The U.S. Department of Education requires that Financial Aid Offices establish a cost of attendance (COA) in calculating your eligibility for need-based aid programs. The cost of attendance is also referred to as a budget and is an estimate of projected costs that a student may incur while attending college.  Student budgets are differentiated by residency. classification (undergraduate or graduate) and enrollment levels. The standard components of the budget consist of a combination of your direct costs (tuition and fees, housing and food, books and supplies [including an allowance for the rental or purchase of a computer beginning with the 23-24 aid year]) and indirect costs (transportation, miscellaneous expenses, and loan fees). Indirect costs are considered indirect as they are dependent on other factors. For instance, while average loan fees are always included in your budget, this indirect costs’ impact on you is dependent on whether or not you decide to accept a loan.

Financial aid budgets are determined by using estimated tuition and fees, housing and food based on a two-person residence hall room and a full meal plan rate, an estimate for books based on information from the bookstore that has a contract with ESU, and starting in the 23-24 aid year, an allowance for the rental or purchase of a computer.  Transportation allowances are an estimate of expenses directly related to education and are not intended to cover all day-to-day transportation costs.  Miscellaneous expense is to provide some assistance with living expenses other than those already provided for in the housing and food allowance.  Loan fee allowances are an average of the fees paid by borrowers in the preceding year.  Actual expenses may vary somewhat from student to student. Where possible, the most current information from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and their Consumer Expenditure and Consumer Price Index information is used at the time the COA is created for the next aid year, particularly with transportation and miscellaneous allowances.