College Financial Aid

Resources Help Families

‘Tis the season to be jolly, and for many families with seniors in high school, it is also the season to get busy with financial aid applications for college.

Experts at ACT offer the following information to help families find the resources they need to complete their financial aid paperwork.

The most important form is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA determines eligibility for student financial aid from federal programs. Colleges and universities also use the FAFSA, but may also require students to fill out additional forms. Families can begin submitting their FAFSA forms any time after January 1 when they have necessary income statements from the previous year to complete the form.

The FAFSA, available from high school counselors or at www.fafsa.ed.gov, collects information that is used to determine how much the family is expected to contribute toward the student’s education (Expected Family Contribution, or EFC). Families usually receive a Student Aid Report three to four weeks after submitting the FAFSA form. It will summarize the data reported on the application. Families can get estimates of what their EFC may be and the costs of attending specific institutions by using ACT’s Financial Aid Need Estimator at www.act.org/fane.

Families can find information on more than 600,000 scholarships totaling more than $1.6 billion at www.collegenet.com. This Web site provides a broad search of scholarships or a list of scholarships by category such as age, academics, ethnicity, interests, nationality, or sports. Students also can apply online for the scholarships. For additional opportunities, including local scholarships, please see your school counselor.

Financial Aid tips from ACT include: apply early for admission and financial aid; check with your college to determine if other financial aid forms are required; apply for scholarships and grants; look into work study programs; and surf the Web for financial aid information.

The following Web sites are also recommended: Financial Aid Need Estimator and financial aid information – www.act.org/fane; free scholarship search – www.collegenet.com; the Financial Aid Information page – www.ed.gov/finaid.html; free Application for Federal Student Aid – www.fafsa.ed.gov; College Scholarship Search – www.collegenet.com; and Scholarship scams – www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/scholarships.