8Should I apply for aid even if I don't think I would qualify?
P Definitely. While many people hate the paperwork involved, you really should file a FAFSA even if you don't think you're eligible for federal assistance. Why? Because many non-government aid programs use the FAFSA in order to determine your eligibility for the scholarships, loans, and other programs they offer. Of course, the FAFSA is also used to find out if you qualify for federal loans. Applying for Federal Student Aid Programs using the FAFSA is free, so there is no good excuse for not applying.

8What is a SAR, and how do I read it?
P The Student Aid Report (SAR) is a four-page detailed explanation of the information you supplied on your FAFSA. You will receive your SAR anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks after completing your FAFSA (the shorter time period is for those who file their FAFSA online. The paper version takes six weeks). The SAR is used for three purposes. First, it is a means of conveying important information about your application for federal aid. Second, it tells you your Estimated Family Contribution (EFC). Finally, it can be used to make changes to your application information.

Read Part 1 of your SAR carefully. It will tell you (among other things) whether or not you may be eligible for the Pell grant, or whether you will be required to submit additional documentation to your financial aid office (this is usually worded as "you have been selected for a process called verification...").

Part 1 also contains a listing of all the information you supplied on your FAFSA. Go through each item carefully to ensure that it is correct. While the process used to scan and interpret your form is very good, it is not error-proof, so sometimes, even if you filled out the FAFSA correctly, you may find errors. If you need to make corrections, do so on Part 2 of your SAR.

Part 2 of your SAR lists your information under two columns. The first column reports what your FAFSA currently shows, and the second column provides a space to make corrections. After making your corrections, copy Part 2, and then mail *Part 2 only* back to the address indicated on the SAR. HELPFUL HINT: The address is printed close to where you must sign Part 2.

Notice the 5-digit number on the middle to upper right hand side of the first page of the SAR. That number is your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is the calculation arrived at by processing your FAFSA information. The EFC is the amount of money the Department of Education thinks your family can afford given your household size, state of residence, income, and assets.

8How is my aid determined?
P Colleges use the processed data from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and/or the CSS Profile to determine your eligibility for financial aid. Whether you complete the FAFSA or the Profile, the basis for determining your award is the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) determined by your household, demographic and financial data. The EFC is a measure of your family's ability to pay for college based on student and parent income and asset information, your state of residence, household size, and number of household members in college.

The school you attend establishes a Cost of Attendance (COA). The COA includes tuition, room and board, fees, and estimated living expenses including books and supplies. Financial need is an official term for how much need-based financial aid you're eligible for. Your financial need is calculated by subtracting the EFC from the COA.

To put it simply, the equation used is:

COA - EFC = Financial Need

In order for you to receive need-based aid, your Cost of Attendance must be greater than your Expected Family Contribution. The financial aid office at your school will use the need-based resources they have available to try to meet your Financial Need.

Here is an example to demonstrate:
Sally filed her FAFSA online on January 15. On February 10, she received her Student Aid Report (SAR). The EFC on her SAR is "01200" (which means $1,200). Her school has a COA of $18,000. Using the formula above Sally figured out that her Financial Need is $16,800.  The financial aid office at Sally's school used this information to construct a financial aid package for her that looks like this:

$5,000        Institutional Grant
$3,500        Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan
$1,600        Federal Work Study
$1,550        Federal Pell Grant
$1,000        Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
$1,000        Federal Perkins Loan
Total aid:    $13,650

That means Sally's need for financial aid (after subtracting the EFC) is $16,800. Since the financial aid office was only able to meet $13,650 of that, she has an unmet need of $3,250. Unmet need, a common occurrence in financial aid packages, is the difference between cost of attendance and the total financial aid package. In plain language, what that means to Sally is that in addition to the EFC of $1,200, she will also have to contribute $3,250 for a total of $4,450.

8Is it true that you can get a better financial aid package by bargaining with the financial aid office?
P There are some schools that will match aid packages offered by other schools, and there are a few schools that engage in leveraging (adding discretionary or merit-based funds to the aid packages of the more talented applicants). But the majority of schools (especially the most competitive ones) do not negotiate. However, if there are any unusual family financial circumstances that you feel have not been taken into consideration, write a letter to the financial aid office at each school telling them of the circumstances. Be sure to include copies of any relevant documentation. When applying to a school, be sure to ask about any merit aid programs that require a special or separate application.

8When I apply for federal student financial aid, does my financial information become public knowledge?
P Absolutely not! There are very strict privacy laws governing the release of student information, including any information submitted on financial aid forms. The only people who will see your financial aid forms are the Federal processor and the financial aid administrators at the schools. Nobody else can see your financial information without your expressed written permission.

8Will applying for financial aid hurt my chances of getting into school?
P Applying for financial aid does not affect your chances of admission. Most schools practice need blind admissions, in which they ignore your financial circumstances when deciding whether to admit you. They then try to meet the full demonstrated need of all admitted students. If a school does look at your financial aid application in conjunction with your admissions application, it is generally to ensure that they are enrolling a class that is socio-economically diverse. Some schools with very competitive programs use this tactic.