Published: Monday, January 11th, 2010
American College Planners
January 2010 Newsletter The FAFSA and Financial Aid Simplified If you think your family will not qualify for financial aid - keep reading! Everyone should file the FAFSA, and the time is now. EVERYONE FAMILY SHOULD FILL OUT THE FAFSA REGARDLESS OF INCOME LEVEL It's January and now is the time to begin filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2010-2011 academic year. American College Planners recommends EVERY family fill out the FAFSA regardless of income level. Many families believe they will not qualify for financial aid and so we want to help clarify what is financial aid and you how to best tackle the FAFSA. First, go to www.fafsa.gov and get your PIN number today! THE KEY TO THE FAFSA IS YOUR EFC The FAFSA is a Federal form which provides a snapshot of a family's financial situation to colleges. Whether it is true or not, the U.S. Government expects parents of dependent college students to contribute to college costs and this is called the Expected Family Contribution or EFC. If you have been to one of our workshops, you know how important it is to know your EFC before you file the FAFSA. It can help guard against accidental errors. If you need assistance calculating your EFC, we'll put you in contact with a volunteer at Info@AmericanCollegePlanners.org. Don't wait until your junior or senior year of high school to find out your EFC. Your EFC is a number you should know as soon as possible, even if your student is in grade school. The earlier you know how much you are expected to pay for college, the sooner you can form strategies to manage paying for college. THE FAFSA HAS BEEN SIMPLIFIED Many families don't complete the FAFSA simply because the form seems overwhelming. New this year, changes will ease the burden of filing out the FAFSA and even more time-saving changes will occur in 2011 due to feedback from families and the financial aid community. Prepare yourself for filling out the FAFSA by getting all of the documentation together and start with the FAFSA on the Web Worksheet to keep yourself organized. As soon as possible after January 1, fill out the FAFSA if your student will be attending college in the fall. Certain types of aid are given out first come, first served, and you want to be first in line. You can file the FAFSA even if your taxes are not completed. American College Planners strongly urges families to estimate income on the FAFSA if you do not have your W2's from your employer at this time. You can always update your information when you have the exact numbers. Be mindful of colleges' financial aid application deadlines as they may vary. Since colleges have a limited amount of aid available each year, missing a deadline could mean less aid.
MERIT AID VS NEED-BASED AID What happens next is information derived from your FAFSA by the Federal government is sent to the colleges you indicated on the FASFA form. After you are accepted to a college, you will receive an award letter which outlines all the types and amounts of financial aid the college is offering to you. The term financial aid refers to more than just student or parental loans. Financial aid also includes grants, scholarships, and works study. Some schools and states use the FAFSA to grant non-Federal aid. Grants and scholarships are obviously the best kind of financial aid because they don't have to be repaid. Nearly every student is eligible for some form of financial aid so it is always in your best interest to fill out the FAFSA. Financial aid is also further subdivided into two categories of merit-based aid and need-based aid. All types of financial aid can be divided in to one of these two categories and some student may be eligible for both types of aid. During our workshops we often hear from families telling us they won't qualify for financial aid because their income is too high. That may be true in some cases for need-based aid; however, merit-based aid is not dependent on income level so it is necessary to fill out the FAFSA each academic year. Your student will not be eligible for most merit-based aid, if they do not fill out the FAFSA. Your options are always to accept or refuse all or any part of your award letter. GET YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED If you have questions while filling out the FAFSA, refer back to www.fafsa.gov or contact your guidance counselor or a financial aid administrator at a college. There are many resources to find answers to your questions. Don't feel overwhelmed, help is out there! FINANCIAL AID TIMELINE - January to February: Fill out FAFSA
- March to April: College and universities send acceptance letters
- Mid-March to mid-April: College and universities send financial aid award letters
- May 1: Rough deadline for students to select a school
FINANCIAL AID NIGHTS January and February are the time when many area high schools put on financial aid nights directed at college bound seniors. Many of these presentations explain more about filling out the FAFSA and student loans at a time when a student is near graduation. While these sessions are quite valuable, American College Planners recommends parents of college bound students as young as seventh grade to attend an American College Planners workshop. We emphasize positioning students to the best college at the best price for long term success. Don't wait until your student is a Senior or even a Junior to begin to prepare for college because less can be done to help these students achieve college success. Let American College Planners provide guidance for all college bound students by attending one of our free workshops! Upcoming Seminars: Tell your friends! If you have seen a presentation, and would like us to come to your high school, please let your principal, guidance counselor, or PTSO know about us. You can see our upcoming seminars at www.americancollegeplanners.org/seminars.php.
Questions for American College Planners
Do you have a subject that you would like us to address in an upcoming newsletter?
Send questions or subjects to: info@americancollegeplanners.org Join us online!
|