Education & Careers » paying for school

10 Mistakes to avoid on the FAFSA

Suzanne Shaffer — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 13:00:22 +0000

In just a few short weeks (January 1), the 2011 FAFSA will be available online. Use that acronym, and parents and students start to cringe. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) causes fear and dread, much like the dreaded yearly IRS forms. But truthfully, the FAFSA is just an online form that you complete in order to qualify for federal financial aid and provide colleges with the information they need when determining your financial aid package.

However, it’s not as complicated as some might think; especially if you avoid these common mistakes:

Don’t assume that your family income is too high to file the form. Even though you might not qualify for need based aid, you SHOULD complete the FAFSA. Colleges use the FAFSA information to determine all kinds of aid, including merit-based aid (which is not based on need). Plus, you can’t qualify for government loans if you don’t fill it out and submit it.
Don’t wait to file the FAFSA until your taxes are done. The sooner you get the form in, the sooner the colleges will be able to access the information and utilize it to determine financial aid. If you are able to file your 1040 early, that’s great; but don’t wait until April 15 to complete the FAFSA. If you do, you could miss out on all the money available through financial aid—it’s always FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE!
Don’t enter the WRONG income tax figures. Provide the federal income tax you paid or will pay based on your 2010 federal tax return—NOT the tax withholdings on you and your spouse’s W-2 forms. If you don’t have your federal tax return ready early, use last year’s return. You can go back and file a correction if you need to.
Don’t leave blank answers. If the answer is zero, write “0” or N/A. If you leave blanks you might cause miscalculations and the form could be rejected.
Don’t forget to list the colleges. On the FAFSA form, you can include up to 10 colleges that you are applying to. By doing this, the schools will get your information directly when the form is processed.
Don’t type a wrong Social Security or driver’s license number. Check and recheck these numbers for accuracy.
List the most current marital status. You need to state what your marital status is on the day you sign the FAFSA, whether you are married, separated or divorced. This affects the EFC (Expected Family Contribution) formula.
Don’t inflate your education. If both parents didn’t GRADUATE from college, don’t list “college” as the highest education attained. Plenty of colleges treat applicants more favorably if they are considered “first-generation” college students.
Don’t assume you won’t qualify for financial aid because of your home equity or retirement accounts. The FAFSA doesn’t even ask if you own a house so the amount of home equity is irrelevant. The FAFSA does ask about second homes or real estate investments, however. The FAFSA doesn’t have questions about retirement accounts. You can have hundreds of thousands stuffed away in retirement accounts and it won’t hurt your chances at getting financial aid. It does however ask about cash, savings and checking accounts.
Don’t assume that the federal FAFSA deadline for filing is the same as your state or college deadline. Always check with the financial aid office. But again, the best advice available is to file EARLY, as soon as the form becomes available and you have the required information.

Avoiding these 10 mistakes will assure your FAFSA is completed on time and correctly.

Do you have any FAFSA questions? I would love to answer them for you. Please leave a comment here and I would be happy to assist you.

Put your hands on some college cash

Suzanne Shaffer — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 17:22:22 +0000

There is no denying the fact that college costs are rising. The good news, however, is that there is more financial aid available than ever before. You just need to know where to look for it and what to do to receive it.

Who qualifies for financial aid?

Many students and parents believe that only the very best students receive financial aid. But the reality is that most students receive some form of financial aid. Aid is awarded based on need and/or merit. Once you are accepted, the colleges put together a financial aid package that consists of grants, scholarships, work-study and student loans.

Does financial aid affect affordability?

Colleges publish the cost of tuition, room and board—the “sticker price”. But most colleges are more affordable than you might think. After grants and scholarships are taken into consideration, the net price the average undergraduate pays for a college education is significantly lower than the published tuition and fees. Financial aid reduces the actual cost you and your family will actually pay.

How do you apply for financial aid?

You must fill out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) in order to qualify for financial aid. Even if your family can afford to pay for college, complete the FAFSA because merit-aid is also determined based on this government form. If you don’t complete the form, the colleges can’t award you any money; this includes scholarships, student loans and federal grants.

Do deadlines matter?

Absolutely. College financial aid goes fast. The earlier you can get in your FAFSA application and all the other information that a college requires, the better your chances will be to receive a substantial financial aid package. Waiting until the last minute could mean that all the money has been dispersed and the only money you will receive will be in the form of student loans.

Although college “sticker prices” might deter many students from applying to college, there is financial aid available. You can lay your hands on some of that cash by applying on time and familiarizing yourself with the financial aid process.

Tuition Rises Long-Term: So Go to School Now!

Diane — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:26:13 +0000

As government faces greater deficits and tries to cut the budget one of the first things to receive cuts is education. The government is facing over 12 trillion dollars in debt so the government has decided to limit the budget spent on education. As a result teachers are receiving pink slips, class sizes are getting larger because fewer classes are offered, and the cost of tuition is rising as the government pays less and students are forced to pay more.

In the last 30 years the inflation of tuition and fees has increased by ten times according to College Board data. The cost of living has increased as well as medical costs but tuition has risen by far the most. And tuition is continuing to rise and in some states by double digits. If you think that you can’t afford to pay for college then think again. A degree is necessary in today’s world and ClassesandCareers.com can help you get started.

As tuition increases the number of students in debt does also and the number of low-income students at college decreases. Going to college is so expensive but you can’t afford to put it off. As times goes on the governments debt will increase and so will tuition hikes. Colleges and universities across the U.S. are raising their tuition. For example, UC campuses have raised their tuition by 32 percent and many others aren’t far behind. Can you imagine how much more tuition and fees will be in another 10 or 20 years?

Quit putting off your education. It’s been your dream for a long time to earn a college degree so why wait until tuition is even more expensive? Now is the time. Tuition has risen pretty steadily over through the past three decades. So don’t put off your education until you’re older and have more responsibilities and even more concerns about financing a college education.