WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID, FAFSA TIPS, AND WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. Harford Community College Office of Financial Aid

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1 WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID, FAFSA TIPS, AND WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Harford Community College Office of Financial Aid

2 Financial Aid consists of funds provided to student and families to help pay for postsecondary educational expenses. Need based and merit based WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID

3 There are many sources of Financial Aid Federal Government States Colleges and Universities Private Sources Civic organizations or places of worship Employers SOURCES OF FINANCIAL AID

4 SOURCES OF FINANCIAL AID

5 Largest source of financial aid Aid awarded primarily on the basis of financial need Must apply each year using the FAFSA More info at: studentaid.gov Federal Student Aid Facebook Page FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

6 Federal Pell Grant (17/18 Max is $5,920) Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Federal Work-Study (FWS) Federal Direct Student Loans (Direct Loans) Subsidized ($3,500/year- first year) Unsubsidized ($2,000/year-first year) Federal PLUS Loans (Up to Cost of Attendance) FEDERAL AID PROGRAMS

7 Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant (IASG) Teacher Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant OTHER FEDERAL AID PROGRAMS

8 Residency requirements usually apply Award aid on the basis of both merit and need Use information from the FAFSA and/or state applications Applications vary by State MD- Must do FAFSA by 3/1/2018 Some awards require separate application Review all state aid in 411 Handout MDgo4it.org MD Higher Education Commission MHEC MDCAPS- site to accept state awards STATES

9 Award aid on the basis of both merit and need Aid may be gift aid or self-help aid Use the information form the FAFSA and/or other institutional applications Review College websites for institutional aid sources Deadlines and application requirements vary by institution Check with each college or university May need to complete CSS Profile through College Board COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

10 Foundations, businesses, charitable and civic organizations, places of worship Deadline and application procedures vary Begin researching private aid sources early High School Counselor Alternative Loans OTHER AID SOURCES

11 Companies may have scholarships available to children of employees Companies may have educational benefits for their employees EMPLOYERS

12 HOW IS AID DETERMINED

13 Direct costs- tuition, fees, housing Indirect Costs- travel, food, books, transportation Direct and Indirect costs combined into COA Varies widely from college to college WHAT IS COST OF ATTENDANCE

14 EFC is determined by completing FAFSA Parent and Student information EFC is the number that s used to determine your eligibility for financial aid. Stays the same regardless of college WHAT IS EXPECTED FAMILY CONTRIBUTION (EFC)

15 Cost of Attendance (COA) - Expected Family Contribution (EFC) = Financial Need School 1 School 2 COA $10,000 $65,000 - EFC $48,000 $48,000 = NEED $0 $17,000 WHAT IS FINANCIAL NEED

16 FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID FAFSA

17 The best way to complete the FAFSA is early, online and without any mistakes. FAFSA is a standard form that collects demographic and financial information about the student and family. Many states and colleges use FAFSA to determine eligibility for nonfederal aid funds that may have early deadlines and limited funding FAFSA will use 2016 tax info State of Maryland deadline is March 1, 2018 APPLY EARLY

18 Online applications are easier to complete because it uses skip-logic to only ask relevant questions. Online applications will be processed faster and will likely be more accurate because the FAFSA website is designed to catch common errors. Online FAFSA has Help and Hints on side bar on every page. FAFSA Pre-Application Worksheet will help you collect and proofread information for your application before you submit it. (A copy is in your folder) APPLY ONLINE: FAFSA.GOV

19 Parent and student should register for FSA IDs ahead of time. Your child must create his or her own FSA ID. You can not create one for your child. We recommend that you provide an address and mobile phone number when you register. Please note that the address and mobile phone number cannot be associated with more than one FSA ID. CREATE AN FSA ID

20 Obtain FSA IDs for one parent and student. Can do this now! Write down your ID and password. FAFSA4caster Gives you an estimate of EFC ID never expires. Use for access to other government aid sites too. CREATE FSA ID

21 Your FSA ID serve as your electronic signature throughout the federal student aid process. Do not share your FSA ID with anyone. Parent and student should create their own FSA ID. Do not create for each other. Keep your FSA ID in a safe place. You will need the FSA ID to renew your FAFSA form each year and to access federal student aid information online. Provide an address and mobile phone number when you create FSA ID. Same address and mobile phone number cannot be associated with more than one ID STUDENTAID.GOV/FSAID

22 Your Social Security Number (name used on Social Security Card) Your driver s license (if any) W-2 Forms from two years prior (2016) and other records of any money earned You (and/or your parents ) Federal Income Tax Return from two years prior (2016)-IRS Form 1040,1040A, 1040EZ Untaxed income record for two years prior (2016) e.g., payment to tax deferred pension and savings plan, tax exempt interest and child support received in 2016 INFO YOU WILL NEED TO DO FAFSA

23 Records of any grants, scholarships, and fellowship aid that was included in your or your parents 2016 adjusted gross income (AGI) Current bank statement Current business and investment mortgage information, business and farm records, stock, bonds and other investment records Documentation that you are a U.S. permanent resident or other eligible noncitizen if applicable INFO YOU WILL NEED TO DO FAFSA

24 START A NEW FAFSA AT FAFSA.GOV

25 Go to fafsa.gov and click Start a New FAFSA Enter the FSA ID or Student s Information You will need to choose the year you d like to complete If your child will be entering college between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2019 select FAFSA Form FAFSA FORM

26 The FAFSA form is the student s application, not the parents. When the FAFSA form says you or your, it s referring to the student. Pay attention to whether you are being asked student or parent information. IMPORTANT REMINDER

27 IRS DATA RETRIEVAL

28 When you apply online, you will be given the option to retrieve using IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) DRT simplifies the application process, helps reduce errors and lowers you chances of being selected to verify the information on your FAFSA. Tax information will be retrieved and will automatically populate in the corresponding questions although it will not be viewable on the applicants end. RETRIEVE YOUR 2016 IRS DATA

29 New in You will not see actual info transferred You will get a confirmation message Items transferred will say: Transferred from the IRS IMPORTANT NOTE

30 AVOID COMMON ERRORS

31 Leaving blank fields: Too many blanks may cause miscalculations and an application rejection. Enter a 0 or not applicable instead of leaving blank. Using commas or decimal points in numeric fields: Always round to the nearest dollar. Listing an incorrect Social Security Number or driver s license numbers. If your parents do not have Social Security Numbers, list Do not make up a number or include a Taxpayer Identification Number. COMMON FAFSA MISTAKES

32 Failing to use your legal name: Your name must be listed on your FAFSA as it appears on your Social Security Card. Don t enter nicknames or other variations of your name. Entering the wrong address: Don t enter a temporary address as your permanent address. DEMOGRAPHIC MISTAKES

33 Entering the wrong federal income tax paid amount: This amount is on your income tax return forms from two years prior (2016), not your W-2 form(s). Listing Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) as equal to total income from working: AGI and total income from working are not necessarily the same. In most cases, the AGI is larger than the total income from working. Incorrectly filing income taxes as head of household: If there is an error in the head of household filing status, the school will need an amended tax return to be filed with the IRS before paying out aid awards. INCOME MISTAKES

34 Listing marital status incorrectly: The Department of Education wants to know your marital status on the day you sign the FAFSA. If you are in a legally recognized same-sex marriage, you will need to provide your spouse s information as well. Listing parent marital status incorrectly: If your custodial parent has remarried, you ll need to include the stepparent's information on the FAFSA. If you have two parents in a legally-recognized same-sex marriage, you ll need to list both parents (one as Parent 1, and one as Parent 2) Failure to list both parents if they live together: If both your legal parents (defined as biological or adoptive parents)live in the same household, you are required to list both parents on the FAFSA even if they are not married. MARITAL STATUS- FAMILY SIZE MISTAKE

35 Failure to report unborn children: If you have a child that will be born before or during the award year and you will provide the child with more than half of his or her support, count that child as a member of the household. Counting parent as student: The student completing the FAFSA must count himself or herself as a member of the household attending college during the award year. Parents are not counted in number in college on student s FAFSA FAMILY SIZE MISTAKES

36 Failing to register with selective service: If you are male, aged 18 to 26, you must register with Selective Service. Failure to register will make you ineligible for federal student aid SELECTIVE SERVICE MISTAKE

37 Forgetting to list the college: Obtain the Federal School Codes for the colleges you are applying to attend. HCC s Federal School Code is SCHOOL CODE MISTAKES

38 If you or your child forgot your FSA ID, you can retrieve it Make sure you and your child don t mix up your FSA IDs-this is the most common error and why it s imperative for each person to create his/her own FSA ID and not share it with anyone Make sure the parent who is using his/her FSA ID to sign the FAFSA chooses the right parent number from the drop down menu. You can always go back to the demographics section and check SIGN AND SUBMIT TIPS

39 If you have multiple children who need to complete the FAFSA form, you can use the same FSA ID to sign FAFSA forms for all of your children. You can also transfer your information into your other children s applications by choosing the option provided on the FAFSA Confirmation page. MULTIPLE CHILDREN IN COLLEGE

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41 Check the Help section ( of the FAFSA website or call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at FEDAID ( ). The Department of Education provides frequently asked questions about the FAFSA, and FAFSA on the Web Live Help, a secure online chat session that allows you to ask questions of customer service representatives. Studentaid.gov HCC, Financial Aid Office, or Finaid@Harford.edu Follow Harford Community College Admissions Facebook page GET HELP

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