1on1 FAFSA Navigation (cont.)
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You will need the following information:
- Your Social Security Number and High School Diploma and Parents’ SSNs if you are a dependent student (see below).
- Your previous year’s Federal tax information or tax returns (1040, etc.), including W-2 information, for yourself, for your spouse if you are married, and for your parents if you are a dependent student (see below).
- Your current bank statements, business and investment mortgage information; business and farm records; and stock, bond and other investment records for yourself (and for your parents if you are a dependent student).
- Any foreign tax return or tax return from Puerto Rico for yourself (and for your parents if you are a dependent student).
- Your previous year’s untaxed income records—examples include IRA deductions, child support, and veterans noneducation benefits for yourself (and for your parents if you are a dependent student).
- Federal Student Aid PIN. If you do not have a PIN, you can apply for one at www.pin.ed.gov
- Once you’ve gathered the above preliminary information you can get your estimated federal student aid eligibility information early by filling out the FAFSA4caster. An estimated EFC is calculated using the data you submit on the FAFSA4caster.
If you are satisfied you’ve done your best to provide accurate and complete information submit the information in the online FAFSA process in the proper deadline period (usually January- June of the year you are applying for financial aid) and you will receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) which summarizes the information you submitted on FAFSA and provides you with your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculated using the Federal Methodology formula.
Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is the number that’s used to determine your eligibility for federal student aid. The EFC is not the amount of money that your family must provide. Rather, you should think of the EFC as an index that colleges use to determine how much financial aid you would receive if you were to attend their school.
This is a rather convoluted process and takes some time to become familiar. I recommend that you start by going to www.studentaid.ed.gov and begin exploring. You will eventually come to all the information I summarized above and learn a lot along the way! Good luck and feel free to call me and ask questions as they come up. I’ll give my best to answer or refer you to someone who can.