2009 FAFSA Means it's Financial Aid Season

For many students, or their parents, this is the time to start filing taxes and getting refunds from the government. For many seniors in high school and other college students, tax season also means financial aid season.
On January 1, FAFSA released their form for this year to be completed in order to be considered for governmental aid for college. Much like the CSS Profile, the FAFSA uses information based off of your parents’ and even your taxes. Although unlike the Profile, FAFSA uses last year’s tax information while the Profile used 2007, but this is probably because it was due so much earlier for many schools. Also, on the FAFSA, your family’s EFC is calculated. The EFC is the Expected Family Contribution and, as it says in the name, this amount of money is what your family is expected to pay towards your education. This is based on income, number of people in your household, whether or not your parents’ marital status, and many different aspects that could affect you and your family being able to afford college. Even if you believe your EFC will be high, or you think your parents make too much to award any aid, I highly advise filling out the FAFSA because you never know what could turn up!
As the time creeps closer to taxes being due, keep in mind financial aid is due for your colleges! Your application process isn’t complete until all necessary information is turned into your colleges, including financial information.