How to Avoid The Biggest Blooper That Can

Seriously Reduce Your Child’s

Financial Aid Opportunities

Dear Parent, 

FAFSA. SAR. CSS Profile. Common Admissions Application. Priority filing...If all this sounds like Greek to you, you are not alone. When you apply for financial aid for your child’s college education, you enter an unfamiliar maze of jargon and double-talk that few people can interpret without specialized training. And all the specialized lingo makes it difficult to do the one thing you must do perfectly: Fill out all the financial aid forms correctly and completely. 

I see it all the time: Otherwise well-meaning, intelligent families leave out one vital piece of information or transpose a couple of numbers, and the next thing they know, their application is returned to them, or you pay more for college than you should because of the inaccuracy.  When these corrected applications are returned, they go straight to the bottom of the pile in the financial aid office. And, trust me, that’s not where you want your application to go.

Perhaps the biggest mistake people make when applying for college funding is failing to fill out all the forms on time, thoroughly and accurately. In the best-case scenario, this error can result in a delay in the approval and notification process, so you’re in suspense much longer than you need to be. In the worst-case scenario, paperwork errors can cause you to totally lose out on financial aid for one year. In between these two scenarios are the many, many families who simply don’t get as much funding as they could have received if they had only filled out the forms completely, correctly and on time.

    This subject is especially important right now, because January is the month when we will be processing your FAFSA—the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. So, here are some timely tips to help you coordinate with us the somewhat confusing and nearly always intimidating process of applying for financial aid 

            Timely Tip #1: Do It Now!

The priority filing date for all federal financial aid, and for most state and private college aid is NOW. We are updating all your financial information so we can process the FAFSA online during January/February. If you haven’t already filled out our request for updated financial information, don’t wait! Do it now! We can’t complete the FAFSA without it. This is essential because financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. The longer you wait, the less likely you will be to get the money you deserve. You may even completely miss out on financial aid if you delay. Many more colleges are having Financial Aid Closing Deadlines due to the increase in applications. Many of these dates are showing up as early as February! If you miss this date, you’re totally out of luck on receiving anything! 

If your child is applying to a private college or university, it’s essential for you to find out that institution’s filing deadlines for supplemental financial aid applications—forms that must be filled out in addition to the FAFSA. Most private colleges (not all) require what is known as the CSS Financial Aid Profile Application (more simply called the Profile Form). You must register with the College Board and pay a processing fee to obtain Profile forms. If you don’t already have it ordered, please call us today to see if your student’s universities need this form!  There are about 350 private colleges that require it and it’s faster to just call us at (602) 889-6500.

Other forms may be needed too, depending on the school and, often, how selective it is in doling out funds. The deadline for these supplemental forms varies from one school to the next, and may have already passed if you plan on applying to a Tier one school! So, as you can see, it’s never too early to get in the know about these all-important dates. Please call us with any questions. 

Timely Tip #2: Schedule a date to have your taxes done as soon as possible!

Filing an Income Tax Filing Extension isn’t an option during the college years, so you need to get them done as soon as possible. While we will be filing your financial aid forms using “estimates” of income and “actual numbers” on assets, sending us copies of this year’s (for last year’s income) tax return is very important! Your initial Award will be “conditional”, and your student “may not” receive their money until we update the SAR with final tax return data. 

Timely Tip #3: Make sure you have a “back-up school”.

            It seems elementary, but you always need to have a ‘Plan B” in selecting schools. Last year, over 90% of our clients attended their “first choice” school, but naturally some didn’t. For those, it was imperative that “Plan B” was in place. Each family needs to have a “for sure” school that we know will admit or accept him/her, and if everything falls apart, you can easily afford without any grants or scholarships. For most of you, it will be our “Big 3” in-state colleges. 

Timely Tip #4: Fill Out All The Forms You Need.

One or more additional forms may be required, depending on your family’s circumstances. For instance, if you own a business or an investment-oriented farm (a farm that you don’t live on), you probably will need to fill out a “Business/Farm Supplement” along with the Financial Aid Profile (for schools that require the FAP). The Business/Farm Supplement provides detailed information on the profits or losses of your business or farm.

And, if you are divorced or separated, your ex-spouse will be asked to fill out a “Divorced/Separated Supplement.”Those are just a couple of the possible additional forms. What supplements do you need to have completed? We can help you answer that question.

Timely Tip #5: Be Prepared To Receive The Student Aid Report (SAR).

About two weeks following our processing your FAFSA, you will receive your Student Aid Report (SAR) in the mail, or Email, from the U.S. Department of Education. This is the results of processing your FAFSA. Please don’t file it away, instead get it into our office immediately! We need to verify that all the information is correct, and if not, make any corrections. You will then start receiving your “Conditional Financial Aid Award Letters” from the colleges to which you’ve applied. If it is correct, then we will hold it and use it to send in your final Income Tax information when your taxes have been completed. In turn, that will produce your final SAR and allow you to receive your final “Financial Aid Award Letters”. At this point, we will determine if we need to appeal for an improved award from the schools.

I’ve shared some of the more important steps we need to take to increase your chances of getting the maximum financial aid that your family deserves. There are many, many other strategies that can give you the same results. Our goal is to take advantage of every opportunity to get the maximum amount of “funding” for you and your student!

That sums it up for another month. Until next month…Best Wishes!

Randy Stoltz, President