The Department of Education has released screenshots for the 2008 – 2009 FAFSA on the Web application. Download the FAFSA preview as a PDF file here! (5.9 MB PDF, requires free Adobe Acrobat Reader)
This application will be available and usable on January 1, 2008.
The FAFSA blog is sponsored in part by:
Five most recent FAFSA form help blog posts:
Did
you
know
that…
if you have been convicted of possession or sale of an illegal substance during a period of enrollment…you will not be eligible for Federal student aid, including Federal student loans? In some cases, even if you have been convicted in the past of sale or possession of an illegal substance, you may not be eligible for federal aid in the future. Students at Truman State University, in Missouri, are able to voice their opinions on the subject mostly due a national campaign run by the Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP). In an article written by Heather Turner, she explains why this topic is up for debate:
“I honestly think Truman has the right idea with the writing of the paper, and I had to go to a counseling meeting, like a group counseling session,” Ryan said.
Completing a drug rehabilitation program like the one Truman requires after a student commits a drug offense involving illegal substances is part of the criteria for regaining eligibility for federal aid, according to an amendment in title IV of the Higher Education Act that went into effect in 2000.
“The scholarship that I have kept four years now is A+, and drug offenses are not, I guess, considered a reason to lose it,” Ryan said.
Ryan has not had to file for federal aid to cover his college expenses but said that even though he understands where the government is coming from, it seems like it violates personal rights to ask whether or not students have been convicted of a drug offense.
“I think that it should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for repeat offenders perhaps,” Ryan said. “I don’t think on a first time basis you should lose your scholarships or federal money.”
Data the national SSDP chapter received through the Department of Education shows that more than 189,000 applicants have been disqualified nationally since the question was added to the FAFSA form in 2000 because of their responses, including about 2,800 applicants in Missouri.”
What do you guys think?
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For the full article quoted above click here
The FAFSA blog is sponsored in part by:
Five most recent FAFSA form help blog posts:
This morning, I chatted with a young woman who needed to have her FAFSA completed ASAP. She was told by financial aid that she could qualify for Stafford loan but needs this once piece of the puzzle completed in order for her to obtain any sort of financial aid. She called me because she needed advice on how to get the FAFSA completed ASAP. I explained to her that I felt the most efficient way is to complete the FAFSA online at www.fafsaonline.com. I know it’s scary stuff filling out such a lengthy document completely online. But I promise everyone, the Internet is our friend! Do the FAFSA online! Reason why is because the Government needs the FAFSA filled out just right. When you file online, the system will catch a lot of mistakes and send you back to fix them.Your on your own if you fill it out online. If you do certain things incorrectly, you’ll receive a bunch of paperwork that basically means denied!
Also, keep in mind that you have to update this paperwork every year you are in school. When you do it online, all of your forms will be saved from year to year so it can be completed pretty easily.
Trust me folks do it online! Soon enough the paper form will be extinct.
The Student Loan Network: Stafford Federal Student Loans, Parent PLUS Loans, Student Loan Consolidation, Private Student Loans, Education Loans/College Loans
The Graduate Plus loan is a great loan to utilize if you are going to be a foreign enrolled student…(this means that you are attending a school abroad, that is not in anyway affiliated with University in the U.S.). However, there is a slight pitfall that many potential grad students should be aware of. Not every school abroad, is able to accept a Graduate Plus loan to help pay for tuition or living expenses….What does this mean? Most students say…”it’s a loan for me…why does the school have to approve it”? Keep in mind folks that the Grad plus loan is still a United States Federal Loan….even if you are not studying here….so here is some advice:
1. Before you decide what school you are attending overseas…check with each of your options and see if the financial aid office at that school is equipped to “certify” this type of loan. The Graduate Plus loan will be sent to your school, not to you…so this is very important…especially if you are counting on this loan to help you pay your tuition
2. Once you decide on a school, and you are certain you can take this type of loan out…you now need to make sure your FAFSA form is updated…and renewed. You will need to send a copy of your Student Aid report to your school abroad.
3. Now It is time to apply! You can fill out the application on Gradloans.com…and you will get pre-approved right away…if you get denied (since this is based on your credit history)….you can always add an endorser to the loan, in order to get it approved.
4. Keep a copy of ALL documents…especially the MPN…some schools require copies of this.
5. Make a checklist of all documents the school requires regarding this loan…it is up to you to provide the school with all these forms in order to get this loan certified.
Communication is often difficult between lenders, and schools abroad, so I recommend that you be the middle woman….keep track of who has what, and who needs to send which forms. Any questions? Leave a comment or email our help box: Here!
Helpful Sites
Sometimes I feel like a broken record – clean out the fridge, load up on vitamin C during cold season, clean the closets, etc. But, there is one tip that I cannot stress enough – when financing a graduate school education, always look at scholarships for FREE MONEY. The Student Loan Network offers a few options for Graduate students who are looking to add a little more funding to their existing financial aid package of Stafford and Graduate PLUS loans or private student loans.
Check out ScholarshipPoints.com – it’s a new, interactive way to earn points towards a monthly drawing of $250 and a quarterly drawing of $1000. All you need to do is fill out surveys, review products or refer friends – the points start to add up and you get entered into the drawings. Warning – I’m back to my broken record self, I think, but why doesn’t want to get an additional source of graduate school funding??
Another great site is StudentScholarshipSearch.com. This site is a bit more traditional in the sense that you need to fill out the applications and fulfill the requirements of the scholarship before you can be considered. However, isn’t it worth it?
Take advantage – CASH IN!!
If you’re anything like me you’re mesmerized by shark specials. I just can’t get enough of them. I wait all year for “Shark Week” on the Discovery Channel with feverish anticipation. I grab my popcorn, pour a tall glass of pepsi-cola and settle in for some jaw crunching action. These predators of the sea are an awesome sight in action. I love all sharks including the tiger, reef, bull, and oceanic white tip, but it’s the great white that makes the headlines and is the token of my affection – from afar of course.
In the student loan world parents and students sometimes feel as though they have been thrown to the sharks, and are unsure who to trust or where to turn for help. Just imagine floating in the middle of the
Now you are system educated. Now you can devise a game plan that’s right for you with your new found knowledge. Now YOU can be the shark and not the prey in that deep blue sea. To steal a line from the 1975 classic Jaws, “What we are dealing with here is a perfect engine, an eating machine. It’s really a miracle of evolution.” That’s you! Your engine is humming, your instincts are honed, and your unsuspecting prey is in sight. Enjoy your lunch – you know I’ll be watching.
Some helpful information about graduated payment plans – the pros and cons.
Most borrowers who consolidate their student loans, do so in order to get some amount of monthly payment relief. While consolidation alone can cut monthly student loan payments nearly in half, a graduated repayment plan can lower that monthly payment even further.
Most graduated payment plans introduce an interest only payment for the first 2 years, followed by standard level repayment for years 3 through end of term. The initial graduated payment can be up to 45% lower then a standard level consolidation repayment plan. Here is a brief example based on a total loan balance of $25,000 at an interest rate of 6.8%:
Monthly payment before consolidation: $287
Consolidated level (standard) repayment: $191
Graduated repayment: $143 (first 2 years) $202 (years 3 – 20)
In this example, the borrower went from paying $287 per month before consolidating, down to $143 after consolidating by utilizing graduated repayment. Keep in mind, the graduated payment plan will significantly lower the initial monthly payment for the first several years, but will increase the total cost of the loan. But for many borrowers who are having trouble making monthly payments, and are at risk of going into default, the graduated repayment plan is a life saver.
Here’s a quick summary of changes on the 2008 – 2009 FAFSA form to be available on January 1, 2008. We’ll be going through the 2008 FAFSA line by line in an ongoing blog tutorial starting soon!
Summary of Changes – 2008-2009 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
Colors – The 2008-2009 FAFSA colors are orange for student information and purple for parent information.
Year References – All year references are to be incremented by one year.
Design – The design and layout of the FAFSA is essentially unchanged from the previous year.
Data Elements – The wording of two questions have been revised, however the question numbers remain the same as in 2007-2008.
School/College References – Where applicable and if reference is beyond high school, replace the word school with the word college.
Application Pages
Page 7
Question 21 – We revised question 21 asking are you male by adding are you female. This is a more direct question to determine if a student is required to register with the Selective Service.
Question: Are you male or female? (Most male students must register with Selective Service to get federal aid.) Male _____ Female ____
Question 27 – We revised question 27 asking whether a student will have a high school diploma or GED before the 2008-2009 school year to include two additional options (home schooled or other). The Notes on page 2 refers students to new instructions for reporting an option.
Question: If you will complete high school or its equivalent before you begin the 2008-2009 school year, enter the correct number in the box. See Notes page 2
Page 10
Step Six – We revised the text in Step Six to refer to “colleges” instead of schools. This is more consistent with education beyond high school.
Step Six: Indicate which colleges you want to receive your FAFSA information.
Notes Pages
Page 2
Notes for question 16 (page 7) – We added instructions specifically for question 16 regarding marital status to clarify changing this information after signing the FAFSA.
Report your marital status as of the date you sign your FAFSA. If your marital status changes after you sign your FAFSA, you must not change this information.
Notes for question 27 (page 7) – Enter the correct number in the box in question 27.
Enter 1 for High School Diploma
Enter 2 for General Educational Development (GED) certificate
Enter 3 for Home Schooled
Enter 4 for Other
Notes for questions 34 (page 
and 78 (page 9) – We added a sentence at the end of these instructions to emphasize another condition for answering “Yes” to this question.
“If you filed a 1040 and were not required to file a tax return, you should answer “Yes” to this question.”
Page 4
Notes for questions 71-75 – We added text to the instructions for dependent students and their parents explaining that answering these questions will not reduce their benefits from the five federal means-tested benefit programs.
“Mark an oval … 2006. Use … household.” “Answering these questions will not reduce your eligibility for student aid or these other federal benefits.”
Notes for questions 92-96 – We added text to the instructions for independent students and spouse explaining that answering these questions will not reduce their benefits from the five federal means-tested benefit programs.
“Mark an oval … 2006. Use … household.” “Answering these questions will not reduce your eligibility for student aid or these other federal benefits.”
The FAFSA blog is sponsored in part by:
Five most recent FAFSA form help blog posts:
An interesting maneuver by Sallie Mae to avoid the “new” preferred lender list. And by new, I mean open list that now allows lenders and student loan providers access to what was previously considered a members only club for years. This article begs for the question, “who really has control over YOUR personal information…?”
To apply for graduate financial aid you must follow the same path as when you were an undergraduate. You will need to get your tax return in order for the previous year of which you are applying. You then need to complete the FAFSA form. You can do it right on line by going to www.fafsaonline.com
Another important aspect of financial planning for grad school is to review your credit. Your credit can be a factor in your admissions decision. It can also be a factor if you need to borrower private loan funds to supplement your financial aid award. Private loan funds can be used for living and travel expenses, exam prep, laptops, etc.
Lastly it is never to early to begin the plan for how to repay your student loans. When you graduate and look for a job, if you are a candidate they really want. Negotiate paying some of the balance of your student loans. There may be better tax benefits to doing that as well.
