My daughter is about to graduate high school, and has been accepted for admission to Marymount Manhattan College in NYC. She’s been awarded about $16K/year in scholarships and work-study, but the total cost for a year is $48K.
Where is a good place for her to go for student loans? We filled out a FAFSA form, which erroneously supposes that I’m in a position to provide her with $12K/year, so I’m not sure how that affects her ability to receive federal student loans.
Thanks in advance for any information.
Her tuition for the first year is due on July 1, btw.
P.S. I’m not in a position where I can effectively co-sign for any loans she takes out.
Physically? The school will have a billing or accounting department where you/her can go talk to someone face to face. That’s where my friends always went to go pick up their checks (and promptly plan their vacations).
When the FAFSA comes back, it will say how much money they will loan. After that it is easy, just another form for a Stafford loan. They will probably loan her enough money, though some of the loans may be unsubsidized (meaning interest will be charged while in school). If not complete by July, ask the school for an extension. $48k a year? Don’t cosign , and if the child majors in art history, wring her neck.
Have you talked to the financial aid office at Marymount Manhattan, and did they receive a copy of the FAFSA information (they will if they were listed on the FAFSA)? That should be the first step.
Offers of federal direct student loans are usually included in the financial aid award letter from the school. Most major banks offer private student loans; they are usually substantially more expensive than federal loans.
Here’s an article about private student loans. It does say in there that you shouldn’t consider a private student loan until you have maxed out the Stafford loan.
I gave bad info above. The Feds will only loan her $10k a year. Not near enough, even if she lives in a box at the park. Contact the financial aid office for info on private loans. Don’t cosign.
Mostly my daughter has been talking with them; I’ve been keeping out of it, on account of I’m not going to be contributing to this enterprise. Still, she asked me to see what kind of loans she could get.
That’s one of the things that has me worried. As I said, the FAFSA is supposing that I’ll be contributing $12K. When it transpires that I won’t be, will that affect her eligibility to take out federal loans?
I’m not sure why you’re staying out of this whether or not you’re planning to contribute to her educational expenses. And given the wide gap between the cost of attendance and her ability to pay, I’d recommend that you seriously explore the alternatives to this school. Was she admitted to any state schools? It’s really not wise to come out of undergraduate school with $100,000 in loans. (Remember that for the most part, you can’t discharge student loans in bankruptcy so these debts could be with her for a long time.)
Not really, no. The EFC is used to determine eligibility for grants and subsidized loans. If you chose to provide that EFC or not, her eligibility is not affected - it is assumed you will provide it. Unsubsidized loans (to certain maximums) will be available regardless of the EFC amount or how much you actually contribute.
Even if you don’t plan to contribute to the cost of your daughter’s education, I’d suggest you talk to the Financial Aid office with her. As long as she is your dependent, you will have a large role in what aid is available to her, and it will be helpful for you to be able to have those discussions with her and her financial counselor.
Here is how EFC is calculated (PDF). There is a way to have zero EFC, but you have to be dirt poor. I didn’t read beyond that as it’s long and I’m way beyond needing student loans.
I haven’t been in college in a loooong time, but I would advise you to talk to the financial aid office about how much of their offer is work study vs scholarships. When I was in school work study money wasn’t counted as part of the tuition you’re paying, because you have to earn it over the course of the school year. So if she has a $2000 work study grant she still has to come up with the full tuition/room/board cost upfront and then she has the opportunity to earn some of it back.
That is what I thought too. But did a quick fact check, and the Stafford, Perkins, and Direct websites all seem to have a different opinion. What federal loan provides the extra 20k?
Yeah, the upper limits seem to be reserved for graduate students. And that last line is the kicker. No limit for the parent loans and the interest rate is 7%. Seems the federal government really wants to get parents by the balls.
