Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - September/October 2015 - (Page 41)

planning ahead for college Express Lessons in Financial Aid by Joshua Leonard Student Financial Services Johns Hopkins University I've been in student affairs since 2004. I've worked at large universities, small graduate schools, and elite private schools. I've worked with independent first-generation students, legacies who had the school seal on their baby blanket, and everyone in between. After over a decade in the profession, I've learned one very important thing: students and parents don't know anything about financial aid. (Full disclosure: neither did I-until after I paid for all three of my degrees.) After every presentation I've given about financial aid, there's always someone who comes up and asks me questions that they didn't want to bring up in front of the audience. Then I get the exact same questions from another 30 people who wished someone had been willing to ask. So here are some of the questions everyone is curious about, but nobody wants to be seen asking. "Is it even worth it to apply for financial aid if x?" No matter what x is, the simple answer is yes. The studies vary, but on average, cost savings at a four-year private university with financial aid is 43% per annum. Put another way, the average college student at a school like mine pays 43% less because they applied for aid. It's totally worth it. "Forty-three percent sounds pretty good, but I bet I have to jump through a lot of hoops to get it, right?" Wrong. It's usually just three things: the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), some sort of supplemental application, and a copy of your taxes. If you have your tax information and a list of what your bank accounts and investments are worth, you really have all the information you'll need. Keep in mind I prefaced "three" with "usually." Some schools ask for less, some ask for more, and some don't ask for any. The protocol varies, but three is the most common. www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine "Just three things. I can do that, but why three?" Schools need those three things to determine your financial aid using two different types of calculations. You have to turn in your FAFSA to be eligible for federal aid through the Department of Education, which uses a needs analysis calculation called federal methodology (FM). Schools, on the other hand, have their own system which they call institutional methodology (IM). At most institutions, IM requires more and different information than FM; hence the request for an institutional application and a set of tax records to corroborate the information. "What if I don't have all that information?" You just turn in what you can, when you can, with the most accurate information you have on hand. If it turns out you were wrong, we can fix it later. In fact, that's part of what a financial aid office does. The only caveat is, until everything is in and reviewed, your financial aid isn't finalized. This is especially important to remember if you're applying as an early decision student. "And if I turn in all of this information, then you'll give me money?" Well, you'll always qualify for financial aid under FM. (If you don't believe me, check out studentaid.ed.gov.) IM is a totally different story. Depending on the resources available to you and how much funding the school has available, you could get anything between a four-year free ride and a letter beginning, "We regret to inform you. . ." Remember, the average savings is 43%, but, then again, who's average? Until that letter comes out, I have one piece of advice for you: apply for every award you can, and not just the ones offered by the school. Any scholarships you're awarded by someone other than your school of choice (e.g., The Lions, your high school, 4-H) go with you when you choose your home for the next four years. Usually this is about the point in the evening where someone starts flicking the lights in an effort to get the crowd to move on, and I don't see students or their families again until May. Just like them, I know you're not going to remember all this stuff during the chaos of your senior year, so I'll ask you to remember just one thing: Be bold and ask questions! Don't be afraid to admit you don't know something. Not only will raising the question net you an answer, it'll do the same for the 29 other people who were scared to ask. n imagine 41

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - September/October 2015

Circuit Training Electrical Engineering at CTY
Turning Brainwaves into Action Meet ARTIE, the robot activated by thoughts
Robotics in the Real World How robots are helping us explore space, overcome disability, and so much more
My First FIRST The climbing robot that taught me to aim high
Adventures in Botball
So Much Fun, It’s Inhuman Destroying the competition in combat robotics
Born to Build The making of an engineer
The Engineering Summer Academy at Penn Three weeks that launched my future
Music in the Woods Six weeks at Tanglewood
Big Picture
In My Own Words Daniel H. Wilson, author of Robopocalypse and Robogenesis
Selected Opportunities and Resources
Off the Shelf Review of Obert Sky’s Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo
Word Wise
Exploring Career Options Interview with NASA robotics engineer Jaakko Karras
One Step Ahead Be fearless
Planning Ahead for College Express lessons in financial aid
Students Review Dartmouth College
Creative Minds Imagine Poetry contest winners
Mark Your Calendar
Knossos Games

Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - September/October 2015