1. Preparing to Pay for College …or more appropriately, where do we start, what do we do and when??? Just enough information to generate more questions

2. College Planning It’s not too early! Families should begin dialog about ‘life after high school’; college, trade school, etc. Parent AND student should review expected costs and begin forming plan to finance educational goals Begin scholarship searches Review high school education plan: are there any funding programs dependent upon high school curriculum? what courses have been taken? what is remaining? What courses are needed for college goals? (it’s not too early to look at college catalogs) Discuss plans with family and high school counselor-make certain you have a back up plan

3. FREE Scholarship Search : www.fastweb.com

4. Senior Year Check deadlines for schools of interest- both admission and financial aid Complete the FAFSA as soon after January 1, as possible Submit all documents requested by the school as soon as possible

5. Information on planning… Adventures in Education: WWW.AIE.ORG

6. What is Financial Aid? Financial Aid is a means to assist students in obtaining higher education and consists of: –Grants-Federal or State (Pell, SEOG, TPEG/TEG, ACG/SMART) –Loans (Federal and Private) –Work Study (on or off campus) –Scholarships (Merit and Need Based) –State Exemptions

7. General Eligibility Enroll as a regular student in a degree or certificate program Not be enrolled simultaneously in high school Have a high school diploma or equivalent Provide a valid social security number Be a citizen, national or permanent resident of the U.S. or other eligible non-citizen Register with Selective Service if required Maintain satisfactory academic progress Undocumented students are not eligible for federal aid

8. The Application (FAFSA) (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) Available January 1-FAFSA on the Web (FOTW)- paper FAFSAs no longer supplied to schools 2008-2009 (student may request paper form from Dept. of Education) Requires prior year income (i.e. 2008-2009 based on 2007 income-student and parent) Available in English and Spanish Used to determine eligibility for state and federal aid Personal Identification Number needed to electronically sign form (student and one parent )- request at www.pin.ed.gov

9. How the Process Works Student and family complete the FAFSA Student and school receives Student Aid Report (SAR-response from FAFSA) with Expected Family Contribution number (EFC) School contacts student regarding missing/needed information School reviews student’s file to determine eligibility (based on federal guidelines) School notifies student of eligibility/offer

10. Factors in determining eligibility Parent and student income Family size Age of older parent Number of family members attending college Parent and student assets

11. FAFSA4caster: www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov

12. www.collegefortexans.com Texas Financial Aid Information Center 1-888-311-8881

13. What are your questions?