Know How to Make the Right Financial Aid Shot to Appeal
Sometimes the college financial aid offer is not enough. Under certain circumstances, a college financial aid office may make changes to your financial aid offer. Although each college has its own financial aid appeal processes and requirements, consider your odds for a financial aid appeal in terms of these basketball terms.
Slam Dunk Reasons
These are the reasons that almost any college will consider a financial aid appeal, especially if made sooner than later:
- Job loss or change of job
- Major financial hardship
- Medical Expenses
- Disability Related Expenses
- Student’s Dependent Child Care Costs
Of course, as with slam dunks, occasionally a dunk does not go as planned. Some colleges will make value judgments about the out of pocket medical expense for a chronic back issue, may not allow for the full amount of the motorized wheelchair, or not consider 100% of the dependent child care costs.
Circus Shot Reasons
These financial aid appeal reasons are more the “it depends on the college” ones.
- Elementary & secondary tuition expenses
- Computer or software for college
- Loss of assets/savings
- Housing expenses
More private colleges are inclined to consider these types of financial aid appeals than public universities, especially for things like private elementary and secondary school expenses for younger siblings. Although some colleges have been adding computer and software expenses to the cost of attendance for some time, other colleges may only add these for families who report this expense as a financial aid appeal.
Point Shot Reasons
These financial aid appeal reasons are also in the “it depends on the college” category.
- Caring for other family members
- Negotiating based on other offers
Although more and more families are financially helping extended family members, many colleges only consider the family members in the family’s household based on the federal regulations rules. Others recognize that families are contributing financial support to the wellbeing of extended family members by helping to pay for assisted living housing or group care homes. For these colleges, be prepared to document this financial support to other extended family members so they can make adjustments to a financial aid offer.
With college prices skyrocketing in the past few decades, many families have taken the approach to negotiate for more gift aid from colleges. To negotiate based on other financial aid offers, send a copy of the other offer(s) with a letter asking for them to reconsider. Be specific about how much more financial aid will tip the tides to deciding to go to their college in writing.
Just know that there are some colleges where negotiating based on another college’s financial aid offer is a complete no-no. These tend to be
colleges that meet 100% of financial need.
How Will My Aid Offer Change
Depending on the reason and the college’s policies, the financial aid appeal may increase your cost of attendance. For instance, if you appealed based on the cost of a laptop and need to purchase a screen reader or digital recording software, then the college may add the expense to your cost of attendance. If your
cost of attendance goes up, then the college may award you additional gift aid,
work-study, or additional student loan funds.
Other times colleges will make changes to the data supplied in your
FAFSA
and/or
CSS Profile to change the family's financial strength calculated according to a federal and/or institutional financial aid formula. Such changes may lower your
expected family contribution (EFC) making you eligible for need-based grants, work-study or more student loan funds to help you pay for college costs.
Get Help Writing Your Appeal
SwiftStudent makes it easy for anyone to complete a financial aid appeal. FormSwift in conjunction with NASFAA; Achieving the Dream; Generation Hope; Reach Higher at the Common App and many others financial aid advocates created a free, self-service tool to help you to identify reasons for appeal, draft the financial aid appeal letter, and suggest forms of documentation to send with your appeal. Check out SwiftStudent’s free, digital resource today to make it easier to appeal for financial aid.
Colleen Krumwiede
Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer
Colleen MacDonald Krumwiede is a financial aid and paying for college expert with over a decade of financial aid experience at Stanford GSB, Caltech, and Pomona College and another decade at educational finance and technology companies servicing higher education. She guides go-to-market strategy and product development at Quatromoney to transform the way families afford college.
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