Not only is January the time to welcome in the new year, it is also the time of year that college-bound seniors and their parents need to think about filing for financial aid for the upcoming academic year. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the vehicle to do just that. The FAFSA, as the names states, is a FREE application and the document that anyone wanting financial aid should file. Students cannot be evaluated for federal need-based financial aid funds (including loans, grants, and work programs) unless a FAFSA is filed, thus it is recommend that everyone file the FAFSA, even if you are unsure about your eligibility. I recommended filing the FAFSA online by visiting the Federal Student Aid site to file the FAFSA at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov ~ the online process is the most straight forward and streamlined of the filing options available.
In order to file a FAFSA, both the student and the parent(s) MUST first request a “PIN” number. To do this, you can visit the Federal Student Aid site that I provided above. Parents and students both need to request their own pin number. Your PIN can be used each year to electronically apply for federal student aid and to access your Federal Student Aid records online in the future. After both a parent and the student have a PIN, you are ready to begin completion of the FAFSA, which you should complete by February 15th in order to meet priority filing deadlines.
The FAFSA is in the student’s name and social security number and requires that the student share income and asset information, demographic information, and the colleges they are interested in attending. In addition, parents will need to share their income and asset information. To help you better prepare for completing the FAFSA, there is a document check list on the FAFSA site provided above. Some of the key documents to have available include final pay stubs, completed tax returns, bank statements, and any other information pertaining to income sources during the previous calendar year.
In many cases, a family is not able to complete tax returns prior to the recommended FAFSA filing deadline of February 15th. Not to worry, a family can estimate their income on the FAFSA form (use your final pay stub of the year as a resource) in order to meet the deadline. After filing the FAFSA, you will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) which is essentially a confirmation and a summary of what you reported on the FAFSA. The SAR can also be used to note any corrections to the information that you originally provided (such as after you complete your taxes you can note any changes on the SAR and resubmit for processing).
The key is to apply for financial aid and the first step being to complete the FAFSA. The FAFSA is a standard form which utilizes a formula to analyze a family’s income and asset information to then determine their ability to pay for college. One thing is for sure, without submitting a FAFSA, a college cannot review a student for need-based federal financial aid funds, so it is recommended that everyone complete a FAFSA ~ the first step in the financial aid process.
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