Learn to play college financial-aid game
BY DAVID UFFINGTON

A U.S.News & World Report article on the state of college financial aid is an eye opener. Bottom line: The financial aid process is a game, and applicants aren't told all the rules.

Taking a cue from a 2006 study by The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, the magazine did an analysis of its own using interviews with student-aid officers, students and lenders, as well as viewing the actual financial-aid award letters.

Typically the game goes like this: A student applies to a college and fills out the paperwork detailing the family income. From this the college determines the grants and scholarships the student is to receive, and calculates the EFC - the Expected Family Contribution. That's what the student and the parents have to come up with.

If a good student is applying to an elite school, one that is well-endowed, the school simply comes up with any money the student can't.

For a less well-known school, there are behind-thescenes secret activities, and therein lie some hints about getting into the college of choice with a decent financialaid package.

+ If competing School X offers a better aid package, School Y is likely to increase its own aid package to attract the student.

+ If a student's high school has turned out students who did well at a given college, that college is likely to give more aid to subsequent students.

+ Schools look at the order of a student's preferences, and weigh how much a student wants to go to a given school. The assumed "preferred" school is likely to give a lower aid package. The thinking is that the student wants it badly enough to find another way to get there - and will pay more.

To see where your state ranks in terms of making it easier to finance college (43 of 50 states rated an F), go to measuringup. highereducation.org and click "State Reports."

To get started on the hunt for college financial aid, check Federal Student Aid, an arm of the Department of Education, at studentaid.ed.gov. The site is comprehensive and includes the forms (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), online help including chat, and stepby step instructions.

David Uffington regrets that he cannot personally answer reader questions, but will incorporate them into his column whenever possible. Write to him in care of King Features Weekly Service, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL32853-6475 or send e-mail to letters.kfws@hearstsc.com.

(c) 2007 King Features Synd., Inc.