EFC and Pell Grant sadness.

Elin

So I got married. Last year when I was single my EFC was 1900 and I got 7500 total in student loans and grants, with the bulk being grants. Now I filed for next year and my EFC is 4100 and I no longer qualify for the Federal Pell Grant and I'm freaking out. My husband is also going to school and he can't get the Pell either. I can only assume that this is because last year my husband took a lot of overtime so he made about 5 grand more than he would have normally. Also, I was working full time for half the year vs. the part time hours I have now. We aren't rich by a long shot, combined we made 31,000 for the year. I know that's more than some people make but honestly it's just breaking even with today's prices.

The majority of my aid last year was the Pell. Is it possible that I'll get the same amount next year, just with more in loans? God I hope. I always heard that you get more aid being married than single, I think someone lied to me.

Does anyone have and info to share in their EFC and aid amounts? Ease my mind and help me believe that I'll still be able to get enough loans to pay for tuition.

bowen

Hmmm. I think it's largely irrelevant. Unless you make less single and aren't a dependent on his taxes.

JaysonFour

Well, the Pell is automatically applied for when you file the FAFSA, but you might want to look into Federal Stafford loans. Subsidized Stafford loans don't collect interest, they don't become due for six months after you finish school, and you can get a good chunk of cash no matter what.

Elin

Maybe I didn't clarify myself. I know what financial aid is and all the options. I was just shocked that I wasn't going to get the Pell this year. I was just asking about other peoples EFC's and how much aid they qualified for.

supabeast

You probably aren’t going to get many responses. At most schools the staff handle all federal aid directly, so unless there’s a problem nobody really has to think about this stuff themselves.

Demerdar

I believe the cut-off number for the pell grant is in the high 3000's.

Elin

The Pell cut off is actually 4000 and I got assigned 4100. I think that's why I'm so pissed.

travathian

Talk to your FA department. If your income last year isn't indicative of what you will make this year there is an appeals process you can go through to document this and have things adjusted. My first year of grad school they tried to deny me shit left and right because the year before I had a full time, well paying job, yet I was unemployed and taking 20 credit hours now.