A. After reviewing your FAFSA and other financial aid documents, colleges will send you a financial aid offer. While this offer is structured based on your family's financial situation, aid offers can vary significantly among the colleges. Not only do colleges come up with different estimates of your financial need, but they may also decide to grant merit scholarship and other more discretionary awards at different levels.

While there's no official way to appeal or negotiate financial aid awards, and the vast majority of financial aid packages are probably not altered by colleges, many students have had success in asking colleges to revise their awards and assumptions. Sometimes, colleges simply don't have all of the right information and are able to increase an award if you can demonstrate need or family circumstances they didn't know about. Other times, colleges - which are, after all, competing for you - will respond if you show them higher awards from other schools (although many colleges will won't care what other schools are offering).

One key to the process is to be diplomatic and rational when approaching colleges about financial aid. Don't go for a drastic emotional appeal, and certainly don't tell a financial aid officer that you're "calling to negotiate." Simply ask if it's possible for them to reconsider their financial aid offer, and be prepared to explain logically why a higher award would make sense.

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