Five FAFSA Errors to Avoid
As of January 1, students can complete and file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA is required in most cases if you are hoping to receive federal, state or institutional financial aid for college. The form can be a bit intimidating, and each year some applicants make costly mistakes that result in lost financial aid benefits. To help you avoid these FAFSA filing pitfalls, we have compiled a list of things to avoid to ensure you receive the best possible financial aid package.
Not Submitting the FAFSA
Believe it or not, every year thousands of students fail to submit the FAFSA at all. Many students who do not complete the FAFSA feel their parents make too much money to qualify for any financial aid, but even those in low-income brackets are guilty of not applying too. Don’t make this mistake and let possible scholarships, grants and other forms of financial aid slip through your fingers. ALWAYS submit the FAFSA, starting with your senior year in high school, and file again each year you continue to be enrolled in college or grad school.
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How to Review and Compare Your College Award Letters
You’ve been accepted–and you were awarded money! From more than one school! So who has the best offer? Who provides the most financial aid? Now you have another factor– money–to consider when deciding on your best-fit college. Reviewing award letters can be confusing, so I’ve outlined the key steps to take to determine your best award package:
First Things First
When you receive your award letter, be sure to read it carefully and call the school’s financial aid office if you have questions or if your personal information–like your name, address, Social Security number–is incorrect. If your Expected Family Contribution is listed, check it against your Student Aid Report and ensure the numbers match. Read the rest of this entry »
TOP 3 College Financial Aid Myths—Busted!
In celebration of Financial Aid Awareness Month, today we are going to bust some of the most popular college financial aid myths. (Which ones have you heard before?)
Let’s get started:
Myth #1 – Star high school athletes always receive full-ride athletic scholarships for college
All of us have watched truly talented athletes play on our home fields and courts. It’s natural to assume these local stars are shoe-ins for scholarships. But the harsh reality is, there are stars in every high school in every state and the competition for limited college athletic scholarship dollars is stiff. Many of these athletes will play at the college level, but the NCAA only awards athletic scholarships for Division-I and Division-II schools (usually those large, competitive schools you see playing sports on TV). These scholarships are rarely “full-ride” scholarships, and only about 2% of ALL high school athletes receive these scholarships.
BUSTED! Read the rest of this entry »
College Financial Aid Advice From My Hard Lessons Learned
It’s hard for me to write about my personal experiences with college financial aid without turning into a depressing cautionary tale, but such is my story, and I know I am not alone.
The first undergraduate school I attended was a private university, and although I was awarded an academic scholarship for several thousand dollars, that didn’t really put a dent in the overall expense of the school. With me in college and my younger sister still in private high school, my parents took out some federal loans to help with my tuition. Read the rest of this entry »
College Financial Aid 101
First aid, Band-aid®, Hearing aid, Kool-Aid® … Financial Aid
Typically, “aid” gives some form of help, and financial aid is no different. (Fair enough, Kool- Aid® isn’t the most helpful beverage out there but it is good and makes me smile.)
Financial Aid is a pretty big topic which we will discuss in more detail in the future, but for starters, let’s get the basics down. Financial Aid is a broad term (think Vampire genre) that encompasses a few varieties (think Twilight, True Blood, Vampire Dairies). And the first step towards any type of financial aid is filling out the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Read the rest of this entry »
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