Paying for College Without Going Broke, 2017 Edition - Princeton Review, Kalman Chany (2016)
Part II. How to Take Control of the Process
Chapter 6. State Aid
States sometimes don’t get the credit they deserve for their most pervasive and sweeping form of financial aid: an affordable college education for in-state residents through public state university programs. These programs are still terrific values (as we explored in Chapter Four, “How to Pick Colleges”) and in some cases, the quality of education is at least as good as it is at the best private colleges.
However, it is the other kind of state aid that we are going to discuss here. It comes in the form of need-based and merit-based grants and loans to qualifying students who attend public or private colleges and universities within their own state. All 50 states have need-based financial aid programs for their residents, and more than 25 states now have merit-based awards as well. While some states are richer than others, the amount of money available for state aid is substantial; in some states students can qualify for more than $4,000 each year in grant money alone.
To qualify for this aid a student must generally attend a public university or private college within the student’s state of legal residence. A few states have reciprocal agreements with specific other states that allow you to take aid with you to another state. For example, if you qualify for Pennsylvania state aid, you are allowed to use that aid at any approved school in many other states, except in most cases for Maryland, New Jersey, and New York.
Note: In recent years, some states have eliminated or reduced their state grant programs as a result of budget deficits in the recent economic downturn. For the latest information regarding the availability of state aid you should contact the appropriate state agency (See this page). Be aware that some states (i.e. Alaska, Illinois, Kentucky, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, and Washington) award funds on a first-come first-served basis.
Even If You Don’t Qualify for Federal Aid, You May Qualify for State Aid
Because of the differences between the state aid formulas and the federal formula, it is sometimes easier to qualify for state aid. Federal aid is based on your adjusted gross income (along with information about your assets). In some states, however, aid is based solely on your taxable income (the AGI minus deductions) without reference to your assets.
Thus if you miss out on federal aid because you have been industrious and managed to save enough to make investments, you may be able to qualify for state money anyway. In some states, it is possible to own a mansion, a business, and sizable investments, and—as long as your taxable income is within state parameters—still qualify for thousands of dollars in aid.
There are too many states with too many different types of programs and formulas for us to go into each one separately. Suffice it to say that state aid is one of the more overlooked ways for middle- and upper-middle-class families to help pay for college. We estimate that thousands of these parents, under the impression they make too much money, never even apply.
How to Apply for State Aid
Some states use the data you supply on the federal FAFSA form to award their aid. Other states require you to complete a supplemental aid form that is processed directly by that state’s higher education agency.
Confused? Your high school guidance counselor should have the correct forms for your situation. If, for some reason, forms are not available at your high school, or your guidance counselor doesn’t seem to know what is what, contact your state agency (a list of all the state agencies with their addresses and phone numbers is at the end of this chapter).
The only time the forms you find at your high school might not be the right forms for you is when the student goes to school in one state but lives in another. If this is the case, again contact your state agency.
If your family is eligible for state financial aid, your state grant will appear as part of the aid packages you receive from the colleges sometime before April 15. Obviously, unless your state has reciprocal agreements, the state money will appear only in the aid packages from colleges in your own state. Families that are pondering several offers from schools within their own state, sometimes notice that the amount of state money they were offered at each of the schools differs. This might be because aid is based not just on need, but also on the size of tuition at different schools. A more expensive school will often trigger a larger grant. However, if you applied to two comparably priced schools within your own state, and one school gives you significantly less state aid than another, then something is amiss because you should be getting approximately the same amount of state aid at similarly priced schools.
Alternative State Loans
Some states make guaranteed student loans much like the Stafford loans provided by the federal government. These are sometimes called “special loans.” Again, if your state offers these loans and if you qualify, they will appear as part of your aid package.
Establishing Residency in a State
In-state rates are much cheaper than out-of-state rates at public universities; at the University of Vermont, for example, an out-of-state student pays over $23,000 more than an in-state resident. So it should come as no surprise that students have tried over the years to establish residency in the state of the public university they were attending. Until recently, it was much easier for a student to establish residency in a state if he wished to take advantage of the in-state rates. It has since become much more difficult, with the exception of one or two states. We will discuss establishing residency in greater detail in the “Special Topics” chapter.
The State Agencies
Alabama
Alabama Commission on
Higher Education
P.O. Box 302000
Montgomery, AL 36130-2000
(334) 242-1998
www.ache.state.al.us
Alaska
Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education
P.O. Box 110505
Juneau, AK 99811
(907) 465-2962 or (800) 441-2962
acpe.alaska.gov
Arizona
Commission on Postsecondary Education
2020 N. Central Ave.
Phoenix, AZ 85004
(602) 258-2435
https://azgrants.az.gov
Arkansas
Arkansas Department of
Higher Education
423 Main Street, Suite 400
Little Rock, AR 72201
(800) 547-8839, (501) 371-2000
www.adhe.edu
California
California Student Aid Commission
Grant Programs-Customer Service
P.O. Box 419026
Rancho Cordova, CA 95741-9026
(888) 224-7268
www.csac.ca.gov
Colorado
Colorado Commission on Higher Education
1560 Broadway, Suite 1600
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 862-3001
http://highered.colorado.gov
Connecticut
Connecticut Department
of Higher Education
61 Woodland Street
Hartford, CT 06105
(860) 947-1800
www.ctohe.org
Delaware
Delaware Higher Education Office
The Townsend Building
401 Federal Street, Suite 2
Dover, DE 19901
(302) 735-4000
www.doe.k12.de.us
District of Columbia
Office of the State Supt. of Education
Division of Higher Education & Financial Services
810 First Street NE, 9th Floor
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 727-2824 or (877) 485-6751
www.osse.dc.gov
Florida
Florida Department of Education
Office of Student Financial Assistance
325 West Gaines St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399
(850) 245-0505 or (888) 827-2004
www.floridastudentfinancialaid.org
or www.fldoe.org
Georgia
Georgia Student Finance Commission
State Loans & Grants Division
2082 East Exchange Place
Tucker, GA 30084
(800) 505-4732
www.gsfc.org
Hawaii
Hawaii State Postsecondary Education Commission
2444 Dole Street, Room 209
Honolulu, HI 96822
(808) 956-8213
www.hawaii.edu
Idaho
Office of the State Board of Education
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720-0037
(208) 334-2270
www.boardofed.idaho.gov
Illinois
Illinois Student Assistance Commission
1755 Lake Cook Road
Deerfield, IL 60015-5209
(800) 899-4722
www.isac.org
Indiana
State Student Assistance
Commission of Indiana
W462 Government Center South
402 West Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
(888) 528-4719
www.in.gov/sfa
Iowa
Iowa College Student Aid Commission
430 East Grand Ave.
3rd Floor
Des Moines, IA 50309
(877) 272-4456 or (515) 725-3400
www.iowacollegeaid.gov
Kansas
Kansas Association of Student
Financial Aid Administrators
Kansas Board of Regents
1000 S.W. Jackson Street
Suite 520
Topeka, KS 66612-1368
(785) 296-3421
www.kansasregents.org
Kentucky
Kentucky Higher Education
Assistance Authority
100 Airport Road
Frankfort, KY 40602-0798
(800) 928-8926
www.kheaa.com
Louisiana
Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance
602 North 5th Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
(800) 259-5626
www.osfa.state.la.us
Maine
Finance Authority of Maine
Maine Education Assistance Division
5 Community Drive, P.O. Box 949
Augusta, ME 04332-0949
(800) 228-3734
www.famemaine.com
Maryland
Maryland Higher Education
Commission
Office of Student Financial Assistance
6 North Liberty Street
Ground Suite
Baltimore, MD 21201
(410) 767-3300 or (800) 974-0203
www.mhec.state.md.us/preparing/Pages/descriptions.aspx
Massachusetts
The Massachusetts Office of Student Financial Assistance
454 Broadway, Suite 200
Revere, MA 02151
(617) 391-6070
www.osfa.mass.edu
Michigan
Michigan Higher Education
Assistance Authority
Office of Scholarships and Grants
P.O. Box 30462
Lansing, MI 48909-7962
(888) 447-2687
www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid
Minnesota
Minnesota Higher Education
Services Office
1450 Energy Park Drive
Suite 350
St. Paul, MN 55108-5227
(800) 657-3866 or (651) 642-0567
www.ohe.state.mn.us
Mississippi
Mississippi Office of State
Student Financial Aid
3825 Ridgewood Road
Jackson, MS 39211
(800) 327-2980 or (601) 432-6997
www.ihl.state.ms.us
Missouri
Missouri Department of Higher Education
205 Jefferson Street
P.O. Box 1469
Jefferson City, MO 65102-1469
(800) 473-6757 or (573) 751-2361
www.dhe.mo.gov
Montana
Montana Guaranteed
Student Loan Program
P.O. Box 203101
Helena, MT 59620-3101
(800) 537-7508
www.mgslp.org
Nebraska
Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education
P.O. Box 95005
Lincoln, NE 68509-5005
(402) 471-2847
https://ccpe.nebraska.gov
Nevada
State Department of Education
700 E. Fifth Street
Carson City, NV 89701
(775) 687-9200
www.doe.nv.gov
New Hampshire
New Hampshire Department of
Education
101 Pleasant Street
Concord, NH 03301
(603) 271-3494
www.state.nh.us/postsecondary
New Jersey
Office of Student Assistance
P.O. Box 540
Trenton, NJ 08625-0540
(800) 792-8670
www.hesaa.org
New Mexico
State of New Mexico
Higher Education Department
2048 Galisteo St.
Santa Fe, NM 87505
(800) 279-9777 or (505) 476-8400
www.hed.state.nm.us
New York
New York State Higher Education Services Corporation
99 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12255
(518) 473-1574 or (888) 697-4372
www.hesc.ny.gov
North Carolina
College Foundation of North Carolina
P.O. Box 41966
Raleigh, NC 27629-1966
(888) 234-6400
www.cfnc.org
North Dakota
North Dakota University System
Tenth Floor, State Capitol
600 E. Boulevard Avenue-Dept. 215
Bismarck, ND 58505-0230
(701) 328-2960
www.ndus.edu
Ohio
Ohio Dept. of Higher Education
State Grants and Scholarship Dept.
25 South Front Street
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 466-6000
www.ohiohighered.org
Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education
655 Research Parkway
Suite 200
Oklahoma City, OK 73104
(800) 858-1840 or (405) 225-9100
www.okhighered.org/student-center
Oregon
Oregon Student Access Commission
1500 Valley River Drive
Suite 100
Eugene, OR 97401
(541) 687-7400 or (800) 452-8807
www.osac.state.or.us
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency
1200 North 7th Street
Harrisburg, PA 17102-1444
(800) 692-7392
www.pheaa.org
Rhode Island
Rhode Island Higher Education
Assistance Authority
560 Jefferson Boulevard, Suite 100
Warwick, RI 02886
(800) 922-9855 or (401) 736-1100
www.riheaa.org
South Carolina
South Carolina Higher Education
Tuition Grants Commission
115 Atrium Way, Suite 102
Columbia, SC 29223
(803) 896-1120
www.sctuitiongrants.com
South Dakota
Dept. of Ed. and Cultural Affairs
Office of the Secretary
800 Governors Drive
Pierre, SD 57501
(605) 773-3134
www.doe.sd.gov
Tennessee
Tennessee Student
Assistance Corporation (TSAC)
Parkway Towers, Suite 1510
404 James Robertson Parkway
Nashville, TN 37243-0820
(800) 342-1663
(615) 741-1346
www.tn.gov/collegepays
Texas
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
P.O. Box 12788
Austin, TX 78711-2788
(512) 427-6101
(800) 242-3062
www.thecb.state.tx.us
Utah
Utah State Board of Regents
Board of Regents Building
The Gateway
60 South 400 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84101-1284
(877) 336-7378
or (801) 321-7294
www.uheaa.org
Vermont
Vermont Student
Assistance Corporation
Champlain Mill
P.O. Box 2000
Winooski, VT 05404
(802) 654-3750
(800) 882-4166
www.vsac.org
Virginia
State Council of Higher
Education for Virginia
James Monroe Building
101 North Fourteenth Street
Richmond, VA 23219
(804) 225-2600
www.schev.edu
Washington
Washington State Higher
Education Coordinating Board
917 Lakeridge Way SW
Olympia, WA 98502
(360) 753-7800
www.wsac.wa.gov
West Virginia
West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission
1018 Kanawha Blvd. East
Charleston, WV 25301
(304) 558-2101
http://wvhepc.edu
Wisconsin
Higher Education Aids Board
PO Box 7885
Madison, WI 53707-7885
(608) 267-2206
www.heab.state.wi.us
Wyoming
University of Wyoming
Student Financial Aid
Dept. 3335
1000 East University Avenue
Laramie, WY 82071-3335
(307) 766-2116
www.uwyo.edu
American Samoa
American Samoa Community
College Board of Higher Education
P.O. Box 2609
Pago Pago, AS 96799-2609
(684) 688-9155
www.amsamoa.edu
Guam
University of Guam
Financial Aid Office
University Drive
UOG Station
Mangilao, GU 96923
(671) 735-2288
www.uog.edu
Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Marianas College
P.O. Box 501250
Saipan, MP 96950
(670) 234-5498
www.marianas.edu
Puerto Rico
Council on Higher Education
Box 19900
San Juan, PR 00910-1900
(787) 641-7100
www.ce.pr.gov
Trust Territory of Pacific Islands
Palau Community College P.O. Box 9
Koror, Republic of Palau, 96940
(680) 488-2470
pcc.palau.edu
Virgin Islands Board of Education
Box 11900
60B, 61 & 62 Dronningens Gade
St. Thomas, VI 00801
(340) 774-4546
http://myviboe.com