This year,Uncle Sam will dole out more than $40 billion in grants and subsidized loans to more than 8 million college students. Claiming your share will require at least a few laborious hours of work on the Department of Education's "Free Application for Federal Student Aid"-the infamous FAFSA form. The Director of Financial aid Cheryl Storie at American University in Washington,D.C., advises all families to fill it out-even if they believe they earn too much to be eligible for assistance. "You truly don't know until you've tried," and a majority of states rely solely on the form to allocate their own funds-as do many colleges.
Most people fill out the paper version, but anyone with Internet access may submit the form electronically. Historically, 1 in 7 paper applications is returned because of mistakes; the electronic version (www.fafsa.ed.gov.)flags entries that seem inconsistent and prompts you for missing data. Addressing errors in this way saves considerable time and,in the college-aid game, time is money.
Natala Hart, director of student financial aid at Ohio State said most aid is given on a first-come, first-served basis-and some schools and states need the results from your form ("student aid report") by Mid-February.
It must exactly match the name on your Social Security card, so check before you use a nickname or a middle initial.
If you moved into a state just to attend college there, use your home address. This requirement is intended to ensure that your aid report gets to you.
This number, which is crosschecked with the Immigration and Naturalization Service,confirms that students who are not U.S. citizens are legal residents and thus eligible for aid. International studrents generally don't qualify for federal assistance but may be able to get aid from the state or a college.
You should list the student's status. Many parents filling out the form for their children mistakenly insert their own marital status. An incorrect answer can produce a distorted "expected family contribution." (Parents should use line 60.)
A new question asks whether a student has been convicted of possession or sale of a controlled substance. Depending on the offense and number of convictions, you may lose the right to federal aid for one year or more.
Report how far along you are toward a degree-in terms of year's worth of credits, not the number of years of college attended. Entering freshmen should fill in "1" for first year/never attended college.
Married or independent students should report their earnings and investments here. Parents can go to Step 4.
Answer "Yes" if the student has any children or people living under the same roof who receive more than half their support from the student.
This figure comes from the 1999 income tax return. To meet the deadlines of schools that award their aid in February and March, you can estimate here and correct your earnings later, after you've figured your taxes.
Enter wages, salaries,tips,etc. from a W-2 or Tax form. Do Not include untaxed contributions to 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. These are noted on Work Sheet A, Which is separate.
In general, about 35 percent of a student's own money is considered available to help pay for college. For perents, the proportion dips to 6 percent or less. None of a parent's assets are tapped if the family income is under $50,000. Many families find ways to draw down a child's funds before college.
The government no longer takes the value of a family's home into account. Include the current value of rental properties and summer homes, mutual fund holdings, and any other securities.
The greater the number of family members who are paying tuition, the higher the need for financial aid-and the lower the expected family contribution. To qualify as a college student, a family member must be carrying at least six credit hours per term and be pursuing a degree or a certificate.
You can request that up to six schools get your student aid report. Others can get electronic copies if you give them the code from your SAR.
Any parent or preparer who supplied information must sign the form, or it will be returned unprocessed. Those filling out an online FAFSA must send in a separate signature page; this attests to the form's accuracy and allows schools to receive your report. Save a copy of your application and work sheets, which schools may ask to see. And don't send your formn by fax or overnight express; anything other than regular post office delivery slows the processing.
