Financial Aid Events

Site coordinator support and resources for financial aid, FAFSA and MN Dream Act events

Why Host Financial Aid Events?

To help establish and/or build upon a culture of career and college-readiness in Minnesota and support our state's Educational Attainment Goal.
To provide necessary support to Minnesota students and families who have historically been underrepresented in the postsecondary education process.
To increase the number of Minnesota students who complete the FAFSA or Dream Act.

Molly Bonnett, College and Career Coordinator at Forest Lake Area High School shares how she organizes financial aid events at her school (7 minutes).

Submit a request for a financial aid administrator to present or volunteer at your financial aid event.

Overview

Who can participate: All Minnesota high schools and postsecondary institutions are welcome to host events. Many sites offer multiple events - or open them to the public to increase financial aid knowledge and FAFSA/MN Dream Act submission in the state.

Site expectations: Site Coordinators schedule a date and time for their financial aid event to inform and/or assist students and families with learning about the aid process or submitting the FAFSA or Dream Act applications. For data reporting purposes, registered events run October 1 to February 15. Sites are asked to complete a site coordinator survey when their event(s) have concluded.

Social media hashtags: #MNGoesToCollege #IAppliedMN #MNFAFSA

Registration: Register your site to host a financial aid event during the 23-24 school year. Announcements and news will be sent to registered sites.

Event Planning and Promotion

FAFSA Event inspiration from other Minnesota site coordinators

FAFSA Event Toolkit: student worksheets and event materials

Site coordinator training opportunities, including FAFSA and MN Dream Act Training.

Promotional materials provided by Minnesota Goes to College: social media guide & Ready, Set, FAFSA.

Additional Resources

For students and families: Tools and online resources about financial aid, FAFSA and MN Dream Act.

Federal Student Aid Resources

Overview video (1 minute) - Better FAFSA Better Future
College Access Professionals 2024-25 FAFSA Demonstration (90 minutes)
FSA Outreach YouTube Channel - Features several Better FAFSA Better Future webinar recordings

Ready, Set, FAFSA Presentations and Handouts for Families

What to Know about the 24-25 FAFSA (handout)
What to Know about the 24-25 FAFSA: slides | pdf - new
Understand Financial Aid: slides | pdf - new
Create Your FSA ID: slides | pdf - new
Creating an FSA ID (worksheet)
October 2023 Ready Set FAFSA recordings and materials - new

Minnesota Association of Financial Aid Administrators (MAFAA)

Outreach and Early Awareness - Looking for postsecondary financial aid experts for your FAFSA event? Submit a request form.

Minnesota Office of Higher Education

Train-the-Trainer Materials - PowerPoint slides, Q and A, recording links from 24-25 FAFSA and Dream Act Training (December 2023) - new
Publications - Order free publications for your event(s): FAFSA & MN Dream Act, Grants & Scholarships
Minnesota FAFSA Tracker - This tool aids high school counselors and college access programs in providing targeted outreach to students filing the FAFSA.