By Leanna Landsmann
A-PLUS ADVICE FOR PARENTSQ: Our daughter hopes to attend college this fall. We didn't plan on financial aid because my grandmother left her a college fund. But the crash eroded that fund, and my husband lost his job. We told our daughter to apply for every dollar she can. She's in a panic because she says financial aid applications were due Jan. 1. Is there anything she can do? A: It's not too late. Help your daughter with this. Colleges don't want parents writing their kids' essays, but they do want you involved in securing financial aid. It's complicated, requires confidential information and takes informed judgment when completing the worksheets.
File the FAFSA application. FAFSA is the U.S. Department of Education's Free Application for Student Aid (
fafsa.ed.gov). It is used to apply for federal student financial aid, such as the Pell Grant, student loans and college work-study grants. Most states and schools use FAFSA information to set their loan and grant amounts.
Jan. 1, 2010 was the first possible day that one could file the 2010-2011 version of the FAFSA, says Kalman Chany, co-author of "Paying for College without Going Broke" (Princeton Review Books/Random House, 2010). He says students often incorrectly think Jan. 1 is the deadline since many schools use the language. "File as soon as possible after Jan. 1 but no later than X date to ensure priority consideration for funds."
An equally important step is to review and chart each of her schools' deadlines and filing requirements, advises Chany. "These vary tremendously by institution and applicant status." Deadlines for states and college are listed at fafsa.ed.gov.
Even if you don't have your tax returns or other financial information finalized, file FAFSA right away, Chany urges. Amend it when the information becomes available. Remember to note deadlines for amended applications so you don't miss them.
Completing the FAFSA form, once grueling, is easier this year, thanks to shorter forms and improved site navigation. Use the "Documents Needed" page from the FAFSA site to gather required information. Chany advises clients to print out copies of these forms and do practice runs prior to finalizing and submitting them.
Why practice? Chany says "Many of the Help comments for a particular question do not appear on the screen until after one has answered that question. And some of the Help comments are abbreviated so that exceptions to the rules that can result in more aid if one meets the criteria do not appear on the online form. So read the site's fine print when completing the FAFSA and understand how the various responses on the form influence aid eligibility."
The 2010 edition of Chany's book offers line-by-line advice on filling out student aid forms and practical tips for long-term planning. If you're overwhelmed, consider hiring a financial aid consultant to make recommendations to increase your eligibility. "Find a good consultant through referrals. Be wary of those who try to sell you financial products or promise you'll receive a certain amount of aid before reviewing your financials," says Chany.
Act quickly. "Don't wait for your daughter to be accepted to apply for aid," Chany notes. "The coffers may be empty by the time those envelopes arrive."
