Students at Stanford University in California.
Erin Lubin | Bloomberg | Getty Images
In the weeks leading up to National College Decision Day on May 1, students will weigh the pros and cons of each school. But the deciding factor often comes down to cost.
For a majority of college hopefuls and their families, the financial aid offer is key in choosing where to attend and how to cover the tab. The total amount of aid matters, as does the breakdown between grants, scholarships and student loans.
“Right now, the focus should be on understanding how much of the package is free money like grants and scholarships, how much may need to be borrowed, and what that borrowing could mean for your budget over time,” said Katarina Ellison, a spokesperson for education lender Sallie Mae.
Over the years, there has been a slow shift to a “high-tuition, high-aid” model, where colleges both raise tuition and increase grant aid, according to Emily Cook, an assistant professor of economics at Texas A&M University.
Now, about two-thirds of full-time students receive some sort of financial assistance, which can bring college costs significantly down.
The net price students and their families will pay for college is the tuition cost minus grants, scholarships and other types of aid.
“The biggest challenge is that there’s no single format for financial aid offers, so families often end up comparing apples to oranges,” Ellison said.
“One school may clearly separate grants, scholarships, and loans, while another bundles everything together,” she added. “A good place to start is understanding what’s free money and what will need to be paid back.”
How to compare college aid offers
The strongest offers include more free money — like scholarships and grants — and fewer loans, experts said.
But even with gift aid, it’s important to distinguish whether a grant is renewable for all four years or if a minimum grade point average must be maintained, according to Kalman Chany, a financial aid consultant and author of The Princeton Review’s “Paying for College.”
When it comes to loans, new borrowing limits for 2026 under President Donald Trump‘s “big beautiful bill” should be another factor. “The conventional wisdom is to exhaust the federal options first — you need to be more savvy about that,” Chany said.
“Borrowing should be a last resort, but if it’s part of the mix, it’s important to understand the difference between federal and private loans and what repayment will look like after graduation,” Ellison also said.
How to boost your college aid
It is possible to ask the college financial aid office for more aid, especially if your financial circumstances have changed or if the financial aid offer from a comparable school was better, the experts said.
To appeal your college aid offer, document any changes in assets, income, benefits or expenses — or note the offers from other schools.
However, need-based aid may be determined solely on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, so there is less wiggle room to negotiate. “You might not get any more money,” Chany said.
For families who still need to bridge the gap, there are also many private scholarships and fellowships available, often funded by foundations, corporations and other independent organizations.
Use artificial intelligence to find alternative sources for merit-based aid, advised James Lewis, co-founder of the National Society of High School Scholars, an academic honor society.
“It’s a way of identifying opportunities and instead of using an informal network, they can look at everything,” Lewis said. “It’s going to raise the success rate of matching great students with organizations that are sponsoring them.”
To be sure, “the sticker cost is daunting,” he said. “You should dream big and then look through the process of how can I pay through outside scholarships or fellowships.”
If you’re pursuing these options, just check to make sure your college of choice doesn’t have a so-called displacement policy, which could mean private scholarships will reduce other sources of aid.
