Funding Education Beyond High School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid 2008-09

html> Funding Education Beyond High School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid 2008-09

FAFSA

- New Applicants

- Dependency Status

- Renewal Applicants

Completing the FAFSA (Continued)

Process For Renewal Applicants

You must reapply for federal student aid every year. If you change schools, your aid doesn’t automatically transfer with you. Remember to check with your new school to find out what you need to do to continue receiving financial aid.

For those who applied in 2006-07 there will be fewer questions to answer for 2007-08 because the Renewal FAFSA contains much of the information given in the 2006-07 application. Only the information that has changed in the 2006-07 FAFSA application will have to be updated and a few new questions answered. Renewal FAFSAs can only be completed online at www.fafsa.ed.gov between Jan. 1, 2007, and June 30, 2008. Remember that states and schools may have earlier deadlines for nonfederal aid so it’s important to check with your state or school deadlines. State contact information is provided at the end of this guide.

To complete your Renewal FAFSA:

In January 2007, you’ll receive notice (e-mail or regular mail) reminding you to apply for the 2007–08 award year (July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008).
You’ll access your 2007-08 Renewal FAFSA on the Web using your PIN. There are no paper renewal applications.
Review the information on the Renewal FAFSA and change or add information as needed, sign and submit it.
You’ll then receive your Student Aid Report (SAR) containing your application results.
Review your SAR to make sure all your information is correct.
Check with your financial aid office, or contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) if you have questions about the FAFSA renewal process.

What if I need help filling out my FAFSA application?

Help text is available and accessible for every question on the FAFSA if you apply online using FAFSA on the Web at www.fafsa.ed.gov. You can also get free live help online at this Web site.
Free help is also available online at www.studentaid.ed.gov/completefafsa.
Contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) for assistance with any questions you have on either the paper or electronic FAFSA.
Contact your high school guidance counselor or your college financial aid office.

Remember, you can get all the help you need for FREE from one of these sources. NEVER pay anyone for assistance in completing the online or paper FAFSA.

How do the schools I’m interested in attending get my FAFSA information?
You can list up to four schools on a paper FAFSA and up to six schools on FAFSA on the Web. Those schools will automatically receive your FAFSA results electronically.

What if I want to add or change schools later?
Using your PIN, you can go to www.fafsa.ed.gov and select “Add or Delete a School Code” to make changes online or you can call the Federal Student Aid Information Center 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243). If you call, you’ll need your Data Release Number (DRN), which is located on your SAR.

Save all records and materials used to complete your FAFSA. Make a copy of your paper FAFSA application or print a copy of your FAFSA on the Web application. You might need them later to prove the information you reported was accurate.

The process of documenting the information you provided on the FAFSA is called verification. If your application is selected for verification and you do not provide the documents requested by your school, you will not receive federal student aid and you might not receive aid from other nonfederal sources.

U.S. Department of Education | Federal Student Aid