College costs a lot of money. How are you going to pay for it? Colleges will expect you and your family to pay what you can. Then there are scholarships, grants, and loans to help you with the rest.

One essential in paying for college: COMPLETE AND SUBMIT YOUR FAFSA as early as possible after January 1 of your senior year. The FAFSA is your key to federal and state financial aid.

TYPES OF AID

College can be expensive. Don’t give up when you see the price tag. Financial aid is available to help you meet the cost of higher education. There are two types of aid:

1.  Gift Aid (does not have to be paid back.)
  • Scholarships: These may be based on merit or talent (like athletic scholarships) or on need.
  • Grants: These are usually based on need. You need to COMPLETE AND SUBMIT YOUR FAFSA to be considered for most grants.
2.  Self-help (needs to be paid back or requires that you work while in school.)
  • Loans: Money borrowed from the government or ganks, and must be repaid.
  • Work-study: Federal Work-Study is a need-based financial aid program that allows you to work part-time to help pay for college.

Aid comes from different sources: Federal and state governments, colleges and universities, and private groups and foundations. Tap into all sources of free aid—scholarships and grants—first. Then use low-interest government loans. Never pay for your education with a credit card!

HOW MUCH FINANCIAL AID WILL YOU NEED?
COAminusEFCequalsFinancial Need
Cost of Attendance (COA):  College expenses vary greatly. Each college estimates the COA by adding together: Tuition, fees, room and board, transportation, books, supplies, and other miscellaneous living expenses. - Expected Family Contribution (EFC): Using the information your family provides on the FAFSA, the federal government calculates your EFC (the amount you and your family are expected to be able to contribute toward college expenses). This is only an estimate.  The EFC is determined by family income, assets, and size. It takes into consideration your family’s living expenses and the number of family members in college. = Financial Need:  This is the amount of the financial aid award package that you need from the college. The award may consist of a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study.
DEPENDENT OR INDEPENDENT?

You may feel independent. Maybe you don’t live with your parents, or you know already that they don’t have any money to help with your college education. The federal government has a very specific definition of an independent student who can file the FAFSA without their parents’ income information.

To be an independent student at least one of the following must apply to you:

  • You were born before Jan. 1, 1987 (for the 2009-10 academic year).
  • You are married.
  • You have children and provide more than half of their support.
  • You have dependents (other than children or your spouse) who live with you and receive more than half of their support from you.
  • Both of your parents were deceased since turning age 13.
  • Your were a dependent or ward of the court since turning age 13.
  • Your were in foster case since turning age 13.
  • You are homeless or you are at risk of being homeless.
  • You are enrolled in a master’s or doctoral educational degree program.
  • You are currently serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces or are a veteran.

If none of these apply to you, you are a dependent student and you have to use your parent’s tax information to file the FAFSA.

Financial Aid Tools

Financial Aid Calendars
College Board » www.collegeboard.com/student/pay/scholarships-and-aid/23642.html
College Board » www.collegegold.com/calculatecost/payforcollegegantt

Financial Aid Calculators
FAFSA4Caster » www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov/f4capp/index/index.jsf
Finaid » www.finaid.org/calculators/quickefc.phtml

Financial Aid Planners
College Board » http://apps.collegeboard.com/fincalc/ep/wizard-home.jsp