Financial Need

All funds from federal financial aid programs administered by the Office of Financial Aid are awarded on the basis of financial need with the exception of the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan.

When the student applies for federal student aid, the information that is reported on the FAFSA is used in a formula, established by the U.S. Dept. of Education and approved by the U.S. Congress. The Expected Family Contribution (EFC) which is the amount that the student and the family are expected to contribute toward the student’s education is then calculated.

There is not a maximum EFC that defines eligibility for financial aid programs. Instead, the EFC is used in an equation to determine financial need:

The Office of Financial Aid takes the Cost of Attendance and subtracts the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The amount left over is considered the student’s financial need. In determining the student’s need for aid from the federal financial aid programs, the Office of Financial Aid must first consider all other aid that the student is expected to receive.