FINANCIAL AID
January 19, 2016 Financial Aid Night @ 6:00 in the W & L cafeteria.
February 13, 2016 FAFSA Super Saturday from 9:00 - 1:00 at the high school. Professionals will be able to help you complete the FAFSA.
Financial Aid Resources
Colleges and scholarship committees require the Free Application for Federal Financial Aid (FAFSA). All senior parents are encouraged to complete the form. Most colleges require the information contained in this form ofor loans, gransts and schoalrships. The forms are available online. Before completing the FAFSA online, you will need to set up a Personal Identification Number (PIN) by going online at www.pin.ed.gov. Please be certain to be using the government's FREE website (www.fafsa.ed.gov). Some other websites will ask for money to help you with the application.
For help completing the application go to www.studentaid.ed.gov/completefafsa.
To complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), you will need:- Your Social Security Number
- Your Alien Registration Number (if you are not a U.S. citizen)
- Your most recent federal income tax returns, W-2s, and other records of money earned. (Note: You may be able to transfer your federal tax return information into your FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.)
- Bank statements and records of investments (if applicable)
- Records of untaxed income (if applicable)
- A Federal Student Aid PIN to sign electronically. (If you do not already have one, visit www.pin.ed.gov to obtain one.)
If you are a dependent student, then you will also need most of the above information for your parent(s).
Who Is Eligible to Receive Financial Aid
Student Aid EligibilityEligibility for most federal student aid is based on financial need and on several other factors.
The most basic eligibility requirements to receive federal student aid are that you must- * be a U.S. citizen or an eligible noncitizen,
- * have a valid Social Security number,
- * register (if you haven't already) with the Selective Service, if you're a male between the ages of 18 and 25,
- * maintain satisfactory academic progress in college or career school, and
- * show you're qualified to obtain a postsecondary education by
- * having a high school diploma or General Educational Development (GED) certificate;
- * passing an approved ability-to-benefit test (if you don't have a diploma or GED certificate, a school can administer a test to determine whether you can benefit from the education offered at that school);
- * completing six credit hours or equivalent course work toward a degree or certificate;
- * meeting other federally approved standards your state establishes; or
- * completing a high school education in a homeschool setting approved under state law.
- * having a high school diploma or General Educational Development (GED) certificate;
- * passing an approved ability-to-benefit test (if you don't have a diploma or GED certificate, a school can administer a test to determine whether you can benefit from the education offered at that school);
- * completing six credit hours or equivalent course work toward a degree or certificate;
- * meeting other federally approved standards your state establishes; or
- * completing a high school education in a homeschool setting approved under state law.
The earliest that you can fill out the 2015-2016 FAFSA will be January 1, which is always the day that the new FAFSA is released. While you are waiting for the new application, you should obtain your FAFSA PIN. A parent and the student must each obtain a PIN, which will be necessary to electronically sign the FAFSA form and retrieve the family's financial aid records.
To prepare for the FAFSA's questions that you must answer when you see the actual financial aid application, you can download the FAFSA worksheet. The FAFSA worksheet for the 2012-2013 school year isn't available yet, but you can check out the 2016-2017 version, which is similar.
The bottom line: one of the best ways to cut the cost of college is to complete all the necessary aid forms and to make sure they are accurate and on time.
To prepare for the FAFSA's questions that you must answer when you see the actual financial aid application, you can download the FAFSA worksheet. The FAFSA worksheet for the 2012-2013 school year isn't available yet, but you can check out the 2016-2017 version, which is similar.
The bottom line: one of the best ways to cut the cost of college is to complete all the necessary aid forms and to make sure they are accurate and on time.