specify. Then from it is subtracted the student's Expected Family Contribution, based on the student's income and assets, and calculated by the U.S. Department of Education under rules set by Congress and processed using the FAFSA system. For unmarried students under 24, Congress mandates that parental income and assets be included. The resulting figure is the student's "need". Colleges attempt to provide students with enough financial aid to meet all student need, but in most cases are unable to do so completely. The result is "unmet need". Under federal law, if there are special circumstances such as loss of a job or large medical expenses, college financial aid offices have considerable liberty to lower a student's calculated need, thus resulting in a larger aid award. Application process for need-based aid To qualify for need-based aid a student must have a significant amount of financial need, which is determined by the federal government based on the FAFSA. Using the information submitted on the FAFSA, the U.S. Department of Education calculates a figure called the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). If the EFC is less than the cost of attending a college, the student has financial need (as the term is used in the U.S. financial aid system). Students can file an appeal with their college financial aid office in order to seek additional financial aid, though the information about the process is not always clear or available online. SwiftStudent, a free service, provides template letters for college students. Some well-to-do colleges have need-based aid of their own to distribute, in addition to federal and state aid (if any). These colleges require, in addition to the FAFSA, the CSS Profile financial form, which goes into greater detail. Need-based aid Need-based financial aid is awarded on the basis of the financial need of the student. The "need" of each student is a figure determined separately for each student. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid application (FAFSA) is generally used for determining federal, state, and institutional need-based aid eligibility. At private institutions, a supplemental application may be necessary for institutional need-based aid. A recent trend shows that what is purely need-based aid is not entirely clear. According to the National Postsecondary Aid Survey (NPSAS), SAT scores affect the size of institutional need-based financial aid. If a student has a high SAT score and a low family income, they will receive larger institutional need-based grants