The Four Reasons To Apply For FAFSA
FAFSA. When your child is getting ready to go to college (or already in college or graduate school), it’s so important to submit the FAFSA application. Yet many people don’t. Often, parents think that they earn too much money, so they don’t bother to apply for financial assistance with paying for college.
Yet, there are many reasons to submit the FAFSA application. Here are four great reasons as to why it's so important to complete FAFSA even if you feel that your family will not qualify for aid.
If there is a chance that your student is going to need to take out some student loans, no matter how high your income or assets are, it's important for the student to fill out the FAFSA application to be eligible to receive those student loans. Freshmen can receive up to $5,500 a year in student loans through the federal government and these loans will typically have the lowest interest rate available.
If you are looking for your child to receive merit scholarship money, some colleges, not all, want to see that you have applied for need based aid first before awarding merit scholarships. Some colleges, with high sticker prices, may offer institutional need based scholarships to families to help offset the cost of the college’s costs.
If your child is interested in applying for a work/study program, they must do so on the FAFSA application by checking YES, that they are interested in Work/Study.
Lastly, FAFSA, can almost be compared to an insurance product. For instance, suppose that there's a downward change in your financial circumstances. Perhaps someone in your household loses a job or maybe there's a separation or a divorce or some other extenuating circumstance that results in a loss of income. With FAFSA already on file, it's much easier to go back to the college and have possible cost adjustments made based on the change in household income status. Therefore, it's good to plan in advance and have the financial aid forms on file.
As you can see, there are several beneficial reasons as to why it's so important to fill out the financial aid forms even if you don't think that your family will qualify for any need based aid.
If you have any questions or need any financial assistance planning for college, including financial aid, scholarships, student loans and specific circumstances including planning for Divorce & College, contact College Financial Prep. Find us online at www.collegefinancialprep.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/collegefinancialprep
Vicki Vollweiler, MBA, CDC, is the founder and CEO of College Financial Prep where they provide a full range of services and resources for clients as they prepare to minimize their costs for their children's college education. With her financial background, her desire to help parents reduce financial worries, and her life/divorce coach training, College Financial Prep helps families navigate financial aid, scholarships, student loans and college planning. The goal is for each client to be fully informed of options and opportunities so that both the student and the parent can make the best decisions for themselves and their family.