11. Equals ―Out-of-Pocket‖ Amount—The check you must write--often indicating a ―financial-need gap‖ (unmet need), which may have to be met by a Federal PLUS loan or private loans 12. Calculate ―Loan-Debt‖—For student and parent(s) Student (Stafford @ fixed 5.6%/yr.; max: $5,500+$6,500+$7,500+$7,500=$27,000; Perkins @ fixed 5%/yr.) Parent (PLUS @ fixed 7.9%/yr.; max: C of A – other aid) http://mvcap.blogspot.com/2009/11/16-how-much-will-college-cost-me.html
17.0. 16-Point Advising Plan Over the 10 years of its existence, our Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP) has developed and implemented the following advising plan for high school students. 1) Undertake a career exploration to identify matches between a student's strengths/interests and various fields/occupations, emphasizing preparation required and job-opportunities, perhaps via post 100 ―Going To College: Stepby-Step‖ on the MVCAP blog website at http://mvcap.blogspot.com/2010/08/100-going-to-college-step-by-step.html 2) Begin a college search by determining which schools may best suit desired areas of study and academic programs as well as family finances, again via post 100 on the MVCAP blog website at http://mvcap.blogspot.com/2010/08/100-going-to-college-step-by-step.html 3) Get information about preparation, fee-waivers (if applicable), and registration, either online or mailing by deadlines, for the ACT and/or SAT. 4) Use an online estimator, like that on the website of the ACT (www.act.org/fane/) to determine financial need by calculating the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) for the first year of college. 5) Compare EFC to costs of any colleges of interest, via a website like the link on the ACT site or the net-price calculator to be on the school‘s website by the end of October 2011. 6) Search local resources, college viewbooks, and Internet sites to identify scholarships, tuition-discounts, and gift-aid.
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