EZ FAFSA?
And you thought "EZ" was just for eggs and rappers.
The House of Representatives has a couple bills being floated around that would make it, well, EZ-er to get Federal aid. Here's a link to one as well as a nice picture of a mustachioed gentleman who is also a Representative.
This is a lovely idea. So is a simplified tax code a lovely idea. But there are 99 problems with this whole process -- sorry, Jay-Z -- and here are some:
Profile. Actually, that would be a good rapper name. But it's a form that augments/replaces the FAFSA -- some schools PREFER it to the FAFSA. But it's not called the FREE Profile, it's just the Profile, and there's a cost attached. Like there's a cost attached to filing your taxes.
Sticker price vs. MSRP vs. actual cost. Sure it sounds like you're buying a car -- but the similarities are too obvious. When you walk into a Saturn dealership, you know what the car costs by looking at the sticker. When you apply to some schools -- Eureka College is a beautiful example -- you know exactly what you will pay based on certain performance parameters. They don't monkey with the sticker price or the MSRP. They discount the tuition up front -- 13K and change a year is the total price -- and it comes down based on a very obvious merit aid formula. Some public schools (Montana State, Kent State come to mind) have the same ideas in place. Bravo.
Oh yeah, transparency. I've yet to meet someone who understands this FAFSA stuff and how it works and whether EFC really has an impact on what you pay. But negotiating tuition and aid packages is a delicate matter -- families make one wrong step and the college of choice can penalize them.
Finally: why is it I know EXACTLY what I should pay for a brand new car -- I know the financing, I know what an advertising charge-back is -- but I'm completely in the dark when it comes to what my college or university is costing?
The House of Representatives has a couple bills being floated around that would make it, well, EZ-er to get Federal aid. Here's a link to one as well as a nice picture of a mustachioed gentleman who is also a Representative.
This is a lovely idea. So is a simplified tax code a lovely idea. But there are 99 problems with this whole process -- sorry, Jay-Z -- and here are some:
Profile. Actually, that would be a good rapper name. But it's a form that augments/replaces the FAFSA -- some schools PREFER it to the FAFSA. But it's not called the FREE Profile, it's just the Profile, and there's a cost attached. Like there's a cost attached to filing your taxes.
Sticker price vs. MSRP vs. actual cost. Sure it sounds like you're buying a car -- but the similarities are too obvious. When you walk into a Saturn dealership, you know what the car costs by looking at the sticker. When you apply to some schools -- Eureka College is a beautiful example -- you know exactly what you will pay based on certain performance parameters. They don't monkey with the sticker price or the MSRP. They discount the tuition up front -- 13K and change a year is the total price -- and it comes down based on a very obvious merit aid formula. Some public schools (Montana State, Kent State come to mind) have the same ideas in place. Bravo.
Oh yeah, transparency. I've yet to meet someone who understands this FAFSA stuff and how it works and whether EFC really has an impact on what you pay. But negotiating tuition and aid packages is a delicate matter -- families make one wrong step and the college of choice can penalize them.
Finally: why is it I know EXACTLY what I should pay for a brand new car -- I know the financing, I know what an advertising charge-back is -- but I'm completely in the dark when it comes to what my college or university is costing?
Labels: FAFSA, financial aid, House of Representatives, Rep Emanuel, Rep Miller
posted by Dave Van de Walle at
12:58 PM
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