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At a Glance
Need help paying for college or for a career school?
The first three pages of this guide are a quick refer-
ence to federal student aid programs and how to
apply; the rest of the publication provides more of
what you need to know.
Most student financial aid comes from the federal
government programs youll read about here, which
the U.S. Department of Educations Federal Student
Aid (FSA) office administers. For additional sources of
student financial aid, see page 4.
Beware of scams and services that will search
for financial aid money for you for a fee. A law
protects you from this type of fraud (see page 6
for more information).
Applying for student aid is FREE; thats why
the application you use is called the Free Application for
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). If you need help complet-
ing the FAFSA, you can get that help free, too. You
dont have to pay anyone for assistance.
Who gets federal student aid?
Our most basic eligibility requirements are that
you must
.
Demonstrate financial need (see page 8);
.
Be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen* with a valid
Social Security number; and
.
Show by one of the following means that youre
qualified to obtain a postsecondary education
(education after high school):
Have a high school diploma or a General
Education Development (GED) Certificate.*
Pass an approved ability-to-benefit (ATB) test (if
you dont have a diploma or GED,a school can
administer a test to determine whether you can
benefit from the education offered at that school).
Meet other standards your state establishes that
we have approved.
Complete a high school education in a home
school setting approved under state law.
See the complete list of eligibility requirements on
page 7.
What is federal student aid?
Its financial help if youre enrolled in an eligible
program* as a regular student* at a school participat-
ing in our federal student aid programs. (By school,
we mean a four-year or two-year public or private
college, university, career school, or trade school.)
Federal aid covers school expenses, including tuition
and fees, room and board, books and supplies, and
transportation. Aid can also help pay for a computer
and for dependent care.
There are three categories of federal student aid: grants,
work-study, and loans (see the chart on the following
page for an overview of these programs). Check with
your school to find out which programs your school
participates in.
How do you apply for federal
student aid?
1.Complete the Free Application for Federal Student
Aid (FAFSA)the online version (FAFSA on the Web)
or the paper FAFSA.For more information on apply-
ing
.
For FAFSA on the Web, go
to www.fafsa.ed.gov (or to
www.studentaid.ed.gov and get
general student aid information as
well). Using FAFSA on the Web
is faster and easier than using
paper.
If you don't have Internet access, you can get a
paper FAFSA from
- a high school guidance office,
- a college financial aid office,
- a local public library, or
- our Federal Student Aid Information
Center, by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID
(1-800-433-3243)
You can apply beginning Jan.1,2005; you
have until June 30,2006 to submit your
FAFSA.But,you need to apply early!
Schools and states often use FAFSA information
to award nonfederal aid. Their deadlines are
usually early in the year.You can find state deadlines
online at FAFSA on the Web-see "Check Deadlines"
under "Before Beginning a FAFSA."The paper FAFSA
lists state deadlines on the front of the form. Check
with the schools you're interested in for their deadlines
Federal Srudent Aid Summary
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Federal Pell Grant
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Grant: does not have to be repaid
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Available almost exclusively
to undergraduates; all eligible
students will receive the Federal
Pell Grant amounts they
qualify for
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$400 to $4,050 for 2004-2005;
2005-2006 amount will depend
on program funding
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Federal Supplemental
Educational Opportunity
Grant (FSEOG)
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Grant: does not have to be repaid
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For undergraduates with excep-
tional financial need; priority
is given to Federal Pell Grant
recipients; funds depend on
availability at school
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$100 to $4,000
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Federal Work-Study
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Money is earned while attend-
ing school; does not have to be
repaid
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For undergraduate and graduate
students; jobs can be on cam-
pus or off campus; students are
paid at least minimum wage
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No annual minimum or maximum
award amounts
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Federal Perkins Loan
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Loan: must be repaid
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5% loans for both undergradu-
ate and graduate students; pay-
ment is owed to the school that
made the loan
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$4,000 maximum for undergradu-
ate students; $6,000 maximum
for graduate students; no mini-
mum award amount
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Subsidized FFEL
1
or Direct
2
Stafford Loan
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Loan: must be repaid; you must
be at least a half-time* student
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Subsidized: U.S. Department of
Education pays interest while
borrower is in school and during
grace and deferment periods
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$2,625 to $8,500, depending on
grade level
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Unsubsidized FFEL
1
or
Direct
2
Stafford Loan
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Loan: must be repaid; you must
be at least a half-time* student
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Unsubsidized: Borrower is
responsible for interest during
life of the loan; financial need
not a requirement
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$2,625 to $18,500, depending on
grade level (includes any subsi-
dized amounts received for the
same period)
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FFEL or Direct PLUS Loan
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Loan: must be repaid
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Available to parents of depen-
dent undergraduate students
enrolled at least half time*
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Maximum amount is cost of
attendance* minus any other
financial aid the student
receives; no minimum award
amount
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1
This type of Stafford Loan is from the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program. The loan is known as a FFEL (or Federal) Stafford Loan.
2
This type of Stafford Loan is from the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program. The loan is known as a Direct Loan
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2.Review your Student Aid Report (SAR).
After you apply, you'll receive a Student Aid Report.
Your SAR contains the information reported on
your FAFSA and usually includes your Expected
Family Contribution (EFC) number. The EFC,
a measure of your family's financial strength, is used to
determine your eligibility for federal student aid. Review
your SAR information as soon as you get it and make
any corrections or changes, if necessary. The school(s)
you list on your FAFSA will receive your SAR data elec-
tronically and will review that data to determine your
eligibility.
3.Contact the school(s) you might
attend.
Make sure the financial aid office staff at
each school you're interested in has all the
information needed to determine your eligibility.
If you're eligible, each school's aid administra-
tor will send you an award letter outlining the
amount and types of aid (from all sources) the school
will offer you.You can compare award letters from the
schools you applied to and see what aid you can receive
from each school
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