FAFSA APPLICATION & FINAL COLLEGE PREPARATION Coach Rob Frias, CCA Certified College Advisor and Financial Aid Expert College Funding Solutions of California, Inc. A non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization www.cfscalifornia.com The information contained herein is for educational purposes only. College Funding Solutions of California, Inc., owns all rights to the presentation materials. Any use or redistribution of the materials contained in this presentation are prohibited.
AGENDA Introduction of Speaker/Company Statistics You Need to Know FAFSA application CSS/Profile Financial Aid, Grants, Scholarships, Loans Common Mistakes Summary and Q&A
Introduction Coach Rob Frias, CCA Certified College Advisor with College Funding Solutions, Inc. CFS has over 24 years of experience and close to 50,000 satisfied customers. Rob has over 14 years in the Financial Services industry and specializes in college savings, tax mitigation strategies, retirement income and insurance protection products. Rob is a local travel baseball coach and has raised a son who is a high school Baseball and Water Polo player at El Toro high school.
National Statistics US faces $1,400,000,000,000,000 in student loan debt Average Student Graduates in 6 years Over $35,000 in debt for typical student Over 8,000,000 student loans currently in default 98% of families saved $10k for college or less Parents spend 76-99 + hours preparing for college 75% of FAFSA applications are filled out incorrectly Over 98% of families qualify for additional grants, scholarships and gift aid they were not aware of Sources: Collegedebt.com, Department of Education, Sallie Mae Study, New York Times, Time Magazine, Washington Post
FAFSA Application www.fafsa.ed.gov
The FAFSA Application FAFSA Free Application for Federal Student Aid Open Window: October 1 st of Senior Year Due by: March 2 nd (California), June 30 th (Federal) Why? Virtually all Financial Aid Awards use FAFSA (Federal, State, Institution) Aid: Grants, Scholarships, Student Loans and Work Study
Important Items to Prepare Social Security Number Mom, Dad, Student Drivers License Number (optional) Taxes of Parents and Child 2015 year (18 months) Current Income Information Mom, Dad, Student, Step Parents All Financial Assets All bank, savings, trust, investments, retirement accounts, life insurance, business, real estate Current and correct addresses and emails
Getting Started www.fafsa.ed.gov
Filling Out the FAFSA Application Schedule about one hour to fill out FAFSA Register online Get FSA ID#, get SAVE key Make sure all information is correct Be aware of correct income and assets How the assets are categorized Have taxes ready online Data Retrieval Tool, links IRS FAFSA Forecaster (FAFSA4CASTER) Assistance 800-4-FED-AID
Major Sections of FAFSA 1. Introduction 2. Student Demographic 3. School Selection 4. Dependency Determination 5. Parents Demographic 6. Parent Tax/Financial Information 7. Student Tax/Financial Information 8. Review, Sign and Get Confirmation
Next Steps Submit FAFSA Get back Student Aid Report (SAR) Review for accuracy Expected Family Contribution (EFC) This determines your Financial Need College will Award based on FAFSA findings Final Award letters sent in March, April and May Formula COA (Cost of Attendance) - EFC (Expected Family Contribution) = FINANCIAL NEED
Data on FAFSA
Data on FAFSA Make sure name is spelled correctly Make sure social security number is correct All data is accurate as possible Have the family review one last time to make sure all data is complete and accurate 75% of FAFSA applications have errors that cause families to delay and miss out on grants, scholarships and special programs
Finance Section
Finance Section on FAFSA Enter taxes by Data Retrieval Tool (DRT link to IRS) Note (Taxes are submitted for previous year, income now) Enter Income of Family Enter all Assets (Assessed and Exempt) Assessed (all money in bank, college savings plans, all investments, trust accounts, child support, investment property, stocks/bonds, CD s, business ownership 100+ and farms Exempt (retirement accounts, annuities, cash value life insurance, primary residence, boats/cars/furniture/electronics Tip: How to avoid listing out all Assessed assets Advice: Pay down bills, defer income and compensation, save money or reposition assets into exempt investments
Benefits of the FAFSA Necessary for all scholarships and grants Academic, Athletic, Merit, Achievement and Need Based Families have nothing to lose Family makes too much money is a Myth Annual process, money available annually Multiple students in college, families benefit Most colleges use them as their primary source for making financial offers
CSS/Profile
CSS/PROFILE Administered by College Board (SAT administrators) About 300 Private Universities Institutional Methodology (not Federal aid) Fee for CSS/Profile (fee waiver codes available) Financial Information is collected (limited exemptions) Fill out form at www.css.collegeboard.org or on the University website if they request it
CALIFORNIA DREAM ACT Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors For AB540 Eligible Students (undocumented and non-resident documented) to receive scholarships and CC fee waivers Must have attended high school 3 years or more, Graduated GED, High School Equivalency Test or Test Assessing Secondary Completion Must register in a California accredited college and if applicable, to complete an affidavit to legalize immigration status as soon eligible Supporting documentation must be filled out in the spring or summer before attending college www.dream.csac.ca.gov
How Do Colleges Award Aid?
Main Sources of Financial Aid FEDERAL AID Over $150 Billion available each year Grants, Scholarships, Work-Study and Loans Pell Grant, FSEOG, Teach, Military Grant Iraq/Afghanistan STATE AID States offer grants, scholarships, loans and work-study programs also Cal Grant A, B and C THIRD PARTY Third party grants that do not have to be paid back. Companies, organizations, awarded by applying INSTITUTIONAL Largest source of funds available Merit, Need Based and Athletic Scholarships Endowment Funds and Departmental funds Awards are generally sent in late March and must be accepted by mid May
Grants and Loan Maximum Amounts Federal Grants: Pell Grant $5,815 maximum (limited to 12 semesters) Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) $4,000 max. TEACH Grant $4,000 max. (requirements and agreement) Iraq/Afghanistan Service Grant (up to $5,815, not to exceed COA) State Grants: www.webgrants4students.org Cal Grant A $12,240/UC, $5,472/CSU and $9,084 for Independent Schools Cal Grant B $1,656 applied toward living expense at 2 or 4 year schools Cal Grant C $547 toward books, tools and equipment and $2,462 more toward tuition and fees (not valid for Community Colleges who do not charge tuition to Cal Grant recipients) Middle Class Grant for families who earn $156,000 in AGI (maximum 10-40% of tuition)
Grants and Loan Maximum Amounts Institutional Grants: Based on individual basis (University, Departmental, Athletic Department) 3 rd Party Scholarships: There is NO limit and they do not have to pay them back (Must disclose) Student Loans: Freshman maximum loan $5,500, $3,500 max for subsidized 2 nd year loan maximum $6,500, $4,500 max for subsidized Third year and beyond loan maximum $7,500, $5,500 max for subsidized Total limit on loans $31,000 maximum, $23,000 max for subsidized Parents Direct PLUS loans, Perkins loans (school), 3 rd party loans
What Do Colleges Look For? 1. High GPA 2. Rigor of Courses 3. SAT and ACT Scores 4. Overall College Resume 5. Exceptional Qualities
Most Common Mistakes in the FAFSA Process Incorrect Social Security Number on FAFSA Misspelling of Name on FAFSA Transpose Numbers Incorrect Income and Financial Data entered Too much Liquid assets listed on FAFSA Applications are Late or Not turned in at all Not organized, no long-term strategy, not educated on process PROCRASTINATION!!!
Final Planning for College
Senior Checklist Savings Plan for College in Place Applications are submitted on time (to all schools) SAT, ACT exams have been take and re-taken, maintain GPA Campus Visit has been planned or completed Schools have been researched (major, cost, career paths, aid given) FAFSA documentation prepared and submitted (assets in place) Review acceptance letters and send letters of regret Review and accept award letters (appeal if necessary) Register for housing Final preparation for moving to college
THINGS YOU WILL NOT MISS WHEN THE KIDS ARE AT SCHOOL 5. Hearing your siblings fight over the bathroom 4. Doing the laundry everyday for their favorite t-shirt or skinny jeans 3. Finding your new outfit balled up in the corner of the room (mom) or finding crushed up Cheetos between the leather seats of dad s new car 2. Going to the grocery store twice a day to feed half the senior class 1. Hearing your child say, Mom/Dad, is the tank to the car full, can I get more money for tonight, 11pm is my curfew, yeah whatever?!?
In Summary Get organized, create a comprehensive plan Do not miss any deadlines Complete an accurate FAFSA application (focus on data) Review savings and financial options Maintain GPA, take SAT and ACT to achieve highest scores Carefully review award letters and select best college that matches degree/career path at affordable price A family that has a solid plan will graduate the student faster than the national average, receive more awards and save your family money on college expenses
College Planning Financial Savings Plans College Test Prep Career Counseling College Selection Contact Coach Rob Frias, CCA Certified College Advisor (949) 438-3570 direct info@cfscalifornia.com Complimentary Consultation (up to 1 Hour Meeting) www.cfscalifornia.com a non-profit 501 (C) (3) organization
Questions and Answers www.cfscalifornia.com