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Financial Aid Application Time

As college application season is fully underway, it is important to learn about the primary financial aid applications and types of aid your student could receive. The two most common applications used by colleges across the US are the FAFSA and CSS PROFILE, and they need to be filed prior to each year the student plans on attending college. Both applications open on October 1, so prepare to get them started now.

As college application season is fully underway, it is important to learn about the primary financial aid applications and types of aid your student could receive. The two most common applications used by colleges across the US are the FAFSA and CSS PROFILE, and they need to be filed prior to each year the student plans on attending college. Both applications open on October 1, so prepare to get them started now.

The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is the standard form used by all schools to determine the amount of federal aid a student will receive. The FAFSA calculates the EFC (Expected Family Contribution), what the government considers a reasonable amount the family should be able to contribute to the student's educational costs whether or not a parent wants to contribute to their child's education. For the 2021-22 school year, you will file using prior-prior (2019) tax information. To make things simpler, use the integrated IRS Data Retrieval Tool which will pull your tax information to automatically fill out a lot of the form for you.

The CSS Profile (College Scholarship Search Profile) is used by around 150 colleges, primarily private, to determine eligibility for non-federal funding aka institutional aid. It is filed through the College Board online. This application uses prior and prior-prior tax year information. So if you are applying for 2021-22, you will use 2019 and 2020 information. Not sure if your college uses the CSS Profile? Check out the list of schools here and check directly with the colleges.

It is important to know that the earlier you file the CSS Profile and FAFSA, the more funding you may receive as some grants are given on a first come, first serve basis. Also, each state and college has their own deadline for when you need to file, and these often fall around the time the college applications are due. Start early and aim to have your financial aid applications complete two weeks before your student's first admission application deadline. You can actually submit them before you finish your college applications. If you are about to make a large purchase or make any significant payments, you should make them before updating your bank balance information. Other than that, do not delay completing your financial aid applications.

The CSS Profile digs a little deeper into your family's financials than the FAFSA. Some key differences are that it includes home equity of primary dwelling, family farms, value of small businesses, and for some schools, the non-custodial and/or stepparent income and cash value of life insurance policies. Before you begin, it is helpful to gather the materials you will need to complete the applications:

  • An FSA ID to sign the FAFSA electronically (you can apply for this special username and password online via  https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm and the student and the custodial parent will need separate IDs. The student needs to get their ID first.)

  • A College Board account to complete a CSS Profile – the student and custodial parent will share the login, if a non-custodial parent needs to fill out a separate application, you will receive notification after adding your schools to the list

  • Social Security Numbers

  • Federal Income Tax Returns, W-2s, and other records of income earned

  • Bank statements and records of investments

  • Mortgage statement

  • Records of untaxed income such as child support and interest income

  • List of schools student is applying to

Ensure that the information you have entered is accurate and complete to prevent any delays in the processing of your application. Make sure you have added any schools to which you are applying to the FAFSA and CSS Profile applications so that they receive the information. Filing the FAFSA is free, but the CSS Profile costs $25 for the application and first school and $16 for any additional. If you need to add colleges to either application later, you can always log back in and do that.

If your family's financial situation has changed for the current year and the tax information you must use for the application does not properly reflect it, it is important that you contact each of the colleges and inform them of your current situation. Examples may include hurricane loss, death in the family, loss of job or illness. For any questions regarding each college's financial aid policy and types of aid awarded, take a look at their website and feel free to reach out to their office.

Thinking of skipping the financial aid applications? While the FAFSA is primarily used to determine federal funding, some schools also use it to determine the distribution of their own institutional aid if they do not require the CSS Profile. A few schools also use the forms to help determine Merit Aid. Even if you think you will not qualify for additional aid, if you want to get any of the federal loans you still need to complete the FAFSA. And if you skip applying for aid one year and need institutional aid from the school in the future, you may have trouble getting it.

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