So, you've filled out your FAFSA. Then what? Here is a short video from Federal Student Aid (FSA) that manages financial aid that helps students pay for tuition. It explains what happens after you have completed your FAFSA. The FAFSA is probably the most important piece of FA that you will complete.
If you have any questions about the process of obtaining FA or the process of filling out the FAFSA, contact your FA office at your school.
Monday, 25 March 2013
Monday, 18 March 2013
How to Fill Out the FAFSA
Below is a video made by Federal Student Aid (FSA) which is in control of the federal financial aid funds that students receive to pay tuition. The FAFSA is often the most talked about document that students have to deal with, and with good reason too. The first time you fill out a FAFSA, it may not be the simplest form to complete, but it's essential. In order to be considered for any other federal financial aid, you have to have a FAFSA completed. The FAFSA is without a doubt the most important element of the financial aid process.
Hopefully the video helped you understand the FAFSA a little more. You can always call the FAFSA help or your FA office if you need more information.
Hopefully the video helped you understand the FAFSA a little more. You can always call the FAFSA help or your FA office if you need more information.
Monday, 11 March 2013
What to Expect in Student Loan Repayment
Say you're getting out of school and you have student loans. What are you to expect? Below is a great video explaining what to expect when you are approaching graduation.
In most cases, Stafford Loans have six months of grace period before you have to go into repayment. However, there are situations where you might have already used your six month grace period. If you are not sure, you should always contact your servicer. While the school can assist you with many FA related questions, once you have graduated your best contact will be your loan servicer. They will have the most current and most specific answers to your individual needs.
The best advice anyone in financial aid can give you is if you have any problems or questions, contact your loan servicer as soon as possible. The worst thing you can do is put things off because often the problems will compound quickly, and usually the problems could've been avoided with a phone call.
In most cases, Stafford Loans have six months of grace period before you have to go into repayment. However, there are situations where you might have already used your six month grace period. If you are not sure, you should always contact your servicer. While the school can assist you with many FA related questions, once you have graduated your best contact will be your loan servicer. They will have the most current and most specific answers to your individual needs.
The best advice anyone in financial aid can give you is if you have any problems or questions, contact your loan servicer as soon as possible. The worst thing you can do is put things off because often the problems will compound quickly, and usually the problems could've been avoided with a phone call.
Monday, 4 March 2013
Taxes and the FAFSA
Each year, the FAFSA has to be completed for any time that a student will be enrolled in a college. The FAFSA is like the gateway to financial aid since you have to complete the FAFSA in order to obtain other grants, scholarships, and loans. Because of this, the FAFSA needs to be correct. Fortunately, students have the ability to correct it.
That being said, when it comes time to fill out the FAFSA, should you wait to fill out your FAFSA until you have your taxes? That will depend on your school. Schools with enrollment beginning in the fall usually require the FAFSA to be required a couple months earlier than July 1 (depending on the state). Schools with open enrollment through the year will allow you to fill out your FAFSA anytime before you start.
The problem is what happens when your school requires you to fill out the FAFSA no later than April 1, but taxes aren't required to be done until April 15. What do you do?
You have to perform an educated guess, or the best guess as to your tax information as you can. Think of how many exemptions you will have, use your W-2 information, estimate the tax. If you do this, however, you should go back and update your FAFSA to match what the tax information came out to be. Some people will put in the previous year's tax information as a guess, but the problem with this is there could be big differences that you aren't aware of or have forgotten about which can change your eligibility very quickly. So, it's best to guess as closely as you can. If you're at the open enrollment school, then you probably should wait to fill it out until you have your taxes completed. The exception to this is if you don't have your taxes done later than April 15; in that case, estimate but also complete your taxes as soon as possible.
The key is to have the correct information, so make sure you go back and double check.
That being said, when it comes time to fill out the FAFSA, should you wait to fill out your FAFSA until you have your taxes? That will depend on your school. Schools with enrollment beginning in the fall usually require the FAFSA to be required a couple months earlier than July 1 (depending on the state). Schools with open enrollment through the year will allow you to fill out your FAFSA anytime before you start.
The problem is what happens when your school requires you to fill out the FAFSA no later than April 1, but taxes aren't required to be done until April 15. What do you do?
You have to perform an educated guess, or the best guess as to your tax information as you can. Think of how many exemptions you will have, use your W-2 information, estimate the tax. If you do this, however, you should go back and update your FAFSA to match what the tax information came out to be. Some people will put in the previous year's tax information as a guess, but the problem with this is there could be big differences that you aren't aware of or have forgotten about which can change your eligibility very quickly. So, it's best to guess as closely as you can. If you're at the open enrollment school, then you probably should wait to fill it out until you have your taxes completed. The exception to this is if you don't have your taxes done later than April 15; in that case, estimate but also complete your taxes as soon as possible.
The key is to have the correct information, so make sure you go back and double check.
Monday, 25 February 2013
"So Once I Heard..."
"...That if I didn't like my financial aid package, I could negotiate for a better one. Is this true?"
This is a question that I've only heard a couple times. More often, instead of asking that question, the student or the parent just tries to negotiate. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Financial aid isn't like haggling in a pawn shop for a good price on a night stand that has some scratches and duct tape.
Financial aid amounts are determined by strict sets of guidelines given to the financial aid offices by the federal government. There is very little wiggle room as far as if the financial aid administrator is able to change the amounts of aid a student can receive.
The same goes for interest rates. The federal government determines the interest rates for their student loans, and there is nothing a school can do to change those. I once had a parent try to talk me into matching the Unsubsidized loan's interest rate in the PLUS loan. It's not possible. They are set amounts. Unlike home loans, car loans, and personal loans, there is no qualifying for a better interest rate since there is no credit taken into account. It is what it is.
When you are applying for a school, the school will try to give you the best financial aid package that they can. Remember that schools have different rules and different sources of financial aid, but also remember that your entry to the school will have them getting you the best package available to you for that school. They won't give you a bad one on purpose for two reasons: 1. they want to give you the best so you'll attend their school, and 2. the best they can give you is what their job is. They are only packaging you for what you qualify for that school.
It may not be what you want, but it's their best offer. Your only option is to check other school's financial aid packages. Some schools, you will find, will have different amounts. The other thing you have to consider is the degree you are going for and what you want to invest in it.
This is a question that I've only heard a couple times. More often, instead of asking that question, the student or the parent just tries to negotiate. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Financial aid isn't like haggling in a pawn shop for a good price on a night stand that has some scratches and duct tape.
Financial aid amounts are determined by strict sets of guidelines given to the financial aid offices by the federal government. There is very little wiggle room as far as if the financial aid administrator is able to change the amounts of aid a student can receive.
The same goes for interest rates. The federal government determines the interest rates for their student loans, and there is nothing a school can do to change those. I once had a parent try to talk me into matching the Unsubsidized loan's interest rate in the PLUS loan. It's not possible. They are set amounts. Unlike home loans, car loans, and personal loans, there is no qualifying for a better interest rate since there is no credit taken into account. It is what it is.
When you are applying for a school, the school will try to give you the best financial aid package that they can. Remember that schools have different rules and different sources of financial aid, but also remember that your entry to the school will have them getting you the best package available to you for that school. They won't give you a bad one on purpose for two reasons: 1. they want to give you the best so you'll attend their school, and 2. the best they can give you is what their job is. They are only packaging you for what you qualify for that school.
It may not be what you want, but it's their best offer. Your only option is to check other school's financial aid packages. Some schools, you will find, will have different amounts. The other thing you have to consider is the degree you are going for and what you want to invest in it.
Monday, 18 February 2013
FAFSA vs. Renewal FAFSA
"I got this notice in my emails to renew my FAFSA. What's a Renewal FAFSA? Is it different than a regular FAFSA?"
These are questions I heard every year. But to answer them, you have to remember how a FAFSA works. The FAFSA is only good for a certain period of time. It isn't good for your first year, but rather from July 1 of one year to June 30 of the next year. If your school year is during this time, then it's more coincidence than anything. Some schools don't start in August or September. Let's say you start in January. Then your FAFSA will still only be good until June 30 of that same year.
If you will still be enrolled after June 30, then you will need to complete the FAFSA that picks up July 1. You will receive renewal notices about this as early as January.
Actually, there is no difference between a FAFSA and a Renewal FAFSA. The only thing different is how much easier it is the second time. Not only will you have more experience filling out your second one, but because of your PIN, you'll probably have some of the information already completed for you. You will just have to update any out of date information and enter the new income information based on the new year's taxes.
But unless you are enrolled in a short program (typically a certificate), and are only enrolled in a period of time that begins no earlier than July 1 of one year and ends no later than June 30 of the next year, then you will have to fill out a minimum of two FAFSAs. And if you're in a longer program (like a bachelor's degree), prepare to fill it out four or five times. One easy assumption is that you will fill it out the same number of years you will be enrolled.
For more information about how many times you will have to complete a FAFSA, talk to your Financial Aid administrator. Also, keep in mind that any alteration in your length of program can result in the number of times you'll have to complete the FAFSA.
These are questions I heard every year. But to answer them, you have to remember how a FAFSA works. The FAFSA is only good for a certain period of time. It isn't good for your first year, but rather from July 1 of one year to June 30 of the next year. If your school year is during this time, then it's more coincidence than anything. Some schools don't start in August or September. Let's say you start in January. Then your FAFSA will still only be good until June 30 of that same year.
If you will still be enrolled after June 30, then you will need to complete the FAFSA that picks up July 1. You will receive renewal notices about this as early as January.
Actually, there is no difference between a FAFSA and a Renewal FAFSA. The only thing different is how much easier it is the second time. Not only will you have more experience filling out your second one, but because of your PIN, you'll probably have some of the information already completed for you. You will just have to update any out of date information and enter the new income information based on the new year's taxes.
But unless you are enrolled in a short program (typically a certificate), and are only enrolled in a period of time that begins no earlier than July 1 of one year and ends no later than June 30 of the next year, then you will have to fill out a minimum of two FAFSAs. And if you're in a longer program (like a bachelor's degree), prepare to fill it out four or five times. One easy assumption is that you will fill it out the same number of years you will be enrolled.
For more information about how many times you will have to complete a FAFSA, talk to your Financial Aid administrator. Also, keep in mind that any alteration in your length of program can result in the number of times you'll have to complete the FAFSA.
Monday, 11 February 2013
New 2013-14 FAFSA Award Amounts Announced
Just released recently was information about the new 2013-14 FAFSA. Must to the surprise of many an FA person, the Pell Grant will actually be going up. Originally, there had been talk of trying to find ways of keeping the Pell Grant maximum at the $5550 per award year. Now, it will raise $95 to a maximum of $5645.
However, keep in mind, this will be interesting in that seemingly almost any way you divide this new Pell Grant, almost none of it comes out exact. What I mean is splitting it into semesters and quarters and splitting into the less than full-time amounts.
For two full-time semesters, it's going to be $2823 for one and $2822 for the other. For three quarters, it'll split into $1882, $1882, and $1881. It's been quite a while since the Pell Grant wasn't split into even disbursements for full-time students (and for that matter, the less than full-time students).
You should also remember that until the award year starts, they can change things. It isn't likely, but a couple years ago, the Dept of Ed released the Pell Grant charts in January, then in April changed what some of the EFC's correlated to.
Speaking of EFC's, the other news is that the maximum EFC to still qualify for any Pell Grant funds went up for the 2013-14 FAFSA. This is good news for the borderline students. The 2011-12 FAFSA allowed an EFC to be slightly over 5000 in order to qualify for Pell Grant funds. The current 2012-13 FAFSA has an EFC cutoff of 4995, but the 2013-14 FAFSA will have an EFC cutoff of 5081.
However, keep in mind, this will be interesting in that seemingly almost any way you divide this new Pell Grant, almost none of it comes out exact. What I mean is splitting it into semesters and quarters and splitting into the less than full-time amounts.
For two full-time semesters, it's going to be $2823 for one and $2822 for the other. For three quarters, it'll split into $1882, $1882, and $1881. It's been quite a while since the Pell Grant wasn't split into even disbursements for full-time students (and for that matter, the less than full-time students).
You should also remember that until the award year starts, they can change things. It isn't likely, but a couple years ago, the Dept of Ed released the Pell Grant charts in January, then in April changed what some of the EFC's correlated to.
Speaking of EFC's, the other news is that the maximum EFC to still qualify for any Pell Grant funds went up for the 2013-14 FAFSA. This is good news for the borderline students. The 2011-12 FAFSA allowed an EFC to be slightly over 5000 in order to qualify for Pell Grant funds. The current 2012-13 FAFSA has an EFC cutoff of 4995, but the 2013-14 FAFSA will have an EFC cutoff of 5081.
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