Expected Family Contribution (EFC) (historical)

E573116

Expected Family Contribution (EFC) (historical) was a numerical index used in U.S. federal student aid to estimate how much a student’s family could afford to pay for college, helping determine eligibility for need-based financial aid.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Expected Family Contribution (EFC) (historical) canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf financial aid eligibility index
historical U.S. federal student aid measure
administeredBy Office of Federal Student Aid NERFINISHED
appliesTo U.S. citizens
eligible noncitizens
graduate and professional students
students seeking federal student aid
undergraduate students
calculatedFrom allowances for basic living expenses and taxes
dependency status of the student
family size
information reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
number of family members in college
parent assets
parent income
student assets
student income
calculationMethod federal need analysis formula
separate formulas for dependent and independent students
countryOfUse United States of America
surface form: United States
dataSource FAFSA asset and household information
FAFSA income information from tax returns
domain higher education finance
hasCharacteristic could be as low as 0 for very low-income families
higher values indicated lower eligibility for need-based aid
was not a bill but an index used for aid formulas
hasOutput numerical index in U.S. dollars
legalBasis Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended NERFINISHED
misconception often misunderstood as the exact amount a family must pay
perceivedIssue term was considered confusing and misleading to families
policyChangeReason replaced to improve clarity and simplify federal student aid
purpose determine eligibility for need-based financial aid
estimate how much a student’s family could afford to pay for college
help allocate limited federal student aid funds
relatedConcept Student Aid Index (SAI) NERFINISHED
replacedBy Student Aid Index (SAI) NERFINISHED
replacedIn 2024–2025 award year for federal student aid
timePeriod used for federal aid eligibility prior to the 2024–2025 FAFSA simplification changes
usedBy U.S. Department of Education NERFINISHED
colleges and universities in the United States
state higher education agencies in the United States
usedFor Pell Grant eligibility determination
campus-based federal aid eligibility determination
federal subsidized loan eligibility determination
federal work-study eligibility determination
some state and institutional need-based aid calculations
usedInFormula Cost of Attendance minus Expected Family Contribution equals financial need

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

FAFSA output Expected Family Contribution (EFC) (historical)