Are you staring at a financial aid offer and wishing it could stretch just a bit further for your child to attend their dream college? Fear not, as you still have an option to appealing for more college funds!
Timing is everything – we underscore the urgency to act quickly before those critical deadlines slip by.
Together we will dive into the three top persuasive reasons to file a financial aid appeal. This episode will guide you on how to leverage unprecedented circumstances to your advantage. Plus, we will also share a reason overlooked by most and that you can take advantage of and leverage to your child's advantage! This isn't just a chat about dollars and cents; it's about empowering your family to turn that dream college into a reality, all while keeping your wallet intact.
🚀 I'll help you rediscover who you truly are, provide clarity towards your future and be your personalized coach with Multiple Service Package options. Your Coach Sonia is ready to help you!
"Stay well, be present, and enjoy the journey"
Speaker 1:
Well, hello friend, we have a bonus episode today on how to file an appeal for financial aid when your family requires more funds. So you have just received your child's financial aid award letter to their dream college and then you both realize that the amount, the scholarship, the grants offered is just not enough for them to attend. Did you know you still have options? Well, today we were going to be discussing just that. I am going to be sharing with you how you can submit a letter of appeal. Now, you can submit a letter of appeal, as long as you submit it prior to the deadline. Usually, the deadline is typically National College Decision Day, which falls on May 1st. However, as you probably have found out, this year has been the year of exceptions with FAFSA, because they have had a delayed release on their application and has basically made a delay on everything else following it. So make sure you contact your financial aid office immediately to inquire about the process of appealing your financial aid offer and to ask about their deadline. In my personal opinion, why would you not appeal if you have the opportunity? What if this provided you with the opportunity to save money or for your child to attend their dream college or first college choice. Now, the first thing you want to do, if you have multiple award letter offers, you want to compare them side by side, right Apples to apples, and you can do so by first calculating the net price of each. Now, the net price is the entire annual sticker price, minus any grants and scholarships shown in the financial aid award letter. Now, the College of Admission Costs usually includes tuition fees, housing, boarding books, personal costs and transportation. I personally would not consider loans and student employment in this calculation, as this is not considered gift aid and should not be subtracted. What you're going to do next is you're going to compute the actual cost of each school by determining the cost of admission right, the amount that I mentioned. That includes tuition fees, housing, boarding books, personal costs and transportation costs. You would use that total amount and subtract your grants and scholarship money. That will give you your net price. Once you have the net price for each of the college that you wish to attend and that you've been accepted to, and that you've received a financial aid award letter, now you can compare each school side by side, okay, in regards to its cost. We won't bring into the calculation, or into your decision making, all the other benefits of each school individually, right From student organizations, clubs, degree plans, etc. Right now we're just looking at the cost. Once you have this number for each, then you can contact each school's financial aid office to inquire about their appeal process. Now, based on the Grown and Flown website.
Speaker 1:
Simply wanting more money even needing more money will not win your appeal. However, there are three top reasons to consider filing for an appeal, the first one being a loss of job or income, where your family has been impacted financially. Okay, that could be a great reason to consider appealing. The second one there's been an increase in nondiscretionary expenses when your household, such as family, spending increasing dramatically due to serious injury, illness, an elderly family member maybe needing to move into your home, or natural disasters like fire, floods, earthquakes, where there's significant damage to your home or property. Now, the third reason this is my favorite because not a lot of people think about this third option is if you are offered a better offer from another school.
Speaker 1:
Let's say that a different university has made a more enticing aid offer. This can influence your child's enrollment choice. Therefore, the financial aid administrator should be notified of this, because now you're comparing them one to each other and that will have a significant impact on the appeal. Remember, at the end of the day, they want your business. So if you have a more enticing aid offer from another institution, use this as leverage to your dream school so they can consider matching that aid offer. This is all to say that their sticker price is not final. My friend, if you and your family have any of these three circumstances, do not hesitate in reaching out to your college for an appeal.
Speaker 1:
If you want to learn more about how to maximize your financial aid, listen to episode number 52, fafsa updates, scholarship strategies and money-saving tips with one of our guests, the college funding queen. I'll add that link to our show notes so you can listen to that episode. I hope you found this bonus episode helpful, my friend, a lot of families have not even thought about appealing their letter and if there is an opportunity, then do so. You could be saving yourself money and offering your child the opportunity to attend their dream school. All right, my friend, I'll talk to you on our next episode. So make sure you follow and subscribe to our podcast so you are alerted as soon as the next episode is released. In the meantime, stay well, be present and enjoy the journey. I'll talk to you soon.