Do Twins Get More Aid? If a Student Gets Married, Does the Financial Aid Change?

Do Twins Get More Aid? If a Student Gets Married, Does the Financial Aid Change?

My boyfriend and I are afraid that if we marry my annual gross

income ($47,000) will prevent him from getting federal grants and

loans for college. He has no income at all. He is disabled but was

denied disability when he applied. We don’t mind waiting if it would

be better to wait.

— Sarah K.

Your fears are justified.

When a married student files the Free Application for Federal Student

Aid (FAFSA), the income and assets of the student’s spouse must be

reported on the FAFSA, not just the student’s income and assets. Your

income is likely to affect your boyfriend’s eligibility for the Pell

Grant. It may also affect his eligibility for subsidized loans, but he

will still be eligible for the unsubsidized Stafford loan. His parents

will no longer be eligible for the Parent PLUS loan, since he will be

independent because of the marriage. As an independent student he will

be eligible for higher unsubsidized Stafford loan limits: an extra

$4,000 a year during the freshman and sophomore years in college and

an extra $5,000 a year during the junior and senior years in college.

The regulations allow but do not require applicants to

update their FAFSA due to a mid-year change in marital

status. However, the regulations also allow colleges to require an

applicant to update the FAFSA because of a change in the applicant’s

marital status “if the institution determines the update is necessary

to address an inequity or to reflect more accurately the applicant’s

ability to pay.” So colleges have the discretion to update the FAFSA

to reflect a change in the applicant’s marital status, but are not

required to do so. Thus policies regarding whether an applicant must

update the FAFSA for a change in applicant marital status will vary

from college to college.

I have twins. Do I have to fill out the FAFSA twice or can they

both be included on one form? Also, does the federal government give

more “free” money to those who have multiples in college?

— Donna M.

You have to complete two FAFSAs, one for each child. The parent

information on the two FAFSAs will be the same, but usually there are

some differences in the student section of the FAFSA. For example, the

student income and assets may differ, and the student names and Social

Security numbers will certainly differ.

Twins, triplets and other multiples tend to qualify for more student

financial aid than singletons because more children are enrolled in

college at the same time. The federal need analysis methodology

divides the parent contribution by the number of children in

college. The expected family contribution (EFC) is often much lower as

a result, yielding an increase in eligibility for need-based financial

aid. For example, among low and moderate income families (AGI <

$75,000) with dependent children pursuing Bachelor’s degrees, 46.0% of

those with two or more children in college qualified for a Pell Grant,

compared with 39.9% of those with just one child in college.

Some colleges offer special scholarships or discounts for twins. The

Lake Erie College Twins Scholarship splits a full tuition scholarship

among the twins. Other colleges offer a discount for siblings enrolled

simultaneously, not just twins. George Washington University, for

example, provides a 50% discount for the second sibling enrolled in

college at the same time through the GW Family Tuition Grant. Ask your

college if they provide a “buy one, get one free” deal. Colleges are

more likely to offer discounts if the twins are identical or if a

multiple of three or more children will enroll at the college at the

same time.

Source: Fastweb

from Student Loan Debt Relief Now http://ift.tt/2wdD6ek
via Student Loan Debt Relief Now