Student Financial Aid

Student Financial Aid What High School Students & Parents Should Know Michael Turner: [email protected] What is Financial Aid?  Financial aid he...
Author: Muriel Park
18 downloads 0 Views 1MB Size
Student Financial Aid What High School Students & Parents Should Know Michael Turner: [email protected]

What is Financial Aid?  Financial aid helps pay the cost of attending college  Some financial aid programs are need-based  Some financial aid programs are based on other criteria – not need

1

Sources of Financial Aid  Federal government  New York State  Colleges – Institutional aid  Private sources

Types of Financial Aid  Scholarships – free money  Grants – free money  Work Study  Loans

2

Need-based Financial Aid  Need-based Aid  Your family’s ability to pay for educational costs is evaluated

Definition of Need Cost of Attendance (COA) – Expected Family Contribution (EFC) =

Financial Need

3

Cost of Attendance (COA) Tuition and fees Room and board Books and supplies Transportation Miscellaneous personal expenses

 Loan fees  Study abroad costs  Dependent care expenses  Expenses related to a disability

COA – EFC = Financial Need

Expected Family Contribution (EFC)

COA – EFC Financial Need

 Amount the family can reasonably be expected to contribute  Calculated with federal formula  Includes parents’ & student’s contributions combined  Stays the same regardless of college selected

4

Examples of EFC & Need College College College A B C $ 11,000 $30,000 $60,000 5,000 5,000 5,000

COA - EFC = Financial $ 6,000 Need

$ 25,000 $55,000

FAFSA Application

5

Start with FAFSA.gov

FAFSA4caster: FAFSA.gov

6

How to Apply for Federal Aid  FAFSA available after Jan. 1  File online: www.fafsa.gov  Worksheet includes built-in edits  Skip-logic for faster filing

 Check status, make corrections online  Check college’s:  Required application materials  Application deadlines

Federal Aid Eligibility FAFSA will request information on student’s: High school or GED completion program U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen status Social Security Number Selective Service registration, if applicable Colleges and Universities (Up to 10)

7

Parental Information Collected       

Parent/Stepparent marital status Parent/Stepparent 2013 earned income Untaxed income (e.g. child support) U.S. income taxes paid Household size Number in postsecondary education Real estate and investment net worth

Common Documents Needed  Social Security Cards  US Permanent Resident Card, if non-citizen  Student, Parent Income Tax Information  2013 Federal 1040/A/EZ, 2013 W-2  Can use prior year taxes as estimate

 Records of untaxed income  Such as child support received, interest income

 Information on cash, savings and checking account balances  Investments, including stocks, bonds, real estate  Excludes retirement accounts, value of primary residence

8

IRS Retrieval Tool

 Connects to IRS for

tax data of completed tax returns

 Electronic filers –

about 2 weeks after submittal

 Use for original FAFSA and corrections

Federal Student Aid Programs

9

Federal Aid  Pell Grant  Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)  Work-Study  Perkins Loan  Direct Stafford Loans  Direct PLUS Loan

Federal Pell Grant  Need-based grant  Award amount based on COA, EFC and enrollment status  Must maintain good academic standing  Up to $5,645

10

Federal Work Study  Campus-based  Not all schools participate

 Need-based program  Part-time work on or off campus  Students receive paycheck for hours worked, up to total award amount

 Cannot be deducted from tuition bill

Federal Student Loans  Perkins Loan  Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan  Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan  Direct PLUS Loan

11

New York State Student Aid Programs

Apply for New York State Aid

12

New York State Aid Eligibility To receive, a student must: Be a New York State Resident If dependent, Parents must also be NYS Residents Attend and be matriculated at an eligible school in New York State Meet other eligibility criteria for specific programs

NYS Student Aid Programs  Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)  Aid for Part-Time Study  NYS Scholarships for Academic Excellence  NYS Math & Science Teaching Incentive Program  Veterans Tuition Award

13

NYS Student Aid Programs  Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)  Undergraduates  Up to $5,000/year  Full-time and part-time study in NYS  Need-based grant  Calculated on NYS Income Tax information

NYS Student Aid Programs  NYS Scholarships for Academic Excellence  $1,500 and $500 awards to top scholars at each high school  High Schools select recipients

14

TAP Calculator: HESC.ny.gov

Institutional Aid Programs

15

Institutional Aid  Depends on funding at each college  College determines eligibility criteria for need-based and non-need-based programs  Academic, athletic, and other talentbased scholarships and grants  May require an additional application

CSS Profile  Application used by certain colleges to award institutional aid programs  Collects more detailed information  Application Fee, waivers available  Check with school to see if it is required  Available online on October 1st

16

www.CollegeBoard.org

Questions to Ask Colleges  If we are a high-need family, will the college meet our full need?  Are you need-blind or need-aware in your admissions process?  What is the financial aid philosophy of the college?  What if we have special circumstances?

17

Research College’s Financial Aid Website

Source: http://syr.edu/financialaid/datesanddeadlines/index.html

Net Price Calculators

18

Private Scholarship Programs

Private Scholarships  Thousands of programs with millions of dollars in funds available  Charitable foundations, businesses, religious institutions, civic and minority organizations  All have their own individual applications and requirements

19

Private Scholarships  Internet scholarship searches  Fastweb.com  Collegeboard.org  Scholarships.com

 Local library resources  Parents’ places of employment

Scholarship Myths  Searching and applying for scholarships is only the student’s responsibility.  You have to have financial need to get a scholarship.  Students have to have excellent grades, SAT/ACT scores to get a scholarship.  Scholarship searching is done during senior year of high school.  “It’s only $500, so why bother?”

20

Next Steps

After Applications are Filed…  Schools student listed on FAFSA receive an electronic record  Schools begin financial aid packaging process  Student may be required to provide additional documentation at this time

 When processing is finished, an award letter is sent to student

21

Financial Aid Award Letter  College award letter contains  Amount of federal aid for which students are eligible, including loan options  Amount of state aid for which students are eligible  Institutional aid

CAUTION!  Don’t pay a fee to file the FAFSA!  FAFSA and NYS TAP application are FREE  Contact the high school guidance office or the college’s financial aid office if you need help in completing the FAFSA

22

StartHereGetThere.org

StartHereGetThere.org

23

Questions???

24

Suggest Documents