Take These Three Easy Steps to Receive Student Aid for College
By: Matt P | Posted: 31st July 2007
If you're planning for college, completing and submitting your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (or FAFSA) is the all important first step in finding a way to pay for your college education. Still the top source for college funding, the Federal government pays out more than 80 billion dollars of student aid per year as grants, work-study programs or loans. To get your piece of the pie, you'll want to submit your FAFSA application as early as possible.
The FAFSA application process has an undeserved reputation as a being difficult to understand and hard to complete. This impression may have been fostered in part by third-party fee-for-service providers that have made a business of helping applicants complete the necessary forms. However, the application process is much easier than its reputation and the Federal government has extensive online help to guide you through the three-step process. Also, the government charges no fees of any kind. The FAFSA application is free to all.
You'll want to kick off Step One of the FAFSA application process by applying for and receiving your own personal identification number, or PIN. Your PIN makes it possible to apply for student aid online, a process the government has streamlined and made as easy as possible. You can also use your PIN to sign your FAFSA application online and access and correct information contained in your Student Aid Report, or SAR. The SAR is the report you'll receive once your FAFSA application has been processed. It contains important information about you financial need, which ultimately determines the amount of aid you may receive.
Get your PIN at pin.ed.gov before you move on to Step Two of the application process. In this step, you'll actually complete and file your FAFSA application at FAFSA on the Web, the popular name for the website maintained at fafsa.ed.gov. Filling out your application online at FAFSA on the Web is a good idea because there are detailed instructions for answering each question in the application. The online process also catches any potential mistakes you make and prompts you to correct them. Filing at FAFSA on the Web is also the fastest way to get into and through the Federal application process. Most FAFSA applications are processed within just a few days of their filing date.
In Step Three of the application process, you'll receive your SAR, or Student Aid Report, approximately three to five days after filing your FAFSA application online, or in seven to ten days if you filed by mail. In addition to compiling the information contained in your FAFSA application, the report also determines your financial need, which is calculated by subtracting your Expected Family Contribution, the amount your family is estimated to be able to contribute to funding your college education, from the cost of attending a particular college or university. Once you receive your SAR, review it for any errors and once it's complete, contact the financial aid office at the college or colleges you're considering. The financial aid office will let you know the type and amount of financial aid a particular college is willing to offer.
The three-step FAFSA application process isn't difficult to understand or complete, but it is more involved than can be covered in a brief article like this. Fortunately, the government has prepared a comprehensive 60-page document that fully explains and guides you through the FAFSA process. Called "Funding Education Beyond High School", the document is available in PDF format from studentaid.ed.gov.
Matt Paolini works from home as a distance learner. Visit University of Pheonix or University of Pheonix online degrees for free distance learning info.
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Tags: third party, important information, piece of the pie, college education, billion dollars, grants, finding a way, service providers, free application for federal student aid, federal student aid, application process, federal government, personal identification number, student aid report, college funding