7 Common FAFSA Mistakes That Can Affect Your Financial Aid

“The FAFSA is a form required by colleges, the federal government, and state government for students that want to receive financial aid.”

Apart from scholarships, financial aid is the most useful way to pay for college. Financial aid is not only for students who can prove financial need. The FASFA form asks questions about your personal and family financial situation to determine how much they can pay for college. 

According to the US Dept. of Education, over 18 million applicants completed the FAFSA form during the 2017-2018 season. Every student should file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as early and as accurately as possible. If you apply for financial aid later, you might miss the priority deadline.

Avoid these seven FAFSA mistakes, each of which can lead to higher costs for college. Here are the seven FAFSA mistakes that college students make:

Todd Weaver , treasurer of the Higher Education Consultants Association, said, “One of the worst mistakes students and families can make is not submitting the FAFSA.”

Families wrongly believe that if they fall into a specific income bracket, they’re not eligible to receive financial aid. In reality, it depends on so many parts.

Always keep in mind that each family’s financial situation is assessed on an individual basis. Weaver said he saw a family with an annual income of over $355,000 . 

But, they were still eligible for financial aid as their three children were attending college simultaneously. During the 2017-2018 school year, financial aid’s average amount for each full-time equivalent student was $14,796 .

If you are looking for state financial aid, you must also file the FAFSA on time. If you file the form too late, you may miss out on some support. By filing immediately after the January 1 open date, you can get up to twice as much support as someone that waits a few more months.

State financial aid is limited. There are many states where it is on a first-come, first-served basis until it runs out. These states have a fixed allocation of funds available until they run out. It means that if you file your FAFSA too late, you may have to settle for loans instead of grants.

Use the estimations instead of waiting around until taxes are filed. If you use the estimations, you can update the information after you have submitted the form.

If you are filing the form as a dependent, you and your parents must sign the application. If you submit the form online, you and your parents can electronically sign the application with your FSA ID.

You need an FSA ID to file the FAFSA. It may take up to three days before you can use the FSA ID. 

It means that you should get the FSA ID for you and your parents a few days before you plan to file your FAFSA form.

If you wait until you are filling out the form, you may have to save your application and come back another day to submit it. It can delay you receiving your financial aid package.

The government will not check your finances and let you know that you have reported the wrong assets. Instead, they will count those assets and give you financial aid based on what you tell them. 

It means you can end up receiving less money. Remember that you don’t need to report every asset. Certain things are not considered assets through the FAFSA like:

• 401k
• IRA balances 
• Whole life insurance 

So, you don’t need to report them. If you have any questions, you can contact the helpline or talk to a professional to find out what you should and shouldn’t include.

If you don’t double-check that your forms have been submitted, you may not be done with the process. There are always issues that can arise with an online system, and the FAFSA is certainly no different. 

You have to get a confirmation from the submission. Look for a problem if you don’t get a confirmation. Avoid making these common mistakes:

If your parents are divorced, you must report your stepparent’s financial information in addition to your custodial parent’s financial information.

1. Legal name: You must write your legal name on the form when you submit it. The name on your FAFSA form must match the name on your Social Security card.
2. Leaving blanks: Leaving too many blanks can result in improper numbers and can get you rejected. When you do not have anything to enter, you can enter a 0 or 'not applicable' instead of leaving it blank.
3. Correct Address: You need to list a permanent address that is not your temporary address or summer address.
4. Unborn children: Count the child if you are pregnant or your partner is, and you will be providing support for that child of at least half. Also, count them if they will be born during or before the year you are applying for financial aid because they are a member of your family.

Get started early and use the online version of the FAFSA to avoid common FAFSA mistakes. An accurate FAFSA form can be the best asset in securing financial aid. 

As you start to fill out the form, be sure to gather all the information you need, including your FSA ID and your parents’ tax information. 

Weaver said, “Take a deep breath and remember that several people go through this every year. The process is not as difficult as some people think.”

Are you a higher education institution that needs a better process for administering  financial aid  or covering staff turnover in your financial aid department?  Contact us today!