And we want to give you these capabilities wrapped in the elegant iPhone interface, so that the tool is a pleasure to use. After all, there is never a good reason for clunky software. And of course, because it is a standalone iPhone App, all private data stay private.


For those who have been doing their homework, you know that the Department of Education's FAFSA form is the gateway to most sources of financial aid, and the key concept in the FAFSA is the so called Expected Family Contribution (EFC). Therefore, the heart of this App is a "what-you-see-is-what-you-get" EFC calculator that fully implements the Federal Methodology formula. This App also computes Pell Grant eligibility, and gives a representative sampling of college Costs of Attendance (COA).



A “pocket Needs Analysis Machine”


We think that practicing Financial Aid professionals will also find this App to be very useful. In fact, the idea for it came when one of the developers, who received an iPhone for Christmas, said to her husband (the other developer) that such an App sure would come in handy at work. Take a look at the screenshots for the "Tech" page, which shows all the intermediate results, just like doing a "hand calc." For the non-professional, this can all be safely ignored, except for the assurance that the calculation is complete, fully tested and correct.


We wish you the best in all your educational endeavors.


For most students (and their parents), how to pay for college is as important a consideration as what college to go to.


In the United States, there is a well developed infrastructure for providing financial aid to students with demonstrated financial need. However, this process comes with its own standards and concepts, which may be alien to students and their families.

The most current 2010-2011 EFC formula is encoded. Purchasers will receive free upgrades to the 2011-12 EFC formula when it is released by the government.

Photo credits: wikipedia user “Cacophony”


It comes as a surprise to many students that:


They can get a pretty good idea how much aid they qualify for, even before applying to college.


They may qualify for more aid than they expect.

This App was developed by a financial aid professional at a major university precisely to fill this knowledge gap. It is meant to quickly give students and their families the "lay of the land" as they begin their college search.


We want to enable you to:


Estimate how much you might actually pay out of pocket for college expenses.


Rationally factor in financial considerations up front, when considering what colleges to apply to. One shouldn’t blindly assume “Oh, I can never afford that school” without some basis.


Be well prepared for direct discussions with financial aid administrators at the schools of your interest, where they can explain the specific elements of their aid offers.