How to read the financial aid award letter
In order to understand the content of each financial aid award letter, you need to overcome the confusion so that you can make the best financial decisions.
No two financial aid award letters look like they are, but they should have:
1) List of funding types and amountsThe attendance fee includes tuition, fees and room and board for the first year. But it is still not complete. It doesn't take into account all the fees you have to pay, nor does it take into account how many years you have to attend.
Only 40% of the sample letters in the new US analysis contain calculations for the fees that students need to pay. In order to calculate the cost of the university by yourself, here are the things to do:
1) Find the net price2) Thinking after the first year
There is only one year of tuition fees in the net price factor. It also did not consider the increase in tuition fees, which is likely based on data from the National Center for Education Statistics. Multiply the net price by 4 to get the lowest total cost you expect. As the annual tuition increases, your costs will rise, but your financial assistance may not.
Understand the type of assistance
In an economic aid award letter, the way in which the aid award funds are marked does not indicate too much. For example, work-learning and loans may be referred to as “self-help assistance,” while scholarships and bursaries may be classified as “gift assistance.” In the new US study, 455 of the 455 non-subsidized loans offered were loan-specific terms, 24 of which did not even include the term “loan”.
Here's how to distinguish between different types of assistance in the award letter:
Grants and scholarships: rewards that do not need to be repaid. These can come from funding agencies of the federal government, schools, or state governments. They may be based on needs or values.