<p>Hello! I just turned twenty about a week ago and I've decided to head back to school for the first time since I graduated high school. The downside to not having been in a learning enviroment for so long is that I've forgotten nearly everything I was told about recieving aid! So I suppose my questions are the following</p>
<p>1) I re-filed my Fafsa's but I already know it's too late for them to do me any good :[ My question here is when should I file my Fafsa next time to maximize my aid potential!</p>
<p>2) My EFC was very , very , very low...It was so low it only had zeros! I wanted to know if The Dept of Edu is going to mail me info on aid I can recieve or is it my duty to use my EFC and actively seek them myself</p>
<p>3) Are there any free sat prepatory sites online?</p>
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I just turned twenty about a week ago and I've decided to head back to school for the first time since I graduated high school. The downside to not having been in a learning enviroment for so long is that I've forgotten nearly everything I was told about recieving aid! So I suppose my questions are the following
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<p>Remember that you will still be considered a dependent student in the eyes of financial aid so the colleges will require information regarding the income and the assets of both you and your parents.</p>
<p>Correct-- make sure you've included parent's income and assets. You're not independent until you're 24.</p>
<p>When you complete the FAFSA, you include up to 6 schools you're applying to. They automatically get the EFC from the FAFSA calculations. Then, the schools you're accepted to will provide you with an aid package offer that covers most of the difference between the EFC and the total cost of attendance (tuition, room & board, and misc expenses). The aid package will typically include grants, loans, and work study.</p>
<p>1) I re-filed my Fafsa's but I already know it's too late for them to do me any good :[ My question here is when should I file my Fafsa next time to maximize my aid potential!</p>
<p>The FAFSA for 2007-08 will be online for submission on January 1, 2007. You should submit it ASAP after that date. You may have to submit as a "will file" and amend when you and your parents complete your taxes which should be done ASAP after Feb 1.</p>
<p>2) My EFC was very , very , very low...It was so low it only had zeros! I wanted to know if The Dept of Edu is going to mail me info on aid I can recieve or is it my duty to use my EFC and actively seek them myself</p>
<p>Are you married, orphaned, a veteran, have a bachelor's degree, have a dependent child or are you over 24? If not, your FAFSA MUST include the financial information from your parent (and it doesn't matter at all whether you've been self supporting and living independently since your graduation from high school). If your EFC is very low (including your parent's information) you will be eligible for some federally funded aid. However all of your aid may not be in the form of grants. You will likely have work study, and loans as well.</p>
<p>3) Are there any free sat prepatory sites online?</p>
<p>Hm...I know the College Board has the "sat question of the day".</p>
<p>If a kid has been working and living on his own and later decides to go to college, they STILL consider the parents' assets? That doesn't make sense to me. There are kids with bachelors degrees living at home while there are working kids who have been independent since high school graduation.</p>
<p>If you have completed your first bachelors degree then you would be considered an independent student in the eyes of financial aid. IF not, then you are not an independent student until you are 24 years old unless you meet one of the other requirements :</p>
<p>married
Orphaned
you have your own dependent (child)
were in the armed services
was a ward of the court before you were 18</p>
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<p>If a kid has been working and living on his own and later decides to go to college, they STILL consider the parents' assets? That doesn't make sense to me. >></p>
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<p>Whether it makes sense or not... this is the case for everyone.</p>
<p>My son is 23 years old and has lived on his own for 3 years, with his own apartment in a different city from where I live, earning $20-$25K a year. He went back to school this year AND the FAFSA needed to include my income - plus half of his annual full time income was counted against him - even though of course he cannot continue to work full time in college -- as well as a third of his savings. So he did not qualify for any financial aid at all. I have not claimed him as a dependent for the past 2 tax years. </p>
<p>So yes, it sucks -- basically the system is designed to favor kids who go straight to college and to discourage kids from going to work after high school, unless they go into the military. From a social policy perspective, it seems that one effect of the financial aid structure is to delay the entry of young people into the work force for 4 years. Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture to see the social agenda behind the rules.</p>