Federal Student Aid tips

 

Answers to the 5 biggest questions parents and students are asking about FAFSA:

  What is FAFSA and how do I access it?

a.        FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Watch out for fee based services.  (fafsa.ed.gov vs. fafsa.com)

1. What are the important deadlines I need to know?

b.       January 1 ^st, 2013 starts the FAFSA filing season.

                                                         i.            File ASAP but don’t exchange speed for a lack of accuracy.

c.        March 10 ^th is the State of Indiana deadline, but…

                                                        ii.            Notre Dame is 2/15

                                                      iii.            Butler, Purdue, Indiana State are 3/1

                                                      iv.            IU and Ball State are 3/10.

                                                        v.            Check with YOUR institution to see if it is different.

d.       What if we don’t know what school yet?  Can submit up to 10 at once.  And add or subtract later.

1. What  should I do before I can get started?

e.       Create your PIN (pin.ed.gov) – signs electronically, used every year. Do not give it out to anyone.

f.         Gather your 2012 Federal Tax Return, Bank Statements, Investment account statements, Untaxed income (ex. Child support rec’d)

                                                      vi.            2012 tax estimates acceptable, initially.

1. What are some common mistakes?

g.        Form being filled out by the wrong people. Example, non-custodial parent or an independent student’s parent

h.       Name should match your Social Security card exactly.  Bill vs. William for ex.

i.         Social Security number mistyped

j.         Invalid information on the tax return and financials section

                                                     vii.            IRS Data Retrieval tool – starts 2/3/2012 – syncs info on the FAFSA with the Federal Tax Return, eliminating mistakes in transposing.

1. What if I need help filling out or filing the FAFSA?

k.        There are several free resources

                                                   viii.            From FAFSA.gov – live chat from 8-11 in the help section

                                                      ix.            Call them at 1-800-4-FED-AID

                                                        x.            Email them at federalstudentaidcustomerservice@ed.gov

                                                      xi.            Or contact a financial planning firm