Cost of Attendance
Cost of Attendance
Cost of Attendance
Knowing a college's "cost of attendance" (COA) is critical when comparing aid awards. A college with a high COA may offer a generous aid package but still be more expensive than one with a much lower COA.
What's Included in the COA
As dictated by Congress, the COA is the average cost to attend for one academic year (fall through spring). Your COA is not your bill. It includes a budget of tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, transportation, and personal expenses. Colleges adjust the COA yearly to reflect changes to these costs. Colleges create several official COAs that reflect differences in living costs (on-campus, off-campus, or at home) and in-state and out-of-state tuition. Your actual cost to attend may be different than the official COA depending on your personal expenses, participation in extracurricular activities, and travel expenses.
How the COA Drives Your Financial Aid
The COA dictates how much aid you can receive. Generally speaking, you cannot get financial aid in excess of your COA. This includes all forms of aid such as loans, grants, scholarships and work-study. The COA also plays a role in how much financial need you have. Financial need is used to determine how much need-based aid you can receive.
Financial Need
Federal regulations require that your total student financial aid, including loans, not exceed your cost of attendance. For most students financial aid only meets part of their financial need.
Completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the first step in determining the types of aid for which you are eligible.
Once you have completed your FAFSA, your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is calculated according to a formula established by law. The EFC is not a dollar amount that you are expected to pay toward school but a measure of your family’s financial strength. The EFC formula takes into account many variables including your (and your parents' if you are a dependent student):
- Income and assets
- Number of people living in your household
- Number of people in your household attending college
- State of residence
Your EFC does not vary from school to school regardless of the actual cost of the institution you are attending. However, your financial need will vary according to each school's cost of attendance.
Determining Financial Need
Cost of Attendance - EFC = Financial Need
Example: You are an undergraduate In-State Rowan University student living on-campus. Your Cost of Attendance is $32,539 and your EFC is $5,591. Your financial need is $26,948 (32,539-5,591). Therefore, you are eligible for need-based aid that does not exceed $26,948. Need-based aid includes grants, subsidized loans and work-study.
Example: You are an undergraduate In-State Rowan University student living on-campus. Your Cost of Attendance is $32,539 and your EFC is $31,788. Your financial need is $751 (32,539-31,788). Therefore, you are eligible for need-based aid that does not exceed $751. A student with this profile will likely not be eligible for grants or work-study, but instead would be offered a subsidized loan not to exceed $751.
