Bryan Gould Director of Financial Aid University of

Bryan Gould Director of Financial Aid University of Puget Sound

Funding Sources for College • • Family contribution Federal and state Colleges and universities Outside organizations

Funding Types • Gift Aid • Scholarships (merit or talent) • Grants (need based) • Self Help • Loans (federal, state, private) • Work (federal, state, campus)

How Do I Qualify? • Scholarships • Typically no separate application is needed, automatic consideration for most academic merit scholarships based on admission application. • Criteria includes grade point average, test scores, rigor of coursework. • Talent-based scholarships (i. e. music) will require an audition. • Apply for need-based aid • FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) www. fafsa. ed. gov Application for 2020 -2021 opens October 1, 2019. • Prior-Prior Year (i. e. 2018 tax return information). • Data Retrieval Tool. • FAFSA priority deadline is typically the same as Admission application program priority deadlines (i. e. Early Decision, Early Action, Regular Decision).

Information Needed for FAFSA • • • Student income and asset values Parent income and asset values Income reported from two years ago (i. e. 2018) federal tax return Untaxed income (child support received, voluntary contributions to retirement plan) Household size Number of dependents attending college at least halftime

Asset Information Needed for FAFSA • Cash, Savings and Checking acct. balances as of the date FAFSA signed (i. e. snapshot) • Net Investment and Real Estate values, including college savings, vacation properties, etc. • Do not include primary residence or funds held in retirement accounts (IRA, 401 K, etc. ) • Net Business value if over 100 employees

How is Need Calculated? Cost of Attendance (COA) – Expected Family Contribution (EFC) = Financial Need

(EFC) Expected Family Contribution • Calculated using a formula established by Congress • Results in a dollar value between $0 and $999, 999 • Purpose is to estimate your capacity to absorb the costs of one year of higher education.

Reviewing My Offer: The Financial Aid Award Package • • From mid-December to mid-April Compare for the right financial “fit” • • Out of pocket cost will not = EFC (estimated family contribution) from FAFSA Consider proportion of • Gift aid (scholarships and grants) • Self help (loans and work study) • Parent loans (not always explicitly included in package) • • Special Circumstances Appeals

Estimating Net Price Use Net Price Calculator’s to estimate financial aid eligibility and out of pocket cost to attend. Example: http: //www. collegecostcalculator. org/pugetsound

Resources • • • Studentaid. ed. gov: Department of Education’s source for free information on preparing for and funding education beyond high school WSAC. wa. gov: Washington Student Achievement Council provides strategic planning, oversight, and advocacy to support increased student success and higher levels of educational attainment in Washington thewashboard. org: Free web based scholarship clearinghouse that matches Washington scholarship seekers to Washington scholarship providers Fastweb. com: Online resource in finding outside scholarships Net Price Calculators: http: //www. usnews. com/education/bestcolleges/features/net-price-calculator

Questions?