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 do I lower my EFC?
- Maximize Household Size. The larger your household size is, the lower your EFC will be (in most cases). …
- Increase College Attendance Among Family Members. …
- Wait Until the FAFSA Considers You Independent.
What is considered a high EFC?
Any person with an EFC number at 0 will receive the maximum amount of student aid, while a number
over 5273
will result in no aid at all. … However, if your family receives a low EFC number that is still higher than what is affordable, it is not a good EFC number.
What do I do if my EFC is too high?
- Brainstorm with your parents.
- Negotiate with your potential schools.
- Apply for state grants and private scholarships.
- Start a part-time job or side hustle.
- Consider federal and private loans.
Is a high EFC good?
The higher the EFC score, the more you are expected to pay
. Families should keep in mind the EFC is usually the minimum a college expects a family to pay. Many times, families will pay much more. … A high EFC score means your student will receive less need-based federal financial aid to attend college.
What is the 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.
What EFC qualifies for Pell Grant?
The Department of Education will use your family’s income and expenses to calculate your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). To be eligible for the Pell Grant for the 2021-2022 academic year, your EFC needs to be
at or below $5,846
. Because of this, there is no set income cutoff for Pell Grant eligibility.
What is EFC on FAFSA chart?
What’s the
Expected Family Contribution
(EFC)?
Your EFC is an index number that college financial aid staff use to determine how much financial aid you would receive if you were to attend their school. The information you report on your FAFSA form is used to calculate your EFC.
What does an EFC of 50000 mean?
Here’s how: under the formula, the EFC is for the total family contribution, not per child. Even with an EFC as high as $100,000 (from income of about $200,000), after a 50/50 split the EFC is
$50,000 for each child
, less than the average cost of many elite schools.
How do I figure out my EFC?
You can find your EFC
on the first page of your Student Aid Report
. Note: Your EFC is not the amount of money your family will have to pay for college nor is it the amount of federal student aid you will receive.
What is a bad EFC number?
Any person with an EFC number at 0 will receive the maximum amount of student aid, while a number over 5273 will result in no aid at all. Even though 500 is a fairly low EFC number, if your family already lives on a tight budget, finding an
extra $500
may seem impossible, making it a bad EFC number.
What if you cant afford your EFC?
Call the financial aid office at the
college you are planning on attending and ask for an explanation of your EFC. A representative can provide the reasoning behind the calculations, so you might be able to see something you missed. In some cases, you may be able to appeal your financial aid decision.
What is the highest EFC number possible?
There is no maximum EFC
, so it can range from zero to any number. As college costs typically increase each year, the financial aid formula that calculates EFC is adjusted for inflation each year, says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher and vice president of research for Savingforcollege.com.
Why do I have an EFC if Im independent?
Because the EFC formula for a dependent student uses parental data and the two formulas for independent students do not, the first step in calculating a student’s EFC is
to determine his or her dependency status
. … The student is married or separated (but not divorced) as of the date of the application.
Is EFC a dollar amount?
According to the FAFSA official site, “The Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is a measure of your family’s financial strength, and is calculated according to a formula established by law” The
EFC will be expressed as number equivalent to a dollar amount
. For example, 12000 is $12,000.
Is an EFC of 10000 good?
Most schools do not meet 100% of financial need for all of their students. If your EFC is $10,000, your financial aid
package may still require you to
pay $12,000, $15,000 or $20,000, depending on the tuition and expenses each college charges. … Insights into how colleges determine how to award you aid.
