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According to law, a man must register with Selective Service within 30 days of his 18th birthday. Selective Service will accept late registrations but not after a man has reached age 26.
[quote] Registration is the law. A man who fails to register may, if prosecuted and convicted, face a fine of up to $250,000 and/or a prison term of up to five years.</p>
<p>Even if not tried, a man who fails to register with Selective Service before turning age 26 may find that some doors are permanently closed.
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Does anyone agree that young women should be made to answer this question as well in order to qualify for aid?
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I have only sons and I don't think women should be required to register. I'd prefer that nobody be required, but if they are, I'm okay with men only.</p>
<p>For those of you who are planning to wait until just before they turn 26, maybe you should read the thread from the guy who didn't when he was 18, then never got around to it and now can't get aid or a Federal job. You never know what the future will bring and you could be very sorry. Not to mention that it's the law.</p>
<p>Any Federal Aid. It doesn't stop the school from giving their aid to whoever for whatever reason (need, talent, because they like your last name, etc.)</p>
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I also have a problem with the draft registration - it only applies to male applicants, not females. So those of you with only daughters have no worries since the government is not collecting their information for a possible draft, and those with sons are being discriminated against.
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<p>Is your problem that Females are not drafted? If the draft is ever instituted, it will be because the country is in combat, and will be primarily for positions in combat zones. I personally don't have a problem with excluding women from serving in combat zones. As such, there is no reason to draft them. Lots of paperwork just to say: Sorry, no position for you.</p>
<p>Does that mean that Women cannot be effective in combat? No. Obviously there are some women who exceed the abilities of some men. I have no problem with protecting the women from the atrocities in war that are inflicted upon POW's because they are women.</p>
<p>If you do insist on letting women into combat positions, then I would insist on making the physical qualifications for those positions the same regardless of whether you are a man or woman. If women want to be treated equally, then treat them equally.</p>
<p>Actually, registering has nothing to do with ASKING for the money. You are free to ask all you want (even for jobs and other benefits), regardless of your registration status. Registering affects your ability to receive those benefits.</p>
<p>If you are not willing to pay the price, then you are not entitled to receive the benefit. Those benefits wouldn't exist if OTHER people were not willing to defend the country on your behalf. Think of it as the small price you have to pay (not entitled to certain government benefits) to enjoy being in this country without having to risk your life to defend it.</p>
<p>OperaDad, thanks for the clarification. Agreed. Jewels...good for your son. You will find he is not alone in the CC world in terms of his accomplishments.</p>
<p>Getting merit scholarships is not reason enough not to fill out FAFSA unless the money is available from parents without the merit scholarships. I know two kids who got almost full merit rides who have lost them because of grades. One was able to stay at his college. The other had to drop out because parents couldn't afford to pick up his slack. You would have never thought that this would happen to either of these boys. Never say never.</p>
<p>The main reason for filling out a FAFSA in this case was stated properly by hawk@15 (post#5).</p>
<p>All students are entitled to borrow at least $5,500 per year in a Stafford (federal) Loan regardless of your financial situation. During the junior and senior years, this amount goes up to $6,500 per year. This may not seem like so much when you are paying $40,000 per year total in college costs, but trust me, it is. </p>
<p>For many families, mine included, it makes all the difference in being able to cover the other expenses during a period when we employees are being asked to take 10% to 20% pay cuts to help our employers survive--and when you don't know whether or not you will be the next person laid off. Without this extra cash flow, and the deferred interest payments that don't start until after my son's graduation, I'm not sure how I would pay for both my home mortgage and his tuition/apartment/books/transportation.</p>
<p>So file your FAFSA early--even when your EFC is high (like mine is--around $44,000). And remember also that a high EFC for last year is no guarantee that your income is still going to be there when the new college year starts this coming autumn--and you'll need to have filed a FAFSA in that case also--because if you didn't, then emergency federal loans will also be unavailable.</p>
<p>Jewels - just be sure to know that NOT registering with selective service by age 26 can prevent your son from ever working for the federal government.</p>
<p>The penalties are lifelong and after age 26 you can't fix it.</p>