Purdue Updates Net Price Calculator Tool

Purdue's Division of Financial Aid has updated an online tool that allows families to plan for educational costs and determine what kind of financial support is estimated to be available to them at Purdue.

The Financial Aid Estimator and Net Price Calculator allow current and prospective students and parents to receive an instant estimate of the need-based aid they could receive. The site at http://www.purdue.edu/dfa/estimator now provides estimates of costs and aid for the 2011-12 academic year.

The federal definition of “net price” is the Estimated Cost of Attendance less scholarship and grant eligibility. As of October 2011, federal law requires colleges to provide a net price calculator on their websites. Purdue’s online estimator was launched in 2008 and has been utilized heavily, with as many as 14,000 uses per month.

The site's results are based on an estimate of educational expenses and the availability of funding sources and scholarship criteria that are subject to change. The Estimator was developed for both in- and out-of-state undergraduate students. Because many grants, loans and scholarships are restricted to U.S. citizens and permanent U.S. residents, the estimator is not intended for international students.

All estimates of financial aid awards assume that the student will complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, by the annual March 1 priority deadline. Opportunities for financial aid can be significantly reduced if those deadlines are not met.

Purdue will not store any of the data provided on the site. In order to receive actual financial aid awards, students must submit the FAFSA for each year they attend Purdue.