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FAFSA General Information
The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is the largest
step in the financial aid process. It is required by virtually all colleges
for students to be eligible for
need-based financial aid. The application is very thorough
and asks for extensive personal and financial information. The
FAFSA application should be completed according to the schedule presented
in the MyCollegeCalendar™ admission system.
Your parents will need to be prepared to:
1. Enter the student’s Social Security number and driver’s
license number (if any).
2. Estimate 2008 earnings from jobs and other sources.
3. Provide final, updated income numbers when your 2008 federal tax returns
are completed in February 2009.
4. Give bank statement information.
5. Give investment information.
6. Provide benefit information (including Social Security, veterans’ and
welfare benefits).
7. Provide other financial information.
The official deadline for submitting the FAFSA application is different
for each college; check the financial aid page on each college’s
website for the actual deadline. The deadline for the majority
of colleges is either February 1 or March 1. However, beware that
scholarships and grants are given out from “pools” of funding
on a first-come, first-served basis. If you wait until mid- to
late-February to complete and submit your FAFSA there could be little
or no money left in some scholarship “pools” because other
students have already been awarded financial aid from those “pools.”
Therefore, complete and submit your FAFSA as soon as possible after
January 1, 2009. You and your parents must complete the FAFSA in
January 2009 by using estimates of your assets and income earned in 2008.
After your parents finish their federal tax returns in early February
2009, use the final income numbers on their tax returns to make corrections
to the FAFSA. |
