Financial aid/FAFSA.
We all know that college can be expensive. This page will help you to navigate the various aspects of financial aid in order to help you get as much free money for college as possible!
Who Should File The FAFSA?Everyone planning on attending a community college or university should file a FAFSA! Many people are able to receive grant money and everyone is able to receive federal loans.
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When should I file the FAFSA?
The FAFSA opens on October 1st and must be filed by March 1st. You should file it as early as possible so you can receive your financial aid packages from schools earlier. You must file it every year you are planning to attend college.
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Why Should i file the fafsa?1. The FAFSA is a FREE application for FREE money.
2. A lot of people qualify for free money and you won't know until you complete the application! 3. Some schools, scholarships, or other government grant programs require students to file it. |
1. Your FSA ID (formerly PIN number)
2. Your Social Security number 3. Your parents' or Legal Guardians' Social Security numbers 4. Your parents' date/s of birth 5. Your parents' date of marriage or divorce 6. Your Alien Registration Card (if you are not a U. S. Citizen) 7. Your Driver's License (if any) 8. Your W-2 forms or other records of money earned 9. Your 2018 Federal Income Tax Return 10. Your Spouse's 2018 Income Tax Return (if married) 11. Your parents' 2018 Federal Income Tax Return |
FAFSA Information: Undocumented Students
Undocumented students are not eligible for federal aid but they can receive aid from colleges and private scholarships. Some undocumented students may even be eligible for in state tuition. Before filing the FAFSA, talk with the financial aid office at the college(s) you are interested in attending to learn how they would prefer for you to handle financial aid paperwork. |
FAFSA Information: Undocumented Parents
If the student is a U.S. Citizen but the parent(s) are not, the student is still eligible for federal aid. If this is the case, parents should use 000-00-0000 as their social security number on the FAFSA. Parents will then have to print the signature page and mail it in. Do NOT supply a fake or stolen social security number because the student's FAFSA will then be rejected. The FAFSA may also be rejected if the parent supplies a social security number or Tax Identification Number that is valid for work purposes only. |
"$2.3 billion = total amount of free federal grant money the high school class of 2017 did not receive because they did not file a fafsa."
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Common FAFSA Myths
MYTH: "We make too much money- my student won't qualify for aid." REALITY: There is no income cut-off for federal student aid. A student's aid eligibility is not strictly based on family income, other factors such as number of people in the household and number of family members currently attending college are taken into account. ALL STUDENTS who file the FAFSA are eligible for at least unsubsidized loans. MYTH: "My student will only be using scholarships to pay for school, so they don't need to file the FAFSA." REALITY: A number of scholarships, including many provided by individual colleges and by local community foundations, require students to file a FAFSA to be considered. MYTH: "My student will not be taking out loans so there's no reason to file the FAFSA." REALITY: Filing a FAFSA does not require that students and/or parents take out any of the aid offered to them. However, filing the FAFSA can give students access to federal grants (if the student qualifies) which do not need to be repaid. Moreover, many colleges use the information provided on the FAFSA to determine who will receive their grants and need-based scholarships. Without a FAFSA on file, aid is not available to students in the event that a situation changes and the student finds that they need the funds. MYTH: "I don't want to give out my personal tax information, so I'm not going to file the FAFSA." REALITY: The information you provide on the FAFSA is highly protected and is no different than filing or accessing your tax information through the IRS online. Fafsa.gov is a secure government website. Filing the FAFSA will not increase your chances of getting audited, and the information provided on the FAFSA is almost entirely the same as the information already provided to the IRS through filing taxes. |