What is financial aid? Financial aid is money given by individual private schools to help families pay for a private school education. Private schools give families millions of dollars annually to help them afford a private school education. Here's how it works.
Because schools expect their fees to be paid in advance, you need to make sure that the amount due and payable will fit your budget. So, at the same time as you are investigating school curricula, sports programs, extracurricular activities and so on, you also need to be asking about individual schools' financial aid programs. Each school offers its own unique financial aid program, so you cannot assume that what you were offered at one school will be the same as what is offered by another. Here are answers to your questions about financial aid. The resources at the end of this article provide even
more detail.
Who's eligible? Many families assume that they are not eligible for financial aid and do not apply. Everybody's financial situation is different. As a result, you should always ask about financial aid even if you think you are not eligible.
Let
School and Student Services give schools a clear picture of your situation. Then the schools will be in a position to make a decision as to whether you will get financial aid and how much. Always ask about financial aid even if you think you are not eligible or don't need it. School and Student Services is an offering of the
National Association of Independent Schools. SSS provides third party, objective analysis of the financial data submit to approximately 2,400 schools which subscribe to SSS.
Who determines how much you will get? The school does. Now if you are asking for financial aid, at many schools you will need to complete and submit a
Parents Financial Statement (PFS). This is done online at the School and Student Services site. The site is well-laid out and offers easy to follow instructions. It also has a very useful web tutorial which I recommend that you watch before you start filling out all the forms.
What happens to your PFS after you submit it? It is analyzed by SSS to estimate what you can contribute towards your child's school expenses. SSS, however, does not determine what that contribution is. The school does. Schools base their determinations on the available funds, a family's need and the school's own particular philiosophy with respect to financial aid awards.
Where do you begin? You will use pretty much the same approach as your parents and you used when you were looking at colleges. When you first start thinking about and looking at private schools, cast the net widely. Look at everything out there, or at least as much as you can. Then make a list of about 10-15 schools which more or less fill the bill. After discussions with family and friends and perhaps a closer look at the schools, narrow that list to
3-5 schools to which you really want to apply. These schools on your short list will have all the basics which you require: the educational approach, the curriculum, the sports programs, the extracurricular activities and location. In your opinion they will be a good fit for your requirements.
Next step is to determine if they are a good financial fit. Remember that there are other expenses besides tuition. Things like books, meal plans, uniforms, sports equipment, trips, clubs and transportation to and from school will add up very quickly. Be sure to include them in your estimation of the costs.
As you visit schools, discuss financial aid. Make it clear that you will need help sending your child to their school. Do not be embarassed about discussing that need. The schools will give you plenty of guidance here.
Is there an application? If the school you are interested in subscribes to School and Student Services, you can complete your PFS safely and securely online. If you prefer, you can download the forms and complete them manually and mail them in. The online process is faster. The other advantage to the SSS process is that you only pay one fee. The results can be sent to as many subscriber schools as you want.
Schools which do not subscribe to SSS have their own application forms. Ask for those well in advance when you decide to apply. The applications require detailed information about your personal and family financial situation. Everything is handled confidentially by the third party organization known as the SSS. As mentioned previously, all the SSS does is to analyze the data which you give and to report the estimated contribution which you can make based on that data. SSS then sends those analysis results to the schools to which you have requested the report be sent.
What about deadlines? If you are applying through the School and Student Services site, the deadline is December 31. If you miss that deadline, you will need to contact the school directly about financial aid. As a general rule each school has a pool of funds for financial aid. So get to the front of the line by applying as early as you can. Missing deadlines might mean that all the funds for financial aid are already committed for the next academic year.
If you are eligible, are you guaranteed financial aid? Unfortunately, no. The determination of who gets financial aid rests entirely with the individual schools. Not with SSS or NAIS. The schools decide how much money is available for financial aid and how it is awarded.
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