The Expected Family Contribution is not the amount of money you will have to pay for your college education, nor is it how much financial aid you will get when you apply for college. It is a number the federal government and colleges use to figure out how much financial aid you are eligible for. Financial aid includes both grants, such as the Pell Grant, and subsidized and unsubsidized federal student loans. Some federal educational grants are only eligible to students who are eligible to receive the Pell Grant based on their EFCs.
A student's EFC depends on his or her income and assets (if independent), his or her parents' income and assets (if he or she is dependent), the size of his or her household and the number of other college students (not parents) in the family. According to the U.S. Department of Education, "The EFC is the sum of: (1) a percentage of net income (remaining income after subtracting allowances for basic living expenses and taxes) and (2) a percentage of net assets (assets remaining after subtracting an asset protection allowance)."
Instructions
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1
Organize the student's and the parents' financial information required to fill out the FAFSA. This includes recent tax returns, pay stubs, bank statements and information on assets and liabilities.
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2
Fill in financial and household information in an online EFC calculator that estimates the student's EFC. Some include the FinAid EFC Calculator and the EFC Calculator from College Board. First fill in information about the student's dependency status. Then complete information on his or her assets and income and those of his or her parents.
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3
Calculate the student's EFC using both federal and institutional calculations. The formulas used are different for each purpose. Colleges use the institutional formula because they might take into account different criteria of a student's situation in determining their financial aid packages than the federal government does.