What Is An FAFSA
If you are a high school student entering into college for the first time or a non-traditional student joining the academic world for the first time, then you are faced with the problem of having enough money to pay for your college education. How do you pay for college? Financial aid for students is the number one academic concern that can keep a lot of people out of school when in reality it does not need to be this way. There are ways to go to school and get the money you need to do so. But first you will need to become familiar with the FAFSA.
FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid and is the paperwork from the Department of Education that determines if you are eligible for financial aid and how much money you will get. It provides them with information on your income and is the only way that you will be eligible to receive a Pell Grant and some student loans.
When filling out the application, you will need some information about yourself. Obviously, you will need to supply very important personal information, such as your name, address, school of choice (up to three that will receive your report), social security number and your previous year’s tax information. The tax information is used to determine how much you make and how much money in Pell Grants you will be able to receive.
Pell Grants are free grant money from the United States government that you do not have to pay back. It is awarded based on your financial need. This is the best way to help pay for school since you do not have to worry about accumulating student loan debt. Granted, you will probably still need to take out student loans to help finish paying for your expenses but the Pell Grant can lessen the debt load.
Once the FAFSA is filled out you will receive a Student Aid Report in the mail within a few weeks. The SAR will detail how much money you are eligible to receive and will also let you know when the estimated disbursement dates for the money will be. If you are late filling out the necessary paperwork, then your money could be delayed until after school starts. That is not a good thing. If you know that you or your parents make too much money to qualify for a Pell Grant, then still fill out the paperwork to see if you qualify for student loans. If you need help filling out the forms, then visit your college’s financial aid office.