At what point is it useless to apply for NEED-based aid? Forum

[Xiaolong]

I am starting to fill out the NeedAccess forms and was wondering if it is even worth the trouble?
My parents are not wealthy by any means but they do earn a comfortable upper middle class income, maybe somewhere around 300K before taxes. My dad runs a small business so of course some of that money will go into paying staff, rent and such. After taxes and expenses are paid, net income is somewhere around the 150K mark. With that kind of income, am I even eligible for need based aid? Is there some form of cutoff income above which need based aid is no longer awarded?

[MURPH]

I am over thirty so I don't depend on my parents but if you have brothers or sisters in college that will drastically effect your EFC. I have two kids in college and in the fall I will be the third family member in school. We made 127 K last year and our EFC is about 8-9K. That is better than I thought. That will determine how much federal and possibly private aid you can get.
Also, EFC is almost meaningless for money from the school. Law schools mix need and merit aid in order to attract the best students. There is a financial aid message board here: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... m.php?f=15

[superflush]

I am starting to fill out the NeedAccess forms and was wondering if it is even worth the trouble?
My parents are not wealthy by any means but they do earn a comfortable upper middle class income, maybe somewhere around 300K before taxes.

That is higher than upper middle class. Thats in the top 1.5% of income in the US. You'd probably consider that upper class.

Also, income isn't the only factor. You could have no income, but if you're sitting on money, it still might prevent you from getting need aid.

[cafloyd12]

I was under the impression that, for the graduate FAFSA, you were not required to report your parent's financial information. I'm interested in this as well.

I came across this: http://www.gradloans.com/graduate-finan ... /fafsa.php

It's a .com, so I don't know how reliable it is. However, I've seen other people on TLS say that graduate FAFSA does not require parent's financials.

If this is the case, then your EFC will be determined by whatever your own income is, no?

[njskatchmo]

I have applied for Fafsa every year for the past four years. When I applied this year, this is the first time that fafsa decided I was independent (even though nothing changed). I called them, and they said it's because I graduated undergraduate. Is there some other type of form I have to fill out\ besides fafsa? (My parents' incomes are very very low)

[kittenmittons]

IB poors flame you for having money

[JayTal]

I was under the impression that, for the graduate FAFSA, you were not required to report your parent's financial information. I'm interested in this as well.

I came across this: http://www.gradloans.com/graduate-finan ... /fafsa.php

It's a .com, so I don't know how reliable it is. However, I've seen other people on TLS say that graduate FAFSA does not require parent's financials.

If this is the case, then your EFC will be determined by whatever your own income is, no?

I know your parents need to fill out the parental section on the FAFSA for you to be considered for need-based aid. Otherwise, you'll only receive Federal Perkins and Stafford loans.

[premadance]

To the OP...don't assume you won't qualify. As previously stated there are many variables so you might be surprised. For the federal loan program, FAFSA considers all grad students "independent", so providing parental info is optional. For need based aid, some schools utiilize the Need Access application, while others employ their own application. Check out the Need Access website for participating schools, and look over the information sent to you from schools you've been accepted to. Typically, there's fin aid info/instructions contained within. The applications themselves are a huge pain, but be prepared to provide supporting documentation...i.e., tax returns, W-2's.

[newyorker88]

I have applied for Fafsa every year for the past four years. When I applied this year, this is the first time that fafsa decided I was independent (even though nothing changed). I called them, and they said it's because I graduated undergraduate. Is there some other type of form I have to fill out\ besides fafsa? (My parents' incomes are very very low)

Some schools will require you to fill out Need Access which requires parental info