Submit Your FAFSA As Soon As Possible

This is a reminder for the parents of college-bound seniors to submit their online FAFSA in the next few days. Parents need to keep in mind financial aid is given on a first-come, first-served basis from “pools” of money; waiting to submit the FAFSA may be harmful to your son or daughter’s potential for receiving significant need-based financial aid awards.

To complete the online FAFSA:
1. Go to Filling Out a FAFSA
2. Select the “2010-2011 FAFSA” in the “Select” box on the page lower right,
3. Click on “Next” in the blue arrow button,
4. Read the information about internet browsers and if your computer meets the system and browser requirements, click on “Next” in the blue arrow button (if not, click on the “CUSTOMER SERVICE” button to seek help).
5. To proceed with completing the FAFSA, enter your son/daughter’s personal information and create a password. Be sure to write down your password on paper for safekeeping.
6. Click on “Next” in the blue arrow button,
7. Complete the FAFSA application by entering your family’s financial information and submitting online. The online FAFSA should be signed electronically by both student and one parent by entering your FAFSA Personal Identification Numbers (PINs).
8. Before submitting the online FAFSA, print a copy of your summary information.

One-to-three days after the online FAFSA is submitted, you should receive a Student Aid Report (called the “SAR” or “E-SAR”) via e-mail from FederalStudentAidFAFSA@cpsemail.ed.gov. Be sure to check your bulk or junk mail because the SAR may be delivered to these folders.

The SAR is a summary of the information entered into the FAFSA. You should review your son/daughter’s SAR to make sure all the information listed is correct. An example SAR is provided.

Also, the SAR will show your son/daughter’s calculated Expected Family Contribution (EFC) based upon the financial information entered. The EFC is the amount of money your family is expected to pay for college expenses. The best possible EFC is zero, meaning your family is expected to pay $0 for college tuition, housing, etc.

The EFC is an indication of how much financial aid your son/daughter is ELIGIBLE to receive; it does NOT mean they will definitely receive large amounts of need-based financial aid. The calculated EFC will be used by federal and state governments and the colleges listed on your son/daughter’s FAFSA to determine the amount of need-based financial aid they are eligible to receive (NOT how much he/she WILL receive).

The EFC is shown on top of the first page (on the example SAR, the EFC is 3256. This means the family is expected to pay $3,256 toward college expenses).

If you have trouble with technical aspects of the online FAFSA (such as why it’s not working on your computer – not if you’re having trouble understanding the questions on the form or what answers to give), you can send an e-mail to get your questions answered at FAFSA on the Web Customer Service or chat online live with a FAFSA assistant (to chat live online, go to FAFSA on the Web Customer Service and click on small underlined blue letters, “Live Help” in the page center).

If you don’t receive your son/daughter’s electronic SAR within 1-to-2 weeks of submitting the FAFSA, call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) between 8 a.m. and midnight (Eastern Time), seven days a week.

For more information visit MyCollegeCalendar.org.