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FINANCIAL AID
How to Talk Your Way to More Financial Aid

The eagerly awaited college acceptance letters that arrive are often followed by disappointing offers of financial aid. But whether your child is a freshman or a returning student, the first offer need not be the last. You can -- and should -- appeal a school's offer of need-based financial aid if your income on last year's tax return was higher than usual for any of the following reasons:

• You converted a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. The rollover boosts your taxable income, which is the most important variable in computing your eligibility for financial aid. Bring that aberration to the attention of a financial-aid officer and your aid package should be adjusted accordingly.

• You received a one-time windfall. If you can document -- with previous years' tax returns, for instance -- that last year's bonus, insurance settlement, inheritance or commission was a one-time event, your aid award should be recomputed.

• Your child has been receiving social security survivor's benefits. Those payments end at age 18, but if your child was under 18 last year, the benefits are included as income in aid formulas unless you protest.

You may also be able to successfully appeal an award if you expect your income to drop because you lost your job, became disabled, separated from or divorced your spouse, or retired. Out-of-the-ordinary expenses can sway an aid officer to make changes, too, especially if they're elder-care costs or unreimbursed medical expenses that exceed 4% of your income. Some schools will even give you a break if you pay private-school tuition for a younger child, have another child who is about to enter college, or live in a very-high-cost area, such as Los Angeles or New York City. But you have to ask.

Sometimes colleges will also sweeten the pot in response to a better offer from a competitor -- especially if your child is a top student or otherwise a "catch" for the school.