1. Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation
Financial Aid 101
Paying for College
Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation

2. Financial Aid Terms COA – cost of attendance; varies by institution
EFC – expected family contribution; number derived from the FAFSA and used to determine need based aid eligibility
FAFSA – Free Application for Federal Student Aid
FSA ID – usernames/passwords created by student AND parent to electronically sign the FAFSA
SAR – student aid report; summary of FAFSA information
Grant – free money based on need
Scholarship – free money awarded on the basis of merit, skill, or unique characteristic
Verification – random “audit” of FAFSA

3. Cost of Attendance Consists of direct and indirect costs
Direct costs are paid to the college
Indirect costs could include living expenses, transportation, etc.
There’s more to the cost of college than the basic tuition price. Your financial aid office will determine your Cost of Attendance (COA) based on several categories of expenses. Your COA may include both direct and indirect costs and will vary by school.
Direct costs are paid directly to the college and include things like tuition, required fees and room and board (if living on campus.)
Indirect costs are things like books and supplies, living expenses, transportation, etc.

4. TN Private; Out of State TN Private; Out of State
Cost of Attendance
2-yr Public
4-yr Public
TN Private; Out of State
Tuition/Fees
$4,083
$12,724
$44,496
Room/Meals
$4,210
$10,238
$14,962
Books/Supplies
$1,200
$1,598
$1,294
Transportation
$3,024
$1,664
VARIES
Miscellaneous
$400
$4,002
$3,902
COA
$12,917
$30,226
$64,654
2-yr Public
4-yr Public
TN Private; Out of State
Tuition/Fees
$3,801
$12,436
$43,620
Room/Meals
$9,926
$14,670

5. You can get an estimate of net price by using your college’s “net price calculator”

6. Financial Aid Sources Miscellaneous (Local) Institutional (College)
Federal (Pell Grant)
State (HOPE)

7. So why are we here… well, we are here to talk about college. Right
So why are we here… well, we are here to talk about college.. Right? And when I use the term “college”, Im not just talking about one specific type of school…The term college is a general one that encompasses a wide range of higher-education institutions, including those that offer certificate programs like a TCAT, two-and four-year schools both public & private (like Roane State or UT Knoxville) , as well as out of state schools (Like Norte Dame). (so whats a TCAT? I’m glad you asked –True story: My oldest son, super smart, graduated 5th in his class which is pretty good out of a class of 200 right? Wasn’t really sure what he wanted to do with his life… went to UT Martin and pretty much majored in “party 101”.. So long story short lost his lottery and really wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his life… Well Tennessee College of Applied Technology enters the picture or TCAT- they offer programs like Electro-Mechanical Technology , Drafting, Welding, and many many more. In 12 months my son completed the program and was immediately hired by Nissan. I wont lie.. Starting pay at Nissan is pretty nice… so anyway I love my TCAT Schools.. Simply because of the great relationship they have with Big business’s in the area
So we understand what a college is but how much does it cost? How much does it cost for one academic year at a TCAT, a community college, a four year state college, a private institution, or even an out of state college?

8. Free Application for Federal Student Aid
The FAFSA
Federal financial aid
State aid
Institutional aid
Scholarship programs
FAFSA asks you about
Income
Assets
Family size
Number of family members attending college
You will need to renew your
FAFSA every year while in college

9. 2019-2020 FAFSA Available October 1, 2018
(VERY IMPORTANT!)
Student AND parent will create FSA ID usernames/passwords (fsaid.ed.gov) to sign electronically
Student and parent will submit FAFSA using IRS Data Retrieval Tool to upload 2017 tax information

10. Watch out for scams

11. www.fafsa.gov (VERY IMPORTANT!)
Make sure you go to if you where to google FAFSA right now, you might get FAFSA.net or FAFSA.com… these sites are not FREE and you will be charged so make sure you go to the which is the FREE application for federal student aid.
(VERY IMPORTANT!)

13. Dependency Status Results
Log in to the FAFSA- Help for parents:
Only students may use their FSA ID to log in. Parents and others can start a FAFSA for a student by entering the student's identifiers. Parents and others can also work on a FAFSA form or correction the student started using the Save Key that the student made.

16. Dependency ?s 24 or older? Married? Master’s or Doctorate?
U.S. Armed Forces?
Veteran?
Children/dependent receiving ½ their support from you?
Since you turned 13, were both parents deceased, foster care, or ward of the court?
Emancipated?
Legal guardianship?
Unaccompanied youth who was homeless?

18. Common FAFSA Issues Income and tax reported as same number
Parent and student report same income

19. See..filling out the FAFSA is easy!
If you need help filling out the FAFSA, help is available!!
Find in-person help in completing the FAFSA at a TN FAFSA Frenzy completion event
Financial aid professionals will help you complete the FAFSA online
Find an event near you
Assistance also available at FED-AID
FAFSA workshop October 30th
@ ORHS

20. Federal Aid Pell FSEOG Work Study $596 - $6,095 (2018-19)
$596 - $6,095 ( )
0 – 5328 EFC Need based ( )
FSEOG
$100 - $4,000
Exceptional financial need
Work Study
Amount Varies
Typically paid to student

21. Federal Aid Subsidized Stafford Unsubsidized Stafford Parent PLUS
4.45% fixed ( )
Interest does not accrue
Unsubsidized Stafford
Interest does accrue
Parent PLUS
7% fixed ( )

22. Federal Loan Limits

23. Awards are made by the institution NOT the federal government
Student Aid Report (SAR) is generated with an Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
Valid SAR or Invalid SAR?
Selected for Verification?
Awards are made by the institution NOT the federal government
Awards will NOT be indicated on the SAR
Check the information on your SAR carefully and make any corrections
The school will use your EFC to determine the amount of grants and other aid you are eligible for.
The school will then send you a financial aid award letter, detailing the aid they will offer you

24. Understanding award letters
Read your award letter carefully
Meet all deadlines
What if it’s not enough?
Let’s talk about award letters.
Every award letter looks a bit different. This sample letter also shows the budget for this college. See pages 22 and 23 in the Opportunities guide for more information on award letters. You may also want to complete the worksheet on page 24 to help you compare award letters from different colleges.
Once you have been accepted for enrollment at any college, and have applied for financial aid by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and any other financial aid forms required by the college, you and your family will receive a financial aid award letter. This will detail the amount of financial support the college is able to provide for the upcoming year. You might receive the award along with your notice of acceptance. Some colleges make the awards available online. Check with your colleges to see how they will distribute the award letters.
Read the fine print
• Read your award letter carefully to ensure you understand all terms and conditions so you can decide if you want to accept some, or all, of the aid offered.
• Look for instructions for your next steps. You might need to complete additional paperwork, such as loan applications.
• Determine if grants or scholarships are renewable each year. If so, what are the conditions?
Be sure to meet all the deadlines and keep your college aware of any changing financial issues such as becoming unemployed, receiving a scholarship, or other financial issues or life events that did not exist at the time you completed your FASFA. The financial aid office may be able to adjust your award.
If after reading the award letter, you believe that the award and your family savings are not enough to cover all of your expenses, don’t panic! There are other options for getting the money you need to attend the college of your choice.

25. Scholarships & Miscellaneous Aid
There are lots of different types of scholarships and can be based on:
Grades
Sports
Nationality
Being short, being tall and many other qualities
Diligence and perseverance pay off when applying for scholarships
You actually have to look for scholarships. Even if you’re a great student, chances are you need to do some research to find scholarships. They’re unlikely to find you.
While a super grade point average and a strong resume or great athletic talent are helpful in getting scholarships, being a regular student may also qualify you for a scholarship.
Is your GPA offset by a strong focus on a particular talent, skill or volunteer activity?
Do you have great ideas of what you want to do with your life?
Are you in need financially or do you have strong connections to a particular community?
Are you the first in your family to attend college?
If so, there are scholarships you may qualify for.
A great tool is actually something you use every day: Google. Each year they publish their top 20 (legitimate) weird scholarships. You would be amazed at how many scholarships are out there that are not linked to academic major. There’s a Barbie scholarship, scholarships for redheads, lefties, short and tall people. Google is a great place to start searching for scholarships based on personal interests. Google your favorite hobby and the word scholarship. See what comes up.
Quality counts. A variety of extracurricular activities won’t stand out as much as focusing on something that you care about and being able to state why that activity is important to you.
When applying for scholarships, you may need to follow a different process than what you did to apply to get into college. You may be able to use an admissions essay but you‘ll likely need to gather different information for your application packet.
The competition for scholarships can be intense, especially for the big money. However, diligence and perseverance pay off.

26. Institutional Aid Ex.

27. Where do I start?!? High school counselor Family and friends
Religious, civic and community organizations
Private foundations
Military
Public library

28. Popular Scholarship Sites
So Finally, Private Aid- Private Aid is scholarships that could come from your local bank, your church, or from your community. How do you apply for these scholarships? Your best source is from your school counselor. She will either have the information posted on the school’s website or in her office. So _________ where do you post this type of information? So parents and students – please check out _______ and apply for anything and everything that interest you. (CLICK)

29. State Aid How do I apply for State scholarships?
At TSAC-We administer programs like the Hope Scholarship, TN Promise, the TN Student Assistance Award and several more beyond just those three. We will go over the TN Promise in a few minutes (it deserves a slide all by itself) All Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Program recipients must:
Be a Tennessee resident one year prior to application deadline; Sept.1 for Fall or Feb. 1 for Spring and Summer
Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid(FAFSA) online atwww.fafsa.gov
Enroll in an eligible postsecondary institution
Be enrolled in at least 6 hours
Never drop a course without talking to your financial aid office about how it may impact your lottery scholarship
eligibility
Award amounts for part-time enrollment will be prorated

30. HOPE Scholarship HOPE Scholarship GAMS Aspire Award
$1,500/$1,750 per semester
21 ACT/SAT OR 3.0 GPA*
GAMS
$500 per semester
29 ACT/SAT & 3.75 GPA*
Aspire Award
$250/$750 per semester
Parents AGI <=$36,000
*All courses calculated on a 4.0 scale per the Uniform Grading Policy

31. HOPE Renewal 24 attempted hour benchmark 48 attempted hour benchmark
2.75 cumulative GPA
24 attempted hour benchmark
48 attempted hour benchmark
3.0 cumulative GPA or
2.75 – 2.99 cumulative GPA & 3.0 semester GPA
72 attempted hour benchmark
96 attempted hour benchmark

32. HOPE Renewal
Student MUST maintain continuous enrollment (i.e. fall, spring, fall, spring)
Student MUST maintain enrollment status within a semester
If you begin a semester full-time (i.e. 12+ hours), you must finish semester full-time
Never drop a course without talking to your financial aid office about how it may impact your financial aid

33. Certificate/ Diploma TCAT
Other State Aid
Wilder- Naifeh
$2,000 per academic year
Certificate/ Diploma TCAT
TSAA
$1,000 – $4,000 per academic year
0 – 2,100 EFC February 1
Ned McWherter
Up to $6,000/ academic year
29 ACT & GPA* February 15
*All courses calculated on a 4.0 scale per the Uniform Grading Policy

34. High school seniors in Tennessee may apply for the Tennessee Promise scholarship
Two years of tuition-free attendance at a community or technical college in Tennessee
Last-dollar scholarship, meaning it will cover costs of tuition and mandatory fees not met from Pell, HOPE, or state assistance awards.
Students will be paired with a partnering organization and provided with a mentor who will support them during the college application process.
If we want to have jobs ready for Tennesseans, we have to make sure that Tennesseans are ready for jobs, and there is no smarter investment than increasing access to high-quality education.
~ Governor Bill Haslam 

35. TN Promise Checklist
Apply to the Tennessee Promise program at by November 1, (TSAC is working toward compatibility with all browsers)
Complete FAFSA at by February 1, 2019
Attend spring mandatory meeting as coordinated by partnering organization
Complete 8 hours of community service between November 2, 2018 – July 1, 2019

36. TN Promise (1 semester) Examples A B C Tuition $2,250 -$3250 -$1,500
HOPE/Pell/TSAA
-$3250
-$1,500 $0
Gap
$750
TN Promise $0
Tuition
$750 $0
$2,250 $0

37. 50+ available majors with Pathways
Outline of required courses to follow
Start at any of 13 TN community colleges
All TN public universities & 21 private universities accept Pathways
Guaranteed transfer of credits
Combine with TN Promise to save half the cost of your bachelor’s degree

38. Other Information Academic Common Market CSS Profile
Fee Discount Program

39. Senior Year Checklist Fall Semester Spring Semester
Take and retake the ACT/SAT
Apply to several colleges (admissions, institutional aid, etc) and utilize their net price calculators
Student AND parent will create FSA IDs (fsaid.ed.gov) to...
Complete FAFSA available October 1, 2018
Spring Semester
Complete local/private scholarship applications
Review college acceptances, compare financial aid packages, ask questions, and follow up as needed

41. Outreach Division

42. Check out our website at: www.TN.gov/collegepays
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