Preparing for college at any age can be a bit overwhelming. When the time comes, you may be primarily focused on college applications to get into your dream school. HOWEVER, there’s another application that is just as important: the FAFSA short for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Its purpose is to aid students in determining if they qualify for federal and state aid. These types of aids come in a variety of forms, including grants and federal student loans, and because many colleges use the FAFSA to determine student eligibility for certain scholarships, it is a key component of paying for higher education. To prepare for filling out the FAFSA, it’s important to gather the required materials so you have them on hand and can make the process as smooth as possible. In this segment, you will receive Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips on what you need to complete your FAFSA application!

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Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips

• Your Social Security Number – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips
  • Make sure to have your Social Security card on hand so you can correctly input your Social Security number (SSN) on your application. Your SSN is a unique number assigned to only you and is an important part of your application. If you are not a US citizen, you can use your Alien Registration Number instead to fill out the application.
• FSA ID – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips
  • Having an FSA ID can help streamline the FAFSA application process. The FSA ID is a specific username and password. The FSA ID replaced the PIN from years past. Create a FSA ID here if you don’t have one. You are not required to use the FSA ID while completing the FAFSA, but it can make the process a lot easier. Using the FSA ID, you can sign your application and get it processed quickly. Additionally, you can use the FSA ID to help you pre-fill out the FAFSA with your information in the future.
• Tax Returns – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips
  • For the 2017-2018 academic year and beyond, applicants will need to provide information from tax returns completed two years prior. So, for those completing the FAFSA for the 2017-2018 school year, 2015 tax information is required. For the 2018-2019 school year, tax information from 2016 is required. To streamline the process, you may be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to import your information.
  • If you are considered a dependent student, which you probably are, your parents’ tax returns and asset records will need to be provided as part of your FAFSA.
• Asset Records – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips
  • For the FAFSA, you will need to gather your bank statements and investment records to show your current assets, as well as records of any untaxed income you may have. Starting in the 2017-2018 academic year, some investments and savings will need to be reported and may affect your financial aid.
  • As with the tax information, dependent students will need this information from their parents as well.
  • “The FAFSA is used to calculate the Expected Family Contribution (EFC), which is what the government thinks families should contribute to their child’s education,” said Robert Farrington, millennial money expert and founder of TheCollegeInvestor.com.
  • Students and parents can be surprised by the EFC projections, as the formula established by law doesn’t factor in household debt.
• Have A List of Schools You May Attend – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips
  • When you fill out the FAFSA, you can list up to ten schools that you are considering attending. It’s important to list the schools, as they will receive the FAFSA information electronically and will use the information to determine your financial aid eligibility, including types of aid you and the amount of each. Even if you are undecided, be sure to list whatever schools you are considering. It’s important to note that the schools you apply to can’t see what other schools you are applying to.

Apply Now – Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips

• The FAFSA for the 2017-2018 academic year will be available starting October 1, 2016 instead of January 1 as in years past. It’s key to fill out the FAFSA as soon as possible, well before the June 30 federal deadline and your state’s deadline, as it can play an important role in your college funding.
• “The biggest trick is to file the FAFSA as early as possible, because need-based financial aid can run out quickly at many universities,” says Farrington.
• Also, once you are done with your application, you may want to follow up with your school or contact the financial aid office if your financial circumstances change due to job loss, illness or divorce. It’s also important to stay on top of future deadlines as you will be required to fill out the FAFSA every year you are a student to receive financial aid.
• “If you fail to fill it out, you can’t even get a federal student loan,” says Farrington. “As such, just get in the habit of filling out the FAFSA each year you are planning to go to school.”
• For additional help in determining your eligibility for financial aid, check out our FAFSA assistant tool.

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Author’s Verdict

Hopefully our segment on Discover Bank Financial Aid Tips will help guide you through your college application process! Let us know in the comment section if this was useful for you! Any questions, feel free to ask as well! Let us know about your thoughts and experience with Discover Bank Online in the comment section below! If you’re interested in more info regarding Discover Bank Online offers, check out our full listing of Discover Bank Online Bank Deals, Offers, Bonuses, and Promotions. Be sure to check back on BankDealGuy for more bank deals!

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