Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with fafsa

Help me fill out my FAFA

overglow — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 20:31:57 -0800

On my FAFSA, do I need to somehow include the fact that my friends let me stay with them without paying rent? So I'm filling out my FAFSA (I know, I know, I should have done it a while ago) and I get to the question 47g, which is mostly about clergy and the military who receive housing benefits as part of their stipend. But I'm wondering if that (or the question about any other bills paid on my behalf) would apply to my situation. Essentially, I didn't pay rent for any part of 2008 because I was visiting friends for a while and then because I was living with friends who let me stay with them without paying rent. I did pay for food and utilities, but the reason I didn't pay rent was because the house was full and so the landlord couldn't know I was living there. Also, I was just sleeping in my friend's (really large) closet. So it was probably illegal (at least in terms of the housing code/occupancy) that I was staying there. But my financial situation doesn't really make sense without considering that I wasn't paying rent. I want to be honest on my FAFSA but I really don't know if this applies. Do you know?

I got accepted into grad school. How to afford?

actionpact — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 12:32:12 -0800

I got a phone call telling me I got accepted to grad school. Trying to work out funding options before the package gets here and whether it's worth it (sorta complicated situation, details inside). Help? Okay, so I applied to one school-- the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. A bit atypical, but I applied for their Illustration as Visual Essay MFA, and I applied based on the program rather than just the degree, so hopefully that makes sense. I live in Arizona right now and work as a freelance illustrator; while of course I don't need the degree to do what I do, the program and all its networking and focus seem like they could really push my skills and help my career in the long run. I got a phone call yesterday telling me yes, I got accepted and I'll be receiving more details in the mail next week. Of course though, I'm impatient and want to get the ball rolling to find out any financial options I have.

Few issues:

1) While I know SVA does have some merit based fellowships, they don't have a heck of a lot of options besides loans. Everyone I've talked to has mostly loved the program but have admitted it's expensive. (For the record, it's about $30,000 for '09-10, and I believe tuition will go up a bit the next year.)
2) Unlike a lot of my friends, I went to school in-state and while I did have debts, it's around $17k versus the $80-100k they had. So for two years incurring maybe $60-65k of debt... I don't know. I hear that it's the good kind of debt though?
3) Due to my ~~laziness~~ frustrations with doing my taxes, I only submitted my FAFSA on the 6th of this month. The SAR says my EFC is $1961. (While my career has been growing, I'm still not well off yet) Which as far as I know means I have a lot of financial need. I don't know if that'll make much of an impact or what?
4) I just looked on the school website and found out that the optimal filing deadline for the FAFSA was February 1. Unfortunately, the website and catalog don't always match up so I wasn't aware and the site is not the best laid out. Which means I'm potentially screwed if there's no funding.
5) I do know one of my professors (she decided to send me an open copy for my file) wrote a glowing letter and specifically suggested if they had scholarships that they consider me for it. I don't know if professors usually do that, but it seemed really nice anyhow...
6) Since I'm self-employed I can't do tuition reimbursement or anything. I do have a part time job that offers college scholarships but it's only for undergrad.
7) There just aren't a heck of a lot of arts fellowships that I can find. But maybe I don't know where to look? I have checked out Fastweb and their brethren, but I never find much. I do know that Threadless has a scholarship, which I think I'm going to try for (SVA does match outside scholarships by 25%, so)...

So I'm wondering hivemind: what can I do in the meantime? I know next week I'll receive more details, but I'm trying to get the jump on alternate funding. Is there something I'm not thinking of?

And I'm also wondering your opinions re: the debt vs. value of going. I know it's a lot of money and while it's not going to get me one job that can justify it, the building upon my skills and the networking with a lot of industry people in New York could turn into a lot of jobs and different avenues of projects down the road. (For those who don't know, it's more of a practical vs. theory-based MFA) It seems like a good thing for me. So to me it seems worth it to invest in my future for two years (and then unless I did find some kind of steady employ there, I'd probably leave). But I can't tell if I'm nuts.

Thanks! I know this is a little more complicated than your standard grad school AskMe thread (I did read a ton of them too, so sorry if it retreads a common question), but hopefully it makes sense. I can respond to questions as needed.

I got into grad school. It is expensive. Help.

millipede — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 07:53:11 -0800

Please explain to me how financial aid for graduate school works, and thus help me navigate how I am going to pay for this. I was just accepted to U Penn's MCP program for fall 2009. Yay! (I haven't heard from other schools yet, so this isn't a U Penn-specific question, however). They told me that my financial aid package will be in the mail soon. I filled out a FAFSA a few weeks ago, and my estimated family contribution was about three times the amount of my total savings. Am I correct in assuming that (Tuition) - (EFC) = (the amount of need-based aid I can get)? If so, what do I do to pay for the rest? Do I have to wait until I know how much aid I'll be getting before I start the process of applying for, I guess, private loans? Why is my EFC so high (I didn't give it parental data, and I do save a fair amount of the not-that-much money I make)? Will my EFC change next year, since I won't have the job I currently have? Are most people able to realistically meet their EFC?

I am a complete financial aid neophyte, as I was fortunate enough to have a scholarship and parental support as an undergrad. I am so daunted and confused by this process. I imagine it will seem easier and less nonsensical once I know for sure where I'm going and how much federal aid I'll get, and I sit down with someone at a school and have it explained to me, but can anyone help me out a bit now? I feel like I've read everything the internet has to offer on this, and my head is swimming.

Where can I find a list of FAFSA deadlines?

duende — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:08:24 -0800

Where can I get a list of universities in the U.S, and when their application deadlines for receipt of the FAFSA (Federal Application For Student Aid) is due? I'm making general movements towards grad school, but I have no idea where yet. Some schools have a FAFSA deadline of January 31; which ones?

please hope me.

leotrotsky — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 17:19:18 -0800

FAFSAfilter: Received merit-based scholarship for law school at 1X,000 dollars a year. yey!. I filled out FAFSA, and my EFC is the same dollar amount as the scholarship. Does this mean my actual required contribution will be zero? Or are those FAFSA folks already taking my scholarship into account, so that I'll need to contribute 1Xk above and beyond the scholarship? googled unsuccessfully for the answer to this.

Born in the USA

chara — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 21:07:26 -0800

In the United States, if a college-bound student is under the age of 24 and s/he is a legal citizen, but his/her parents are undocumented/illegal residents, how does this student fill out the FAFSA? Also, are there other outside financial resources for these students that are private and not affiliated with the federal government?

(This is a hypothetical situation; I'm asking for the sake of my own curiosity).

Can has higher education?

Anonymous — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 04:09:34 -0800

How does one apply for financial aid at a public university as an independent party? This is to imply there will not be financial assistance from the parent/guardian; is there a way for their income to be excluded as criteria in evaluating aid eligibility? The situation is this. A student has been attending a public university for the past two years and has been denied financial aid from the government and university for both years. These applications included the parents financial records/income.

The situation has changed and the parent will no longer be financially able to assist in payment for tuition/housing for certain reasons and the student will be one their own. The income of the guardian is such that financial aid requests have been denied in the past but various obligations/expenses make supporting multiple college tuition bills unfeasible.

Is there a way for the student to prove financial independence from the parents and have their request evaluated solely on their income and financial situation? Would this simply require not being claimed as a dependent?

This is for a California university if this impacts the situation at all. This question at MeFi is meant to serve as the groundwork prior to meeting with the university financial aid office. I assume this it's not possible for one to just say their parents will not be assisting in paying for one's education since most everyone would do that. Any help is appreciated, MeFites.

Grasshopper and Ant

Corky — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 18:46:00 -0800

Will a single parent selling a home that has appreciated a lot and that has a very low mortgage payment, then buying a much more expensive house with all of the proceeds help make the child more (or less) eligible for financial aid (not loans) for college? My SO and his ex are the parents of a 17 year old girl, junior in high school. College plans are being discussed by everyone, although the parents haven't had a sit-down to talk about particulars since last summer. Each is obligated by divorce decree to pay for 1/2 of in-state tuition for the state college (in this case U of MD). FAFSA forms have not been completed, primarily due to a reluctance on the part of the ex to disclose her substantial income. (This came out in the only talk the two parents had on the subject, sometime last summer.) Mom did hire a college financial aid "expert" last summer. His suggestions included having the kid move in with Dad because Dad makes less money, and "goggling" for scholarships. (He really did misspell Google!) That was $500 thrown down the toilet, but I'm not sure that Mom isn't getting equally bad advice from someone else. Here's why...

Very recently, the ex put her house on the market. She and the daughter went house-shopping, and when we saw the girl next she was absolutely thrilled with the prospect of moving into a beautiful new home near her school. The new home would be in the $1,000,000 range... which nearly made me choke. The house the ex is selling is on the market for $619,000. The daughter wasn't supposed to share these details with me, but we're very close. She slipped up in her glee and when I asked her why they were thinking of moving, she said "Mommy thinks it would be bad for financial aid for her to have a really low mortgage payment and a large income."

I did some research, and I'm still confused. It appears that the income from my SO is not counted toward family ability to pay. It also appears that FAFSA doesn't take into consideration what they call "lifestyle choices" against a parents ability to pay. Several articles I read said that it is a choice to live in a nicer neighborhood or drive a newer car, and that those choices are not reasons to qualify for more aid.

My SO fully intends to help his daughter in every way, but we're limited by our not-substantial incomes. We own a modest townhouse, he drives a six year old Honda, we don't take expensive vacations or spend a lot of money on ourselves. We carry our lunches to work. A big night for us is a movie date in front of our tv. Plus, neither of us has any real money set aside for retirement. Our retirement plan is to pay off our house by the time he retires. Mom, on the other hand, drives a new Lexus SUV, has a timeshare in the Bahamas, takes vacations each year to Sonoma AZ, and other resorts, and has expensive tastes. She's passed some of these tastes on to the daughter, who wants to attend a presigious school. Columbia is at the top of the daughter's wish list. Columbia is very, very expensive. Mom is pushing for Columbia, among other pricey schools.

My SO and I still hope that she would decide to attend U of MD and perhaps get merit scholarships (she will graduate from an IB school with honors, has taken AP tests and scored 5s, and just took her SATs... no surprise that she has an excellent score). If she was able to finish her undergrad schooling without incurring a ton of debt, that would be great. Her dad would still set aside in her 529 plan any money he didn't have to pay for undergrad years. This would go toward her grad school costs. We have heard no such plans from her mother, and my SO hasn't yet asked her what her plan would be. We don't think she has any plans to set aside money for college out of the proceeds from selling her house... the daughter told us that "Mom is going to put it all on the downpayment so she can afford the monthly payment, but it will still be a lot more than she pays now."

It's a touchy subject. He doesn't know how much money she makes, and has never asked; she doesn't have a clue how much (or how little) he makes, and she's fiercely independant. Aside from this potential tension, we all get along fine. Really. We actually like each other.

So. For any of you who have faced anything similar, can you shed some light? I'm primarily concerned that the daughter isn't somehow penalized in the financial aid department because her mom is receiving lousy advice. If this new home purchase is being made to make the ex look poor on paper and it backfires, the daughter will have to pay the price. That price might mean taking out student loans, or attending a less expensive school. While a less expensive school is not the end of the world, I would hate to see this child saddled with a huge debt burden, while her mom gets to live in a $1,000,000 house and plead poverty. We've already told the daughter that the ultimate choice about where to go will be hers - her first adult decision. If she decides to be prudent and not go into debt, that will be a good thing. If she is forced to take out many thousands of dollars in loans because her Mom made a mistake... well, it's not too late to have that discussion and at least give Mom a contrarian opinion.

Grasshopper and Ant.

Not an easy task.

laughinglikemad — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 13:39:35 -0800

How do I help my brilliant - but broke - friend go to school? After her first day of kindergarten, her parents saw how excited she was about school, and knew they had to nip her future dreams in the bud. So they sat her down and said, "When you get older, you might hear about this thing called 'college.' You're not going." Her future has born that out.

She wants to go to school for psychology, and I'm looking for things like scholarships, programs, and paid internships that can help her get there. As is, she works as a cocktail waitress - which was a big step up from call centers before that - but she's lucky if she get enough sleep, let alone pay rent. Whenever anyone mentions school, she just gets depressed, because she sees it as totally unachievable. But she's also proud, which means that I can't chip in to a fund or anything from my meager savings.

She has a GED, having dropped out at the age of 16: she's taken a few community college courses back when she lived with her father, but she's on her own now. Her mother is mad - schizophrenic, and a horribly abusive person to boot - but has never been diagnosed. Her little brother is severely disabled, both mentally and physically - hunchback, bad heart, autistic - and my friend might one day have to care for him full-time (he's a minor, and living with his mad mother). She lives in Seattle, and has always lived in Washington.

I know that I can't solve her problems, but I still wanted to ask: a lot of opportunity comes from just knowing what's out there. Given those details, does she quality for any assistance - scholarships for children of crazy people, or family members of the disabled? Anyone out there who has overcome similar obstacles, to achieve similar goals?

Help me understand how to pay for my education.

Quidam — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 20:44:02 -0800

Please tell me, using layman's terms whenever possibly, everything you know about student loans. (backstory inside) Two years ago I graduated from high school, and proceeded to go to a college at a small, out-of-state school. My parents (at that point) were paying for my education. Earlier this summer, I decided to transfer to a bigger, in-state school. My parents are 100% not okay with this decision, and have effectively cut me off financially (or at least will stop paying tuition, housing, books, etc in the fall). I am more or less okay with this. I am willing to accept the financial responsibilities of this decision.

However, of course I still have to file as a dependent on the FAFSA, the problem being that my dad makes too much money for me to qualify for any kind of federal aid at all. Okay, actually, in the interest of full disclosure, I haven't filed a FAFSA (ever), because my dad has promised me all along that if I do I won't qualify for jack squat. Furthermore, because I applied so late, I'm too late to qualify for any kind of merit-based scholarships through the school (I do have a strong academic record).

So, if federal aid is out, and scholarships are out, it seems to me that my only option is to take out a private loan. The problem is, I don't know the first thing in the world about taking out a loan, because I've never had to until recently. I've looked here, here, and here in an attempt to do some research, but I'm totally lost and mildly overwhelmed as to how to proceed. How does one begin to compare banks and interest rates and know which one is the best option? How do I know how much money to take out? If I take out too little, can I take out more later? How long will the process take after I apply for a loan? What other factors should I be taking into account?

I'm just really pretty clueless about all this, and would love to not get myself in massive debt, if possible. Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance. :)

What would be the best way for me to pay for my degree?

mindless progress — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 19:05:24 -0800

I've decided that I want to start getting my life together by working on earning a degree in computer science. To do that, I'm going to start attending the local community college full time this fall, in order to cover some basic classes, and then transfer to full university later when I'm a bit more transfer-worthy. Now I need help figuring out how to best manage my money so as not to accrue too much debt in the process. Ideally I'd like to get as much financial aid as possible to cover this, but there are a few issues. Some background:
I'm 24 and want to go back to school. "Back" isn't quite right because the two previous times I've tried community college I've ended up flaking out and getting F's. That wasn't much of a surprise as I pretty much flaked out on high school and got F's then as well. Now that I've gone out and matured myself with some real life, I feel like I'm really ready to take on school again and go all the way.

As it stands I'm currently working full time 9 to 5. I've determined that if I'm really going to pursue this I'll have to devote myself to school full time; I just don't have the ability to manage school and work at the same time. Of course that means that I won't have any sort of real income and would need to get financial aid or something else to help cover school at living expenses.

At the moment there are a few problems with getting financial aid for this school year.
1) I decided too late in the year that I want to go back to school as the financial aid barrel is pretty empty and any scholarships I could get wouldn't be applicable until the next school year.
2) At the moment I make too much to qualify for any particular help with school. In order to get only school costs covered I would have had to quit my job about a month ago to show that I had financial need by the time school starts.
3) I recently found out that I have access to $22,000 in a trust fund. This really screws up the EFC (Expected Family Contribution) on the FAFSA and seems like it will prevent me from getting any sort of aid in the future.

My current plan is to take some money out of the trust fund to cover me through to the end of the next semester. After that I'm really at a loss for what to do. I'm not opposed to spending the trust fund money on school, but it seems a bit wasteful to spend it all on living expenses while I'm attending community college. I know a more responsible plan would be to keep working and save up money so I can really cover school, but I just feel like now is the time for me to really focus on moving forward with my life and dedicating myself to school. It really feels like I'm in a position that will let me do this, but I want to feel like I've got more than just the next five months planned.

So would I be better off just spending the trust fund money to get to "real" college and then relying on financial aid/student loans to see me through? Other than that I'm really at a loss for how to manage this.

Learning is EXPENSIVE!

CwgrlUp — Wed, 09 May 2007 18:32:34 -0800

StudentLoanHellFilter: No more sub or unsub fed loans. No help from FAFSA. Are we doomed to pay back student loans for the rest of our lives? My gf and I live together. She is still in college and has a couple years left. The financial office of the school has told her she is 'maxed out' on federal help (sub and unsub loans). Her parents make too much for her to get a Pell Grant. (and they are contributing nothing to us anyway)

For her to be able to declare herself independent for the FAFSA she has to be age 24 and up and/or married. (According to a FAFSA help desk person.) Well that's great and all but she's 22 and we're both female and our wonderful government doesn't allow us to marry.

SO: Question 1 - Any way around this FAFSA fine print so she doesn't have to show her parents income? Ideally I would like to 'claim' her because she goes to school and I work and frankly, I could use the help financially to help us fed and the lights on.

Question 2 - How in the hell does a single person make it through school without coming out a hundred grand in debt?!

TIA folks.

Unexpected windfall

hamster — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 11:27:28 -0800

My boyfriend recently received $25K as part of a settlement after his father's death, and he'll be filing the FAFSA for graduate school soon. This question begins to address some options, but I'm wondering how adversely he'll be affected by the influx of cash. How important a factor is the bank statement in determining his EFC?

Right now the money is sitting in his bank account. Does he have any options for investing it that won't count as assets? Does he have time to do this (I know the IRA option requires more time)? Does he have any favorable options for next year?

He makes about $37K a year, little else by way of savings, if that affects anything. Thanks in advance.

Financial concerns about attending law school.

Pontius Pilate — Thu, 28 Dec 2006 13:10:37 -0800

I will be starting law school next fall, and I have some financial concerns. I recently started a job that allows me, for the first time in my life, to put away a decent sum of money every month. I'd like to have this money available for living expenses, etc. during law school. However, I really don't want to be in a situation where I manage to save e.g. $15k, only to have to fork all of it over for my first semester's tuition.

My question is this: what do law schools consider fair game when it comes time to evaluate the student's financial need and expected contribution? In other words, I understand that if I write in my FAFSA that I have $15k in my savings account, I am expected to part with it in order to cover my tution. However, what if that money is in a Roth IRA? A non-IRA mutual fund? Money market account?

Any help would be appreciated.

FAFSA and Savings Bonds.

Anonymous — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 20:54:46 -0800

FAFSA-Filter: Help me deal with 150 savings bonds. I'm a 26-year-old unmarried man. Every week for the past few years, my fiancée and I have purchased a EE savings bond. We always split the cost 50/50, and every bond lists both our names as "co-owners." We have collected approximately 150 bonds. My name appears (as co-owner) on every bond, but half the money belongs to my fiancée.

Now I'm applying for financial aid to attend graduate school, and I need advice on how to treat these bonds when listing my assets. Aside from ripping open three years' worth of envelopes and plugging 150 different serial numbers into the Treasury website, how can I estimate their total value? Can I use the Savings Bond Earnings Report? And once I've calculated a total value, will I encounter trouble if I only report half that amount?

Thanks for any advice. It's difficult to find FAFSA help online that isn't geared toward kids. Selling the bonds isn't an option, nor is removing my name. I want to minimize my assets, obviously, but I don't want to be dishonest and risk being rejected.

Appealing independent student status from FAFSA?

empath — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 08:03:24 -0800

FAFSA help urgently needed. Filing for independent student status. My girlfriend was essentially abandoned by her father when she was 17. He ditched the family and ran off to Canada and left them to be evicted. She has lived entirely on her own from the age of 18, and has had almost no contact with her father since then. He's since been remarried. Her mother has been dead since she was young. She's currently 23.

When applying for FAFSA aid, the financial aid office told her she HAD to contact her father to get the forms filled out, so she did and he did fill out the forms. Now they're expecting a parental contribution of $5,000 which she has absolutely no hope of ever getting from him.

What can she do to get this decision reversed and file as an independent student?

FAFSA for idiots

cosmonaught — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 18:07:07 -0800

My girlfriend is getting ready to start grad school this summer, and is having a hell of time figuring out what needs to be done for financial aid. Obviously, time is running out. Her parents are very supportive, and will be covering her living expenses, but she is responsible for tuition and books, which she would like to do through student loans. She has received financial aid for her undergrad degrees, and currently has FAFSA on file for this year. She's trying to figure out what needs to be done so that she can receive loans for this summer, and how she should file for the 2005-2006 school year (and on).

The FA office for her new school has been completely unhelpful. They refuse to meet with her and keep giving her conflicting information over the phone (from the same person).

As I understand it, she gets to (has to?) file as an independent because she will be in grad school and will be 24 in May. She submitted FAFSA for 2005-2006, but was told it was rejected because it didn't contain income for herself (ahe hasn't been working while in college) or her parents (which wasn't included because she's trying to file as an independent).

I'm trying to help her work through this, but having been fortunate enough to not have had to rely on financial aid, I'm at a bit of a loss. Can anybody shed any light?