1. Financial Aid for College James Bowie High School January 15, 2013 Veronica Castillo Project Advance Facilitator (aka College Advisor) Bowie High School—College & Career Center Veronica.castillo@austinisd.org 841-4107

3. Types of Financial Aid ◦Grants: Money that is mostly awarded on the basis of need and DOES NOT have to be repaid. ◦Work Study: Programs of on or off-campus jobs for students who demonstrate financial need. Hours are limited. ◦Loans: Money that is borrowed that must be repaid with interest. ◦Scholarships: Awards that are based on need, merit, or achievement.

4. Financial Aid Terms FAFSA = Free Application for Federal Student Aid: Primary document used to determine eligibility for federal student aid programs that most colleges/universities require students to complete. PIN = Personal Identification Number : Your electronic “signature” that both student and parent(s) will need to use for signing off on every piece of documentation via internet. EFC = Expected Family Contribution : What the federal government will expect the family to contribute to the cost of education as they determine from your FAFSA. SAR = Student Aid Report: The report you’ll receive from FAFSA once your information is processed that gives you your EFC. Verification = Process where you must confirm information you provided on you FAFSA

5. What is Cost of Attendance (COA)? Direct costs - Tuition, Room, Board, and Fees Indirect costs - Books, Computer, Transportation, Personal Direct + Indirect Costs = Cost of Attendance COA varies WIDELY from college to college

7. A Student is “Dependent” unless s/he… Is age 24 Has a child whom he/she supports Has a dependent who lives with student and whom he/she supports Is Married Is a Graduate Student Is an Orphan or “Ward of the Court” Is a veteran of the armed forces

8. Financial Aid Timeline December: Gather materials needed January: (FAFSA opens) Collect tax documents February/March: Submit FAFSA March/April: Receive SAR & EFC April/May: Receive school financial aid packages April/May: Decisions & deposits May: Deposits & Graduation June: (FAFSA closes)

9. How to Prepare

10. Common Mistakes Forgetting to sign the application Using the wrong figures: Do not use your W2 form for the FAFSA, but use your Adjusted Gross income from federal tax return. Divorced parents should list only their own income and their current spouse’s income – NOT their ex-spouse’s income.

11. What you MUST know… You have to re-apply every spring for FAFSA If you are selected for verification, you most likely will be selected every subsequent year Financial aid dependency until the age of 24

12. Financial Aid Websites and Toll Free Number (English & Spanish) Federal Resources: http://federalstudentaid.ed.gov Texas Education Code & Other Statutes: www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/ Financial Aid & College Application Resources: www.collegeforalltexans.com/ Free Application for Federal Financial Aid: www.fafsa.ed.gov/ Texas Application for State Financial Aid: www.aie.org/state/TASFAhttp://federalstudentaid.ed.gov www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/ www.collegeforalltexans.com/www.fafsa.ed.gov/www.aie.org/state/TASFA (for non-US citizens) Texas Guaranteed Student Loan: www.tgslc.orgwww.tgslc.org Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board: www.thecb.state.tx.us/ Texas Education Agency: www.tea.state.tx.us/ Uniform College Application: www.applyTexas.org Planning for College: www.everychanceeverytexas.org Adventures in Education: www.aie.orgwww.thecb.state.tx.us/www.tea.state.tx.us/www.applyTexas.orgwww.everychanceeverytexas.orgwww.aie.org Toll Free Number for Financial Aid Assistance in English and in Spanish: 888-311-8881 Every institution is required to have a Cost Estimator/Calculator on its website! Don’t forget to use these!

13. To examine this info at your college: www.collegeboard.com FINDING COSTS ON THE WEB: To research your school’s data, you can use this website to gather information about financial aid. Select the school and then click on the “Cost and Financial Aid” tab to obtain the information you might need.

15. Scholarships Merit/Need/Achievement based financial aid Common types of scholarships ◦Academic ◦Athletic ◦Performance, e.g. Music, Theatre ◦Participation Do your research! ◦Deadlines ◦Requirements ◦Free scholarship searches ◦Beware of scholarship scams

16. Local Scholarship Searches https://succeed.naviance.com/bowie

17. Web-based Scholarship Searches www.fastweb.com is an example of a scholarship search engine www.fastweb.com

18. Beware of Scholarship Scams Beware of Scholarship Scams Watch out for the following claims: “For a fee, we provide a comprehensive list of scholarships.” “Billions of dollars of award monies going unclaimed.” “We have a money-back guarantee.” “We need your credit card or bank account number.” “We will do all the work.”

19. A special thank you to: Gail Braswell Financial Aid Supervisor Austin Community College Pinnacle Campus