ONEDEAL EDUCATIONAL GUIDE
Editorial standards · Calculation methods
Personal, auto & student loans hub
Hypothetical annual college funding plan
- Tuition, housing and other attendance costs
- $30,000
- Grants and scholarships
- −$12,000
- Available family savings for this year
- −$5,000
- Remaining funding gap
- $13,000
The $13,000 gap is not a loan approval or a federal borrowing limit. It is the amount that still needs a funding plan. A loan offered for that amount creates debt rather than reducing the underlying cost.
Compare aid on a consistent basis
Use the same academic period for every school and include costs outside tuition. Confirm scholarship renewal conditions and whether aid is one-time or recurring. Treat work-study as potential earned income rather than guaranteed cash available at the start of the term.
This funding-gap worksheet deliberately avoids current program limits and benefit calculations. Federal Student Aid reports ongoing program changes; check its current instructions and the school’s aid office for eligibility, deadlines and the terms of your actual offer.
Review protections before refinancing
A lower payment or rate is not the whole comparison. Refinancing a federal loan into a private loan gives up federal benefits and protections. Review the current alternatives and consequences before making that change; federal consolidation and private refinancing are different actions.
A standard installment calculator assumes repayment starts now and follows a fixed schedule. It does not capture in-school interest rules, deferment, income-driven payments or forgiveness. Use the official student-aid tools for those decisions and ask how any private cosigner would be affected.
- Keep grants, earned income and loans on separate rows.
- Plan for all years of attendance, not only the first offer.
- Confirm current terms directly before accepting or refinancing debt.
Sources and method
Worked examples use the stated hypothetical assumptions. Source links support the general definitions and rules; they do not verify a specific product, offer or individual outcome.
Examples are educational estimates, not current product offers, approvals or individualized investment, tax, insurance or legal advice. Confirm current terms and rules for your circumstances.