I haven’t apply for colleges or FAFSA yet due to certain reasons, but I’m planning to apply later on during high school. My question is that how much money can I expect to get if I were to apply later(fall semester) for college and FAFSA when I didn’t apply early? I also heard that the earlier you apply the more money you might get, is that true? If so, I know that I’m late for fall semester, but would that also apply for the second semester? Would I get more money for applying early on the second semester or would it be the same?
My biggest concern is how much money can I expect from colleges when I apply late rather than early and if applying for the second semester would help me.
extra info: I did sports, high GPA ( above 4.0) and average ACT(Going to re-take and get higher score) and other awards.
Are you going to start college in Fall 2017? Then you can still file the 2017-18 FAFSA now. It uses tax return info from 2015.
The FAFSA opened in October. Some federal aid like SEOG and work study and some state aid is given out as first come first served, but Pell (if eligible) and federal student loans are still available.
So you don’t want to apply for fall? Are you going to only apply for spring or only to very late fall deadline schools? It really depends on the school as to whether they “run out” at a certain point.
You would be smarter to apply as an incoming freshman for the fall term 2018.
I would like to start college in fall of 2017 as an incoming freshman, but I heard that I will not get as much money from the colleges because I’m applying late( I need as much money as possible, my family isn’t financially great, or in other words poor). So I’m just trying to figure out a way that I could get money from them, so would applying for the second semester help me financially?
You will be limited as to what and where you can get into as of this date. Community college for fall should be available to you.
Typically, you apply in the fall of your senior year to the colleges and universities to attend the following fall.
There may be some colleges that will still be accepting students as of May, but your options would be extremely limited to certain areas of the country and limited funding.
You have likely missed the deadlines for applying for institutional college need based aid for the fall term. The issue is…if you need more than the Pell Grant (if your income entitles you to that) or the federally funded $5500 loan for freshman year…you need to understand that students admitted for the FALL term as freshmen are far more likely to get institutional need based aid…and merit aid…than those admitted in the spring. Schools use their monies up on those fall admits…and then returning students.
Students being admitted for the spring term are likely at the bottom of the food chain for institutional aid of any kind.
What state are you in? Perhaps someone here will have some specifics about aid for low income students in YOUR state.
I’m in Ohio. So according to what you’re saying applying for the spring semester will not benefit me, instead it’ll limit the amount of aid I could possibly get?
FAFSA itself is not a loan, but only the means by which many colleges and universities determine your Financial Aid eligibility. Most schools have a deadline by which FAFSA must be completed in order to be considered for any Financial Aid for that following school year. For example, at my son’s school, FAFSA must be filed by March 2 before the coming school year in order to be considered for priority funding. It must be filed no later than the beginning of the school year in order to be considered for any funding, however students who wait that long may find that the school has already used available funding. Each school has a different deadline so you need to check with each that you are applying to. So it is not necessarily that get more money if you apply early, but that if you apply late there may not be anything left. We have no way of knowing how much money you will qualify for without knowing what your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is as determined by FAFSA. Are you a senior? If so, it is a bit late to apply for admission to most colleges this late in the game. In any case, you can fill out the FAFSA application now and designate schools that you want to send it to later. If you are not applying to schools for the upcoming school year, than it is a good idea to complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after the application opens each October, for the following school year. If you are planning to apply to schools for the spring, you will most likely have to wait until the following school year to get any Financial Aid. If you don’t have anyone to help you with this, it can be a bit confusing. See if your school counselor can help you with any questions about financial aid. When you are deciding which schools to apply to, take a look at the “Net Price Calculator” that each school posts on their website. By answering a few questions, you can estimate what your annual cost for that school will be. You should get an idea of how much you will be able to pay each year and compare that to how much each school will expect you to pay to determine if it is a school that you can afford.
Are you applying to public universities in Ohio? Any chance you will be commuting from home? Is your family very low income?
Can your parents help you will college costs at all?
What was your ACT or SAT score?
@Blankeed
Call a few schools and ask. Can you go to an OSU branch campus? You could get a perm grant to pay for that.
what is your GPA and SAT/ACT score?
Applying for spring admission is a bad idea. Schools have already given out the aid…Spring students started in the fall, and got their awards then. There isn’t really another budget for spring admits. You’d have to wait to apply for Fall 2018 if you can find a workable school to apply to now.
Why have you waited SO long?
How much will your parents pay?
Is more like a situation where I can’t apply for FAFSA as of right now and my GPA is above 4.0 but average act around 22(But this will definitely go up with the next act exam). What do you guys recommend? Wait it up a year or apply for fall and get less money?
Wait, work save money and get that 22 way up.
Please go in and talk to your school’s career or guidance counselor before it is too late and while you can still get their assistance and advice while enrolled in HS. You are far too late in the process to get $$ for college and many deadlines have already passed. Your best bet right now would be living at home and commuting to community college. Unless you are applying to a college and promised to supply full need (which isn’t very many…mostly high stats schools), then even if you are “poor” you will have to come to the table with considerable money or loans.
Why can’t you do the fafsa now?
Should I wait another year since I’m already too late? What are the cons and pros of waiting a year(Especially financially)? Please reply and thanks for all the help I’d really appreciate it!
Waiting to enter as a freshman fall 2018 will give you the chance to do a few things.
- Retake the ACT or SAT before you graduate HS.
- Research colleges well, and look for places that are affordable...where you have a good chance of acceptance.
- Get your applications for admission and financial aid done by mid October.
- Entering mid year can also cause course sequence issues as some year long courses start fall term only.
- Entering fall freshman have better aid potential than students enrolling mid year.
- You can work and save some money for college.