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eligible non-citizen</a>—typically permanent resident aliens are eligible</li>
<li>Be enrolled in an eligible program at a college or career school</li>
<li>Have financial need</li>
<li>Be registered with the Selective Service (if you’re a male)</li>
<li>Be enrolled in college at least half-time for Direct Loans</li>
<li>Be in good academic standing—the criteria for this varies by school</li>
<li>Sign a FAFSA certification statement saying that you’re not in default on student loans and you don’t owe money on a grant—first-time college students won’t have those problems</li>
<li>Be qualified to earn your career school or college education—i.e. you have a GED or diploma</li>
</ul>
<h3>2. Your Choice of College</h3>
<p>When you file your FAFSA, you send it along to the colleges you’re applying to. You’ll then receive a financial aid award letter from each school, and they’ll be different. That’s because your financial aid package is influenced by the cost of a college and the funds available from the college for scholarships and grants.</p>
<h3>3. Cost of Attendance</h3>
<p>The cost of attendance (COA), also called price of attendance, heavily influences your financial aid eligibility. That’s because you can’t—for the most part—receive more financial aid money than the total cost of attendance.</p>
<p>Typically, the cost of attendance includes the following factors:</p>
<ul>
<li>Tuition & Fees</li>
<li>Room & Board (or estimated cost of living at home and commuting)</li>
<li>Estimated Cost of Books & Supplies</li>
<li>Personal Expenses</li>
<li>Transportation Costs</li>
<li>Loan Fees</li>
</ul>
<p>The COA is not a bill. It’s just the sticker price cost of attending the school. A lot of the numbers are estimated too. For example, your award letter might show a cost of $1,100 for books and supplies. You likely won’t spend that much on your books. On the other hand, tuition costs are set in stone by the college. That doesn’t mean you’ll pay that much for tuition out of pocket though.</p>
<p><img src=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/asset.plexuss.com/news/images/how-is-financial-aid-determined.jpg" alt="How is Financial Aid Determined" width="400" height="250" /></p>
<h3>4. Expected Family Contribution</h3>
<p>Along with the expense of school, your financial aid award also takes your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) into account. This is the amount of money that the college and the government believe your family <em>could</em> put toward your education based on your FAFSA. This financial aid factor has a big influence on your award package.</p>
<p>Your EFC takes the following data into consideration:</p>
<ul>
<li>Tax Returns from 2 Years Prior: It considers both yours and your parents' tax returns, which includes gross income, earned interest, capital gains, social security checks etc.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Bank Account Balances & Assets: This includes yours, your parents’, and your dependent siblings’ bank account balances and assets. If your family has a qualifying low income, you’ll be prompted to opt-out of providing this information, which is a good thing.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Family Size: Are you one of twelve? If so, you’re in luck. The bigger your family, the more financial aid you’ll be eligible for—in most scenarios.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Number of Family Members Going to College: Have a parent or sibling(s) attending college at the same time as you? That will also qualify you for more financial aid.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you want, you can calculate a fairly accurate estimate of your EFC using College Board’s <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/paying-your-share/expected-family-contribution-calculator">free EFC Calculator</a> or the Federal Student Aid’s <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/resources#efc">EFC Formula</a>.</p>
<h3>5. Your Financial Need</h3>
<p>The government offers two different types of aid based on your financial need—need-based and non-need-based financial aid. Need-based financial aid includes grant money, subsidized loans, and work-study programs. However, not everyone is eligible.</p>
<p>So, how is need-based financial aid determined? Individual colleges take the Cost of Attendance (COA) minus the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) to determine financial need.</p>
<p>Say the COA for one year of college is $25,000 and your EFC is $15,000. Your financial need is $10,000. That doesn’t mean you’ll get $10,000 in need-based aid. It just means you can’t get more than $10,000 in need-based aid.</p>
<h3>6. Your Eligibility for Non-Need-Based Financial Aid</h3>
<p>Non-need-based financial aid has nothing to do with your EFC. It includes federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/plus">Federal PLUS Loans</a>, and Teacher Education Access for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants.</p>
<p>To determine your eligibility for non-need-based aid, you take the cost of attendance minus any need-based aid, private scholarships, and money awarded by the college. Continuing the example above, take the $25,000 COA minus the $12,000 you received in unsubsidized loans and scholarships. This leaves you eligible for $13,000 in non-need-based aid. Again, you aren’t guaranteed to get $13,000; you just can’t accept more than that.</p>
<h3>7. Outside Scholarship Money</h3>
<p>If you <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://plexuss.com/apply-for-scholarships">win a scholarship for college</a>, you may be wondering, <em>how do outside scholarships affect financial aid?</em> The answer depends on how much you’re awarded and where you’re going to school. When you win a scholarship, you need to report it to the financial aid office. They’ll reduce your financial need accordingly. Be direct with the college and ask them how the scholarship money will affect your financial aid award.</p>
<p>In some cases, the scholarship you earn could disqualify you from other forms of financial aid like grants, scholarships from the college, and work-study. It’s up to the school to adjust your award package. If that’s the case, you have one main option. You can request to have your scholarship spread out over four years, but this only applies to one-time, non-renewable scholarships. You’ll need to ask the scholarship provider if it’s possible.</p>
<h3>8. How Soon You Apply</h3>
<p>Timing is the one financial aid factor that you have full control over. You should <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://plexuss.com/news/article/filing-the-fafsa-everything-you-need-to-know">file your FAFSA</a> as soon as possible. Some financial aid money like <a href=https://plexuss.com/n/"https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/grants-scholarships/pell">Pell Grants</a> and state-specific grants are awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis to eligible students. Unlike loans, these grants are essentially “free money” that you don’t have to pay back.</p>
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