Some students accept financial aid without thinking about how colleges determine financial aid awards. Grants and scholarships pose no issues as long as you attend classes and keep your grades up. Student loans, however, could cause financial problems down the road if you borrow more money that you can reasonably repay. Using a financial aid calculator to estimate how much you and your family need to pay for your education -- a figure known as the estimated family contribution, or EFC -- allows you to plan ahead, save money and reduce your long-term student debt.
Instructions
1. Calculate your income and assets. Use your most recent tax return or W-2s to figure out your salary-based income. Review bank statements to tabulate your non-salary income such as tips, cash-paying jobs and alimony. If you are married, your spouse's income is generally included as part of your total available income. You should also tabulate the worth of assets you plan to liquidate to pay for college such as real estate, businesses, stocks and other valuable goods.
2. Document the tuition and fees posted on college websites where you plan to apply. Write down how much each college charges per credit hour or per course. You should also calculate the approximate cost of books, a computer and other special equipment needed to pursue your coursework.
3. Estimate your college-related living expenses for the upcoming school year. Read the classified sections of online newspapers to determine the cost of housing in the area. Your college living expenses include room and board if you plan to live on campus, and rent, utilities, transportation and food if you plan to live off-campus. Although you must continue paying personal debts while enrolled in college, your personal monetary needs are not taken into consideration when determining financial aid.
4. Enter your data you gather into an online financial aid calculator to determine how much financial aid you may get for college. Financial aid calculators ask you to input your status as a dependent or independent student and to input your income, assets, estimated tuition and college living expense information. Follow the directions on the financial aid calculator website to input the data and press "Submit" when finished. Financial aid calculators and results vary by provider.
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