Assistance
While you and your family are expected to assume a major responsibility for the costs associated with attending a certificate or degree program at the College, there are resources to help you.
While there are many free resources available to you, there are many opportunities for students seeking assistance to be taken advantage of. There are several websites and companies who offer help with filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for a fee. These sites and companies are not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) or Del Mar College. We urge students not to pay for these sites for assistance that you can get for free. Never send money (no matter how small) to companies for free financial aid information and if you are asked for any credit card information while filling out the FAFSA online, you are not at the official government site. The financial aid office at Del Mar College is here to assist you free of charge in finding ways to fund your education.
When you apply for federal student aid, the information you report on the FAFSA is used in a formula established by the ED. The formula determines your Expected Family Contribution (EFC), an amount you and your family are expected to contribute toward your education. If your EFC is below a certain amount, you will be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, assuming you meet all other eligibility requirements.
There is not a maximum EFC that determines eligibility for the other financial aid programs. Instead, your EFC is used in an equation to determine your financial need:
Cost of Attendance
- Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
- Financial Need
To determine your unmet need for aid other than Federal Pell Grant, the calculation is:
Cost of Attendance
- EFC
- Pell Grant and any other Financial Aid
- Unmet Need
Financial Aid Services encourages you to seek financial assistance to help pay for college. Assistance comes in the form of gift aid (grants and scholarships-need based or merit-based) and self-help aid (loans and employment-need based or merit-based).