Paying for CollegePaying for College
James HammarAssistant Director of Financial AidUniversity of St. Thomas
Financial Aid Financial Aid BasicsBasicsBeyondBeyond&
The best thing you can do…
Outside scholarships
Free Application for Federal Student Aid
Special Circumstances
Agenda
Who pays for college?
Financial Aid Basics How America Pays For College 2013 : Sallie Mae/IPSOS
One less thing to worry about
Gives the student more time to focus on searching for scholarships and preparing for the FAFSA
Gives schools the information they need to start the financial aid process and keep students informed
The best thing Seniors can do…just apply!
Apply early.
Scholarships offered at the time of admission may be less generous the closer we get to the May 1 decision date.
Schools may have other opportunities that they only invite accepted students to apply for.
Students should not wait to apply because they are planning to retake a test.
Timing is everything
Apply early.
Do your homework
Plan to take/retake ACT or SAT test this summer
Talk to seniors about applying to colleges and searching for scholarships
Work over the summer and save for college
Visit every college you are seriously considering and meet with admissions and financial aid
What can Juniors do right now?
Financial Aid Basics
Most scholarships for high school seniors will have deadlines in Jan. – April
Start locally, think globally
Make college and scholarships part of every conversation you have with adults over the next year
Set realistic goals and stick to them
Outside Scholarships
Outside Resources
Set up a new, free email account to use for your scholarship search
Answer optional questions. This will yield more/better results.
Students should never pay for scholarships or services that “guarantee” they will find the student scholarships
Use college websites whether you plan to attend or not
Using Free Scholarship Search Engines
Outside Resources
Universal application
97% of students file online
Students must re-apply each year
Determines Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
Regardless of EFC, all students are awarded financial aid
Free Application for Federal Student Aid
The 2014-2015 FAFSA is now available online at www.fafsa.gov
Prepare taxes early and file electronically if possible
The student and one parent need a PIN to sign FAFSA electronically
Talk with schools about priority filing date and school code
FAFSA Continued…
PIN Site
www.pin.ed.gov
Fill Out Your FAFSA
Look up federal school codes
Print a Paper FAFSA
fafsa.gov
Taxpayers may choose to transfer their IRS data directly to the FAFSA.
Tax data should be available within 10 days after taxes are filed electronically with the IRS.
For best results :1.File taxes early and electronically2.Wait two weeks3.File FAFSA using IRS data transfer
If you file with estimated data you should update FAFSA using IRS transfer when possible.
Students should always try to meet each schools priority filing date. This is the only time it is advised they estimate.
It is more important that high-need students meet priority filing dates
Estimating will increase student’s chances of being selected for verification, slowing the whole process down
An award based on estimated information is really just an estimate. It is subject to change when actual data is available
Parents may not be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool if:
• They owe taxes
• They file as “head of household” or “married filing separately”
• They amended their taxes
• They filed a foreign tax return
Should you estimate?
Reporting Assets on FAFSA
•Investment real estate
•Trust funds
•Money market funds
•Mutual funds
•Certificates of deposit
•Stocks and bonds
•529 College savings plans
•Business value (if you employ 100+ people)
Only “unprotected” assets must be reported on the FAFSA
List your name and SSN on the FAFSA exactly how it appears on your social security card.
Don’t leave any fields blank. If entry is zero or none, enter 0.
Enter all school code(s).
Both student and one parent must sign a dependent student’s FAFSA.
Other FAFSA Tips
Types of Financial Aid
Scholarships (merit-based)
Grants (need-based)
Work-study (must be earned)
Student loans (must be repaid)
Education Tax Credits (claimed)
Financial Aid BasicsFinancial Aid Basics
How is financial need determined?
Special Circumstances
If you have a special circumstances, you should:
1.File the FAFSA using previous tax year data
2.Contact each school to talk about their process
3.Collect necessary documentation and provide copies to each Financial Aid Office.
4.The federal government allows schools to adjust FAFSA results for:
Changes in household size (divorce, death, etc.)
Medical expenses not paid or reimbursed by insurance
Private education expenses (K-12)
Reductions in income or unemployment of a parent
How student pay their share
Past earnings (savings) Every dollar saved for college could earn you a dollar after college in the form
of reduced interest payments
Current earnings (work-study) Working while in college should not be seen as optional. Whether on-campus
or not, working while in school helps students build valuable skills, connections, and a resume of experience.
Future earnings (student loans) For every $10,000 a student borrows while in school, they will repay
approximately $100 per month over a standard 10-year repayment.* If a first-choice institution costs $50,000 more than a second option offering an
equivalent degree, the student needs to earn $6,000 more in a starting salary for that degree to be ‘worth it’.
* Assuming a fixed interest rate of 5.0 percent
Net Price Calculators Estimates your EFC
based on a few questions
Estimates aid from the school and government sources
Compares cost and aid to provide “net price” or true cost to student/family
Useful planning tool but the estimate is only as good as data provided
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