Example calculations At a school where the COA is $30,000, your calculated financial need is $30,000 (COA) – $15,000 (EFC) = $15,000 (Financial Need). Imagine your EFC is $22,000. At a school where the COA is $30,000, your calculated financial need is $30,000 (COA) – $22,000 (EFC) = $8,000 (Financial Need).

What is the income level for college financial aid?

Currently, the FAFSA protects dependent student income up to $6,660. For parents, the allowance depends on the number of people in the household and the number of students in college. For 2019-2020, the income protection allowance for a married couple with two children in college is $25,400.

What is an average EFC score?

The overall average EFC is about $10,000, with an average of about $6,000 for students at community colleges and $14,000 at 4-year colleges. Slightly more than half of students have an EFC of $2,500 or less. Slightly more than 10% have an EFC greater than $25,000.

How much money can I make before it affects my financial aid?

Independent students, who don’t provide parent information on the FAFSA, can earn more before affecting their financial aid — $10,360 for single students and up to $16,620 for married students.

Why is my EFC so high 2020?

If your family has accumulated wealth and investments, your EFC can be high, even if your family’s income is low. This includes checking and savings accounts, bonds and stocks, and even the student’s 529 College Savings Plan. Some kinds of financial assets do not count toward your EFC.

How does a college calculate your financial aid?

How Colleges Calculate Your Financial Aid 1 Factors that Go Into Aid Calculations 2 Cost of Attendance. Every college calculates an estimate of the cost to attend for one year, called the Cost of Attendance (COA). 3 Financial Need. 4 College Aid Calculations. …

How is the expected family contribution calculated on FAFSA?

Your EFC, or “expected family contribution,” is a measure of your family’s financial strength in relation to paying for college. More specifically, it’s an index number generated by financial aid forms, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and the CSS PROFILE, that colleges use to determine how much…

How is the EFC used to calculate financial aid?

The EFC is not necessarily the amount of money your family will have to pay for college, nor is it the amount of federal student aid you will receive. It is a number used by your school to calculate how much financial aid you are eligible for at that school.

How is the net price of a college determined?

You can also use the College Board’s Net Price Calculator to estimate your net price at hundreds of colleges. This tool calculates your EFC, a measure of your family’s financial strength. Colleges and states use this number to help determine your financial aid award. How much will college cost by the time you enroll?