FAFSA Student Aid

No, the FAFSA form and application process are entirely free. Students must ensure that they fill in the FAFSA only on the official Federal Student Aid website.

The FAFSA, or the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is a financial aid application that students and their parents must fill out each year in order to qualify for federal student assistance. In addition, some schools may require students to fill out a FAFSA to qualify for financial aid from the school. The purpose of this application is to give students a better idea of what type of federal student aid they are eligible for.

Federal Student aid can comprise several financial aid components such as scholarships, grants, work-study programs, assistantships, Federal loans, and other loans.

To apply for federal student loans, the student must meet all eligibility criteria of the FAFSA and fill out and submit the FAFSA form.

The FAFSA has the following eligibility categories under which students can apply. However, each category has specific eligibility requirements that will have to be met.

• Students From Military Families
• Students With A Parent Who Was Killed In Iraq Or Afghanistan
• Non-U.S. Citizens
• Students With Criminal Convictions
• Students With Intellectual Disabilities
• Homeless Students
• Students Who Are (Or Have Been) In Foster Care

Filling out the FAFSA takes time, but it is well worth it. In order to complete this application, students will need:

• Their Social Security number, which can be found on their Social Security card and previous tax returns.
• Their parent’s Social Security numbers, which can also be found on their Social Security cards and previous tax returns.
• The names, addresses, and phone numbers of the colleges and universities they plan to attend.
• The amount of expected family contribution, as determined by the federal formula.
• Checking account numbers and routing numbers for direct deposit.
• Federal tax information, which includes the student’s and parent’s Adjusted Gross Income from their previous year’s tax returns.
• Information about the student’s and parents’ cash, savings, and checking accounts, such as account numbers.
• Information about the student’s and parents’ investments in stocks, bonds, etc.
• Information about the student’s and parents’ real estate property, such as the address and mortgage information.
• The school’s Federal School Code, which can be found on the FAFSA form.

In order to apply for a FAFSA student loan, students must fill out the FAFSA application. If the student is completing this form online, they must not wait until the deadline to fill out this application since federal financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Then, students will be sent the results of their FAFSA application via email, or they can check their findings on the U.S. Department of Education website.

The main advantage of filling out a FAFSA is that students who filled it out will be eligible to receive a FAFSA student loan. In addition, students who fill out their FAFSA application will be eligible for certain types of financial aid, such as work-study programs, that students who did not fill out the FAFSA will not be eligible for.

The main disadvantage of filling out a FAFSA is that students who fill out the FAFSA will have their information sent to certain schools where they are applying for financial aid. This is because these schools require students to fill out the FAFSA in order to be considered for financial aid.

After filling out the FAFSA application, students eligible for federal financial aid should wait between one to two weeks before they receive a Student Aid Report via email or mail. This report is the school’s official notification of a student’s financial aid eligibility. Then, students can go to their school’s financial aid office to view or print a copy of their Student Aid Report.

No, but if a student is applying for federal financial aid, they must complete the FAFSA each year. Because the federal government uses this information to calculate a student’s financial aid eligibility, students must submit updated information if their circumstances have changed.

No. If a student is unsure of their own personal information, the FAFSA should not be filled out. In this case, a student should not submit their FAFSA application, which will be considered incomplete.

If the student wants to request a reconsideration, they will need to submit the Federal Student Aid Reconsideration Request form. This form should be submitted within thirty days of receiving their Student Aid Report.

No. Students should not attempt to fill out their FAFSA without help. The FAFSA is not an easy application to fill out correctly, and it can be very time-consuming if the student does not have proper help.

The FAFSA application is for U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and eligible non-citizens. In order to qualify as an eligible non-citizen, a student must be a permanent resident or fall under another eligible category within ‘non-citizen’.

 In some cases, students will have to report certain scholarships and grants when filling out the FAFSA. These scholarships and grants might include the Federal Pell Grant, Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant, and the College Access Challenge Grant.

The EFC is a number that determines a family’s ability to contribute to their student’s college education. This number impacts the amount of federal student aid a student will receive.

Yes, students and their parents can include themselves and their household members on the FAFSA. This can be helpful if a parent lives at home during college or if a parent who has never been included in the FAFSA suddenly becomes part of the household.

The federal government uses the information on the FAFSA to determine a student’s financial aid. Therefore, the FAFSA must be updated each year. If a student does not update their FAFSA application, they will lose out on financial aid opportunities.

No, students are not required to be enrolled half-time or full-time to qualify for the FAFSA student loan.

The Federal Student Aid package for a student can comprise of (a) Free money (scholarships, grants), (b) Earned money (work-study, assistantships), and (c) Borrowed money (federal student loans, other loans). Of these, only (c) needs to be paid back, as they are not free.

For the Academic Year 2021-22, the FAFSA form must be submitted by June 30. 2024. For the Academic Year 2024-2023, the FAFSA form must be submitted by June 3, 2024. Students must note that states and colleges have their own FAFSA deadlines. While the college deadline can be checked with the college one is applying to, the state’s deadline can be checked on the Student Aid website.