parent has had work hours reduced or has suffered a health challenge that’s led to steep medical bills. “You’re asking the college to review that particular circumstance and potentially make adjustments to the financial aid award,†Kantrowitz says.
There has been an increase in families seeking professional judgment for special situations that have caused a decrease in income in recent years,
says Palmira Wakhisi, assistant director for financial aid at Morehouse College. Among the circumstances cited by Morehouse applicants are layoffs, divorce, separation, illness, and the death of a parent, Wakhisi says. The Atlanta-based college awards students up to $10,000 more on average in such cases through a Restricted Scholarship Fund established to fill in the gaps between a family’s financial aid offer and what the family can ultimately afford, Wakhisi says.There doesn’t have to be a reduction in income to get a financial aid adjustment. Families can also point to circumstances not reflected on the FAFSA that affect their financial situation such as eldercare expenses, the costs of caring for a special needs child, or a natural disaster that caused home damage. Lifestyle choices don’t count, so don’t expect a financial aid adjustment just because you live in an expensive state, for example.
Once you decide to appeal the financial aid decision, call the college and ask about the procedure. “Some colleges have a form they want you to fill out. Others will say, ‘send us a letter in which you summarize the unusual circumstances,’†Kantrowitz says.
If a school’s financial aid office refuses to adjust the award after the professional judgment, there is nothing more you can do at that school. At this point, you should look for other sources of aid to bridge the gap such as traditional part-time employment, or applying for a volunteer repayment program after graduation. “If you appeal to the president of the university or the U.S. Department of Education, you will get nowhere because Congress delegated authority only to the college financial aid administrator,†Kantrowitz says. But you can repeat the process with another school, which is why it’s important to apply to several institutions, experts say. Says Hurley, “As a consumer you’re looking for the best deal as well as the best education.â€