When does a person apply for Financial aid to go to college?

1. 67

   blessed365posted 12 years ago

   When does a person apply for Financial aid to go to college?
   
   Do you apply for financial aid before you apply to college or do you have to be accepted to a college before you apply for fafsa?

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2. 82

   junksellerposted 12 years ago

   For federal programs you can apply before being accepted by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This covers most of the main aid programs including Pell grants, Perkins Loans, and Stafford Loans. You want to apply as early as you can. I think the first day you can apply for the upcoming Fall semester is January 1st. When you fill out the FAFSA it will ask you for colleges you are considering. If you don't know that is fine, go ahead and fill out the FAFSA and have it sent out to schools once you know.
   
   When a school accepts you they should also offer a financial aid package that will list the expected costs and the expected aid they will give you. This information can impact your decision to attend or help choose between different schools.
   
   There are other aid programs such as some scholarships which may be school specific.

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3. 61

   ashleybunnposted 12 years ago

   You can apply for FAFSA before you are accepted at a university. When I was looking to go to college, I was actually advised to do so.
   
   http://www.finaid.org/questions/faq.phtml explains pretty much everything you need to know about the process.
   
   (If you're asking because you or a loved one is looking to go to college, congratulations! I wish you/them the best of luck!! )

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4. 75

   Mommiegeeposted 12 years ago

   Usually the cut offs are March for the Spring if you want to start college in the fall and October if you want to start in the Spring.  You can also check out how to get more money for college on my hub Top 3 Scholarships Websites.  I hope this helps.  Also go to www.fafsa.gov to apply now for financial aide.

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5. 59

   spazzicalmommyposted 12 years ago

   It's far better to apply before you've even applied to the school! The FASFA is used for information on paying for school, so you don't need to wait to this. Just be sure to list ALL potential schools you may or may not be going to. Once you have this done, that stress it out of the way. You don't need to worry about this anymore. Plus, the longer you wait to fill it out, the less money you will get to be used for school. Once you get accepted to a certain school, you will start filling out school specific stuff for the school's financial aid office. First they will tell you to fill out FASFA, but since you will have already done that, you can skip to filling out and signing their forms and stuff. Makes things go by alot faster when it's already done. Hope this helps!

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6. 59

   KaseyMarieposted 12 years ago

   It's wise to apply for financial aid before being accepted to college and you can fill out the FAFSA at any time.  However, your student aid would be able to assist you and answer questions after you get your SAR (student aid report).  This is one way to let you know how much money you have available for aid.

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