I’m currently going to my local community college to get my associates degree. I plan on transferring to a 4 year university soon. So far, I’ve been receiving grants from fafsa to pay for my education and now I’m thinking on sending the application to the 4 year university. I’m aware that 4 year schools are much more expensive than community colleges so I don’t expect to get a grant that’s gonna cover every year of attendance. that being said, I’m assuming that once I file a fafsa for that school, the only aid that they could give me would be loans which I’m willing to sign up for. Is this true? can you tell me the process to sign up for loans? Any helpful comments would be very well appreciated. Thank you.
Many schools do have automatic merit for transfers, depending on your GPA at your cc. You would have to look into it at the school(s) you’re considering. If you qualify for Pell Grant, that would still be there for the 4 year to help.
You can get merit based scholarships, scholarships if you’re a first generation college student, hispanic, woman, etc. Seek out the colleges Fin. Aid office or look online to see if they have a list of the scholarships available. Also my university gave me a grant from the school itself on top of my Pell Grant as well. Look into grants and scholarships and possibly work-study to help with costs. Don’t bury yourself in debt 
Talk to the transfer advisor at your community college. They might have some advice for you.