The government should give aid to people who really do need the financial help to get the college education they desire.

College was always the logical thing to do after high school in my mind, even as a young child. Elementary school, middle school, high school and college: that’s just the way it went.

Going to college is very expensive, but thankfully the government provides financial aid to help people who choose to obtain a higher education. Unfortunately, the way financial aid is set up, people who need help most don’t always get it.

Financial aid is given to students who are U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens who have valid Social Security numbers, comply with Selective Service registration, have high school diplomas or General Education Development certificates and are enrolled working toward degrees or certificates, according to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid Web site.

Financial aid is determined by taking the cost of education at the university you wish to attend and subtracting the expected family contribution (EFC) from it.

This is the financial need for that person. This does not necessarily mean you will receive this amount from the government, but it is taken into consideration along with other factors.

Some people think that the EFC is determined only by the amount of income your family makes. This isn’t true. Factors such as non-home assets, family size, age of parents, number of parents working and household size also play a role.

The problem with this formula is that it “measures your family’s financial strength to pay for college,” according to the FAFSA Web site, and not actual amount that they are going to pay. My parents' “strength” to pay for some of my college education doesn’t mean that they are going to actually pay for any of it.

What if a student comes from a very wealthy family and is the only child attending college at the time? This would generally disqualify the student from receiving financial aid. The student’s family makes enough money, so the family should be able to pay for college without funding from the government.

What if that student is paying for college him or herself and only can earn $5,000 a year from working when they want to attend a $30,000 university? Then what?

Another disturbing thing about financial aid and the expected family contribution is that in certain places students can qualify for an Automatic Zero EFC and skip parts of the application.

Being able to claim no EFC helps students receive more financial aid. The FAFSA Web site indicates that if you live in certain parts of the world, such as Ontario, Iowa, New York, Mexico, Texas, the Virgin Islands and 38 more locations not even considering “foreign countries” which are also included, you are able to claim no EFC.

There are essential flaws in this rule because what about me? I live in Wisconsin. Because of where I live I am not eligible to claim zero for what my family is expected to contribute to my education. But what if my family really isn’t giving any money to my education? Shouldn’t I be able too claim zero too?

This rule will only give more money to people who might already be rich and able to pay for college themselves. Just because they live in Missouri, for example, they have the opportunity to qualify for Automatic Zero EFCs. That isn’t fair.

The government is already so far in debt — giving away money to people who don’t need it won’t help the situation. The government should give aid to people who really do need the financial help to get the college education they desire.

The problem with this whole system is exemplified in my life. Because my mother, who doesn’t help me pay for college, has become less wealthy, the government has decided to give me more money. If my parents weren’t giving me any money anyway, shouldn’t this factor of my mom losing her hours have no effect on how much financial aid I receive?

The best solution for the expected family contribution is that of two different FAFSA forms.

One form should allow students to indicate that their families are able and willing to help financially with college. Students who are paying for college themselves should be able to indicate this and be considered differently than those who are receiving help from their parents.

This way, students who need financial help will receive what they need while others who don’t need help won’t receive it.

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