Applying for Financial Aid

Completing the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is the first step you take to apply for financial aid. Financial aid includes federal and state grants, work-study programs, and student loans. Applying for financial aid is free. Be careful of mailings or Web sites that charge you a fee to complete and submit your FAFSA.

You can use a paper application or you can apply online. You can file your FAFSA for the 2002-2003 school year after January 1, 2002. The federal grant deadline is June 30, 2002. Most state grant deadlines are earlier than the federal deadline, so complete your application as soon as you can after January 1st.

There are seven steps, or sections, of the FAFSA. Step one collects personal information from you, such as your name, address, date of birth, social security number, driver’s license number, marital status, etc. You can transfer your personal data from your mentor portfolio to the FAFSA on the Web, the online financial aid application.

In step two you provide information about your income and assets. You must provide your adjusted gross income, total federal income tax liability, total earning from wages, business income or loss, farm income or loss, and the current balance of your savings and checking accounts.

Your answers to the questions in step three determines if you are a dependent or an independent student. Generally, you are considered to be a dependent student if you are under 24 years old, unmarried, you have no legal dependents, and you are not an orphan, ward of the court, or a veteran of the U. S. Armed Forces.

In step four, your parents report their income, if you are a dependent student. The information requested from your parents includes their adjusted gross income, federal income tax liability, total earnings from wages, business income or loss, farm income or loss, and the current balance of their savings and checking accounts.

You list the number of members in your household and the number of household members who are attending a college or university in step five.

In step six, you list the schools that you want to receive the results of your FAFSA.

Step seven consists of your signature, your parents’ signature(s), and the signature of the preparer (if prepared by someone other than you or your parents).

If you file a paper application, you’ll receive the results of your FAFSA in about four weeks. If you apply online, you’ll receive your results in about 10-14 days.