I have an efc of 03546. how much financial aid will i receive?

Question

i will be an incoming freshman at the university of houston

if there is anyone who had an efc in that same range answering the question that would be great or anyone with knowledge with this kinda stuff

if you could tell me how much you think i would get in loans

and then how much i would get in grants

i really hope i get alot of grant money bc i have to pay for college myself

also i did get a 4500 scholarship from the university 2250 each semester for academics

Answer 1

Well - I do hope you weren't planning on getting wealthy with your Pell Grant - an EFC score of 3546 qualifies you for a grand total of $1181.

$590.50 of that will be send to your school and applied to your student account in the fall, and the other $590.50 will be applied to your account in the spring.

It is unlikely, but not impossible, that you'll be offered the work-study program. That's what it sounds like - the government will help pay your salary if you go out and find a part-time job. Employers like to hire people when the government is willing to take a good part of their salary off the employer's hands. Makes it easier to find a good part-time job.

You will be eligible for Stafford loans. Meet most students' best financial aid friend. The maximum Stafford loan you can receive this coming year is $5500. If you're lucky, as much as $3500 of that money will come in the form of a "subsidized" Stafford loan, which is nice, because the government picks up the interest payments on that loan while you're still in school. That'll save you a few hundred, if not a couple of thousand bucks, depending on how much you eventually borrow.

Hopefully, you picked a college with an eye toward your ability to pay. That's an important part of the analysis, and it seems like many students think that the money is just going to flow from financial aid. The reality is that almost every student experiences a "financial aid gap" - a portion of their student expenses that they will not receive any help in paying. Your responsibility as a student is to choose a school that is not going to leave you with a financial aid gap that you can't manage.

With any luck, your $4500 scholarship (which is very nice - congratulations, by the way) and your small Pell Grant, combined with some budget-conscious Stafford borrowing will allow you to cover your UH bills for this year. I'd strongly suggest a part-time job, even if you don't get work-study, and a summer job that will help pay down the bills for next year.

Your financial aid office will be in touch soon with an "aid offer letter" - that'll show you all of the aid that you are eligible for.

Good luck to you!