How to Apply for Financial Aid
Applying for financial aid can seem like a daunting task, however taking time to prepare to apply by gathering the necessary documents and understanding how the process works as a whole can help you substantially. The Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) is a single comprehensive application that assesses your eligibility for all state and federal grants, work-study programs and loans and has a streamlined application process that is the same for all students. Here's what you need to know about applying using the FAFSA.
TimingYou cannot submit a FAFSA application before January 1st for the following academic year. However you should apply as soon as possible after January 1st because the federal and state governments allocate funds based on how much they have in reserve. As more and more students apply after January 1st less funds are available. This essentially means the earlier you apply after the new year the more likely you are to receive more aid and vice versa. The official deadline for applying is usually sometime in July for the coming academic year, but remember if you wait until then you will most likely not get as much aid than if you applied back in January. Many students set aside some time over their Christmas break to get everything ready to apply as soon as possible.
What You Will Need to ApplyThe FAFSA requires you to input a lot of information about your personal life and finances, and if you are a dependent student, information about your parent's personal lives and finances. It will help you tremendously if you have all the required information before you sit down to apply. The FAFSA website has a printable checklist of all the documents you will need.
Also, if you apply online (highly recommended) you will need to sign your application. You can print and mail a signature page, but this takes longer than signing electronically. For security purposes signing electronically requires all students to obtain a pin. A pin can be obtained from FAFSA's special Pin Website, and can be immediately emailed to you so you can sign your application. Applications cannot be processed until they are signed.
ApplyingIt cannot be stressed enough to apply online if you are able to. There is a printable application that can be mailed in however for applications to be processed they must be free of errors. The FAFSA is somewhat complex and very often paper applications are mailed back to students who did not fill them out correctly. The FAFSA online is a much easier, step-by-step way to approach the application, and their online system catches any errors or unfilled information before it is submitted for processing. Applying online will save you time and far simpler to do.
When you apply online, simply follow the instructions that guide you through the process. Even though applying online is much easier there may be some questions that you are unsure of how to answer. If this becomes the case you can save your application and call 1-800-4-FED-AID, and there will be a helpful representative that can clarify a question's meaning for you.
Complete All Other Requirements Set by Your School Some schools require students to complete their own financial aid application, however this application is typically much more simple. However, if you forget to complete it the processing of your FAFSA application may be delayed. Check with all schools you are applying to and see if they have this requirement.
Interpreting Your FAFSA ResultsAbout 2 to 3 weeks after you submit your application on the web (4 to 6 weeks for paper applications) you will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR). The SAR contains what the federal government has determined to be your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is how much money your family is expected to contribute to your education. The EFC is then subtracted from the Cost of Attendance for your school, and the remainder is your financial need. The lower your EFC the more money you will likely receive and vice versa. The government and your school will try their very best to meet your financial need completely with an aid package.
In early to mid April you will receive an award letter from all the schools you have applied to, detailing what types of aid you can receive and how much. Most schools require you to sign a document accepting, declining or reducing loan amounts. If you are using federal loans for the first time you will also have to sign a promissory note and this document will be mailed or emailed to you shortly after your award letter. Grants are already accepted for you and if you receive a work-study offer a coordinator from your school will contact you about accepting a position and your duties and work schedule.
Review your award letters carefully. Ideally your full need will be met and your entire cost of attendance will be covered.
Other OptionsAll students should apply for private scholarships, however each individual scholarship has its own steps for applying and set of criteria for evaluating candidates. FinAid, a public service site that is recommended by the US Department of Education, has a long list of free websites that will allow you to search for scholarships and learn tips on how to get scholarships.
Private loans are another option if the government and your school do not meet the full cost of your attendance. However private loans usually have much higher interest rates and less favorable terms for you so should only be considered as a last resort. How to apply for private loans depends on the lending company, but most consist of a basic application and a credit check on both you and your cosigner.
Article ReferencesFAFSA
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/before003.htm
Pin Website
http://www.pin.ed.gov/PINWebApp/pinindex.jsp
FinAid
http://www.finaid.org/scholarships/other.phtml
US Department of Education
http://www.ed.gov/students/landing.jhtml
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