No–with a big assumption. The assumption is that you already know approximately how much you can afford and how much financial aid a college is likely to give you. That means that you have already used a calculator such as the College Board’s EFC Calculator to estimate your expected family contribution (EFC) and the college’s … Read more
Private education loans are loans to college students made by financial institutions such as banks and credit unions. The do not require students to complete the FAFSA and students receive the money directly from the lender. Many private loans appear to have lower interest rates than federal loans. However, these advertised rates are generally “best” … Read more
There are four types of federal loans. Three are loans to students and one is a loan to parents. The most common loan is the Direct Loan, formally known as the Stafford loan. These are direct loans to the student from the federal government. There are two types of Direct loans, subsidized and unsubsidized. Both … Read more
SAR stands for Student Aid Report and is what you receive after your FAFSA is processed. If you provided an email, you should receive a link to your SAR three to five days after submitting the FAFSA. If you submitted a paper version without an email address, it will take up to three weeks to … Read more
The Federal Methodology is the formula used by the federal government in calculating a student’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) which determines their eligibility for financial aid. Students receive their EFC by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and receiving their Student Aid Report (SAR). The Federal Methodology is used for calculating the … Read more
There are four major federal grant programs available for undergraduates: Federal Pell Grants Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG) Teach Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants All programs require students to complete the FAFSA. The Pell and FSEOG grants are need-based programs. The maximum amount you can … Read more
529 Plans are college savings plans operated by the state or educational institution. The main advantage of a 529 plan is that earnings are not subject to federal tax when used to pay for qualified education expenses. Contributions to the plan are not tax deductible. There are two kinds of 529 plans, pre-paid tuition plans … Read more
Just because a student is paying for all of his own expenses doesn’t make him an independent student for financial aid purposes. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has very specific requirements to qualify as an independent student. Students must answer “yes” to one or more of the following questions to be considered … Read more
It depends on which colleges you apply to. If you apply to colleges that use the FAFSA only for calculating financial aid, equity in your primary home is not considered. However, if you apply to schools that use the CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE, home equity is likely to be considered. Since each school decides if they … Read more
