<p>My daughter is a senior and would like to go to college. I have recently been advised on the steps needed to obtain financial aid and wondering why there is any reason to fill out a CSS as to using the FAFSA in January when W2's come out? </p>
<p>I only see that the CSS as an interpretative estimate of what will help the colleges decide how much to offer in aid to a child. We are regretfully not in a position to pay for our daughter and son, in 4 years, for college as the prices rise up so fast.</p>
<p>Any input to help our situation help our daughter to get the best possible loan situation will be helpful.</p>
<p>Every college and university has a Net Price Calculator on its website. Use website’s search function to find it. That will give you a guesstimate of what that particular place would expect your family to pay. On the website you will also be able to find which financial aid forms that place requires. Most don’t ask for the Profile.</p>
<p>For more ideas about aid, spend some time in the Financial Aid Forum. Watch for anything posted by kelsmom. She is a college financial aid officer.</p>
<p>There are only about 300 or so colleges, mostly private - a few public, that use CSS Profile so look at each of the colleges that your D is thinking about and see if you need to even file the CSS profile. Also make sure you know for any colleges where she is filing early action what the dates are, if they do require CSS profile, for filing. You may have to file an estimate and then file the final next year when your taxes are complete. Also PLAN on filing your taxes as early as possible this year. Some colleges are first come, first serve with aid so you don’t want to be filing the FAFSA or the profile in April…plus you’re going to want to know what the costs are before your D decides on a college come May 1 so you need to file early enough for finaid to put together the cost package BEFORE you make a decision. Once you get past this year/freshman year the time crunch for your taxes eases up because they package in the incoming freshman first and the filing dates for FAFSA etc. are later in sophomore, junior, senior year.</p>
<p>Which financial forms you fill out will depend on the school.
My older daughter applied to a private college, regular decision, however PROFILE was due in November, obviously with tentative data.
We filed FAFSA as soon as we could the first week of January.
In subsequent years we still filed both FAFSA & CSS, but it wasn’t such a rush.</p>
<p>If your daughter is applying for a school that requires CSS, then she will *have *to complete it if she wants to be considered for any institutional aid from that school. Schools that use CSS use it for their own institutional aid and FAFSA to determine eligibility for federal aid (which is quite limited). As said above, only about 300 schools require CSS (often the ones that are more expensive but also generous with their own funds).</p>
<p>If she is applying for schools that don’t require CSS, then there is no point in completing it as schools that don’t require it will not even look at it.</p>
<p>Yes, if the school requires CSS filing, then it is a must to file. From what I understand, the CSS profile is for school aid, and the FAFSA is for aid from the government. Many private colleges who use the CSS as well give money from themselves, so it is definitely worth filing.</p>
<p>You say you are “regretfully” not in a position to pay for college for your children. Make that clear to them. What you think you are unable to pay and what a college thinks you should be able or wiling to pay can be different.</p>