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Completing the FAFSA and PROFILE

If your family hopes to receive financial aid or expects to borrow for college, you will need to become familiar with financial aid applications.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is by far the most common aid form. State and private colleges across the country use the federal form to determine whether students will qualify for financial aid.

The CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE is the other prominent financial aid form. About 270 colleges, almost all of them private, use the PROFILE.

Completing the FAFSA


Your family won't qualify for financial aid grants unless a FAFSA is completed. What's more, only students and parents who have completed the FAFSA will be eligible to obtain federal college loans. The federal government offers the best student loan terms and rates.

Despite the stakes, a surprising number of families don't complete the annual FAFSA.

  • 8.4 million students recently didn't bother to seek federal financial aid, which represents 41% of students, according to analysis by FinAid.org.
  • Of these no-shows, 27% of students would have qualified for free federal cash, otherwise known as Pell Grants.

Every year, parents with high school seniors can start filling out the FAFSA beginning January 1. Parents of returning college students will also need to complete the form if they want to be eligible for financial aid. In other words, parents must complete the FAFSA every year their child will attend school.

Parents should try to complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1 as some schools financial aid deadlines close are as early as February 1 (check your colleges’ deadlines to be sure). The easiest way to apply for the FAFSA is at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/.

It's best to prepare to apply for financial aid by looking at the FAFSA worksheet.

If you need help completing the FAFSA, you can call the federal assistance line at (800) 4-FED-AID.

Completing the CSS Financial Aid/PROFILE


Some families will also have to complete the PROFILE, which asks more financial questions than the FAFSA. If you're wondering if schools on your teenager's list use the PROFILE, it's easy to find out on the website of the College Board, which is the source of the PROFILE.

Union Plus Education Services Can Help Union Families


If you have more questions about planning for college or need help affording it, visit UnionPlus.org/Education. Union Plus provides union families with scholarships, discounts on college test (e.g. SAT/ACT) preparation, education grants and much more.

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Key questions that the FAFSA asks:

  • Number of people in household.
  • Marital status of parents.
  • Age of oldest parent.
  • Number of students in college.
  • Adjusted gross income for most recent calendar year.
  • Income taxes paid for most recent calendar year.
  • Non-retirement investments.

 

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