Did the policy change regarding determination of EFC?

Question

I was a foster kid so my EFC has always been zero. My financial circumstances have not changed at all the whole time I've been in college. However for some reason this year I have an EFC of 300 dollars or something like that. Also my friend who was on workers comp, who was also an f-kid and usually has an EFC of 0, now has an EFC of like 5000 dollars. His financial situation didn't change from last year either.

So I'm wondering, was there some kind of policy change enacted for the 08-09 school year making it harder to qualify for aid for college?

Answer 1

It is possible they tweaked the formula, but I do not recall any word from the Dept of Ed that they did so this year.  A few years back they updated information regarding the state tables that affected a lot of folks EFC, but they notified the FA community of what was happening before hand.  

Your friends EFC may be the result of an error on his FAFSA with a change that significant, or there may have been a change that did affect his overall numbers from one year to the next.  If you have questions about this you should both see your Financial Aid office.  They will be able to compare the apps from last year to this year and reasonably explain the change in EFC.