Allowances against parents’ income: The need formulas consider various allowances against income.
Some are basic like federal, state, and local income taxes, social security taxes, and basic family living
costs. Others are related to particular circumstances like medical and dental expenses, tax liens, support of
extended family, etc. Some of these recur from year to year; some are not recurring. If we made extra
allowances in one year, they may not be relevant to a subsequent year. When reviewing financial aid
applications for business owners, additional information such as the IRS Schedule C, Schedule E, Forms
1120, 1120S, 1065, and/or K-1 are required. All business losses, including those related to depreciation of
business assets and/or property, are not permitted to offset other forms of income and are, essentially,
added back to income as part of the analysis.
Family assets: Certain family assets—home equity, other real estate equity, bank accounts, investments,
businesses, and farms—are considered in calculating a parents’ contribution. The value or indebtedness
of assets may change from year to year, especially if assets are used to pay part of the parents’
contribution. The values may also change because of economic conditions.
Family size: As children grow and move out, the number of people in the family may decrease. A change
in family size will have some effect on the parents’ contribution.
Number of children in college: A major factor in the need formula is the number of children enrolled full
time in an undergraduate program. In general, a calculated parent contribution is distributed among the
children enrolled in college, regardless of what you will actually pay for the sibling’s education. Graduate
students and siblings older than 23 are not included when determining eligibility for need-based financial
aid. Sometimes the distribution is not equal if the cost of the colleges is significantly different. If the
number in college changes, the parent contribution will usually change. For example, if the number in
college changes from two to one, the parent contribution will usually double because it is no longer divided
between two children. However, if the number in college increases from one to two, the parent contribution
for each child will be reduced if the University of Rochester and the other college are similar in cost.
Divorced or separated parents: If your parents are divorced or separated, the custodial parent must
complete the FAFSA and CSS Profile Form. If the custodial parent has remarried, federal guidelines
require that the family contribution be based on the income and assets of the custodial parent and
stepparent. University policy requires information from the non-custodial parent and their spouse, if
married, as well. When you complete the CSS Profile Form registration, the College Board will email you
saying that the University of Rochester requires your non-custodial parent to complete the CSS Profile as
well as your custodial parent. You will be directed to forward the email, containing a link to the CSS Profile
web site and login instructions, to your noncustodial parent. It is important to note that exceptions to
University policy requiring non-custodial parental information are never made solely on the basis of a
parent's unwillingness to assist.
International Students: Country currency rates are calculated from GDP per Capita data from the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and are updated annually based on the data available using the same
year that income is reported on the financial aid application (i.e. 2020 income and IMF data to apply for the
2022-23 academic year). The University will not consider appeals for changes in currency exchange rates
beyond the annual application renewal and award determination.