Financial aid questions: answered. Practical advice on financial aid questions from Douglas Christiansen, Vanderbilt's associate provost for enrollment and dean of admissions at Vanderbilt University. In a series of short and direct video clips, Christiansen uses his 20 years of experience in admissions leadership roles to help students and parents understand the financial aid process and what questions to ask financial aid officers at any school. Christiansen tackles questions such as, What should we ask about a schools financial aid program? What is an Estimated Family Contribution or EFC and how is my EFC used at different schools? My family is doing OK financially, is it worth applying for financial aid? Christiansen also talks about why its important to ask if a school is need blind or need aware and what impact asking lots of questions about financial aid could have on the admissions process.