Applying for Financial Aid
You can alleviate some, or even all, of the financial burden of college by applying for federal student aid, application waivers, or scholarships from schools, corporations, or charitable foundations.
Apply for the FAFSA
As early as October 1, you can file your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to determine your eligibility for loans, grants, and work study. Your Student Aid Report (SAR) should be mailed to you about four weeks after you file the application.
Instructions
The FAFSA form should correspond with the school year you’re planning to seek aid for, which is the same year you will be entering college. For example, if you’re applying for financial aid for the 2024‒25 school year, fill out the 2024‒25 FAFSA form. If you plan to take summer classes, contact your school's financial aid office to determine which FAFSA form you should fill out.
To assist with the process- attached you will find a FAFSA worksheet that asks questions to help guide you through the actual FAFSA process. This is a personal choice to use, but does make the process a bit easier when you sign into the formal site.
Worksheet: https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-24-fafsa-worksheet.pdf
Apply for application fee waivers
An application fee waiver removes the application fee, typically for students who demonstrate financial hardship. You or your guidance counselor can request an application fee waiver.
Complete scholarship applications
Many nonprofit and private organizations offer scholarships to help students pay for college or career school. This type of free money, which is sometimes based on academic merit, talent, or a particular area of study, can make a real difference in helping you manage your education expenses.
Ask your school counselor, local community groups, and prospective colleges about scholarship opportunities as early as the beginning of your junior year.
Throughout your high school career, continue compiling a list of scholarship opportunities in a scholarship application tracker spreadsheet.
MAJOR TIP: Highlight overlapping essay prompts, so you can write one essay that covers multiple prompts. Sometimes you can adapt your main college essay into a scholarship essay. However, remember to tailor each essay to the prompt.
Start filling out scholarship applications, gathering required documents, and writing scholarship essays in the summer before your senior year.
Throughout your senior year, apply for as many scholarship applications as possible; many students don’t take advantage of scholarship opportunities.