Author's note: Are you the parent of a student either currently enrolled in college - or who is planning on attending a post-secondary school next fall? You don't have to be told that college is expensive and planning is time consuming. This two-part series, designed for parents and employee assistance (and other) professionals who are assisting them in this often-difficult process, can really help!
In part I of this two-part series, I outlined some of the issues that are just the "tip" of the college planning iceberg influencing whether today's "modern" family will be able to actually afford a 4-year college. In this post, I will go over more key points.
Most EFC calculators pivot off a handful of data points- our
calculator actually pivots off close to 20 significant data points that provide
a more accurate picture of what your expected family contribution (EFC) might
be. By knowing this number ahead of time, you can create a more efficient plan for how
best to pay for college. While EFC is mostly “income”-driven in nature, our
work with families has uncovered additional “peripheral” areas, like assets,
that can influence what a family’s “true” EFC looks like. Did you know that
assets held in a student’s name can often be assessed as high as 26% in some formulas?
This is because
assets that are held in a student’s name typically do not have an asset
protection allowance. There is over $150
billion in financial aid available each year if you know how to get it and with
the competition for admissions becoming increasingly competitive, students need
to know how best to present themselves to their targeted colleges.
If you are like many of the thousands of families who feel
they are not receiving the kind of attention from their high schools that is
needed during the college application process, take a peek at some of the
various web-based tools that we have launched to help simplify this process. (
www.smarttracktoolkit.com).
Be sure to monitor deadlines (both admissions and financial
aid) for each college you are applying to.
Believe it or not schools often have different deadlines for their
admissions applications versus their financial aid applications. For students applying to state schools, did
you know that different states have different deadlines for families to submit
their FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) forms? States like
Kentucky, Tennessee and Vermont award aid on a first come, first-served basis
so its critical to have your forms submitted in January (as a general rule of
thumb) before most of the available aid disappears by late spring.
If you are a parent of a senior in high school or you have
kids who are currently in college and are applying for financial aid,
you can get a head start by using our College Funding tool to actually submit
all of your financial aid forms on time (including the FAFSA & CSS Profile
forms) and be entitled to a professional review with one of our experienced
college funding advisors.
Remember to use the promo code: “Impact” to receive 20% off when
you purchase any of our 5 components and feel free to contact me with any
questions you might have:
jay.robie@smarttracktoolkit.com
or 800 863-9440 ext. 277. Good luck!
About Smart
Track™ Toolkit: The toolkit is a web based service that assists
families with everything from admissions and test prep, to student athletics
and financial aid. Our intuitive
software and on-demand workshops are key components to making sure students
find their top choice colleges, and families can afford to send them there.
About the author: Jay Robie is the VP of Business
Development in the Corporate and Education channels with the
College Resource Center, LLC. Jay has previous work experience as an
Admissions Counselor at St. Lawrence University and
Boston
College as well as the Director of the
Corporate Internship Program at
Notre
Dame High School. Jay also has consulted for Road to College as
an Admissions Planner.
