<p>“My point was the FAFSA is not a requirement for financial aid from most private US colleges. The OP can fill out a PROFILE and it does not matter whether the applicant’s parents paid any taxes in the US.”</p>
<p>Do you have a source for this statement? I don’t claim to have done a complete survey..and I admit that I have found some schools that don’t require the FAFSA–however, they DO require certified copies of a FEDERAL TAX RETURN from any US citizen. I haven’t found ANY schools that award fin aid to US citizens without EITHER a FAFSA or a certified copy of a federal income tax return. </p>
<p>I’m always willing to learn something new though–and if you actually do know that “most” private colleges will award fin aid without requiring either a FAFSA OR a certified copy of the parents’ federal income tax return, please do post a source for this information.</p>