The application for the "New" FAFSA will be opening December 31st. WHAT YOU NEED TO DO NOW IS CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT (if you don't have one) AND INVITE YOUR CONTRIBUTOR (parents) SO THEY CAN CREATE THEIR ACCOUNT. (Verification of Identity can take up to 3 days for each of you)

The opening of the application is being considered by the Department of Education as a "soft launch" which means that they are expecting there will be times of revamps with the program. The FAFSA information (even if you create AND apply) will not be available until JANUARY 30, 2024 to Institutions. THEN on the institution's side (college or university) may not be prepared to accept the information into their software (otherwise, they may need to make revisions to their software. There are some institutions that are projecting information NOT being available until sometime in March.

Overview of the Financial Aid Process

WHAT IS FEDERAL STUDENT AID?

Federal student aid from the Education Department covers such expenses as tuition and fees, housing and food, books and supplies, and transportation. Aid can also help pay for other related expenses, such as a computer and dependent care. Thousands of schools across the country participate in the federal student aid programs; ask the schools you’re interested in whether they do! PLEASE WATCH THIS SHORT VIDEO TO UNDERSTAND TYPES OF AID AND WHAT FEDERAL AID IS.  

Types of Federal Aid

 What You Can Do Now - STUDENT AND PARENT WILL NEED TO HAVE AN ACCOUNT

Find out if your parent(s) or spouse will need to be contributors (contribute their info on your FAFSA form).

 If your parent(s) or spouse will need to contribute to your form, make sure each contributor creates their own StudentAid.gov account. Even if a contributor doesn’t have a Social Security number, they will be able to create an account through the identity verification process on the 2025–26 FAFSA process.

Gaining higher education can be an expensive adventure.  Here are some helpful links to information that will show various resources to help understand the journey of “paying for college.”

Reciprocity for North Dakota residences to receive in state tuition for out of state colleges in MN (check with college FA department) – YOU MUST SIGN UP - You will need to know your Social Security Number

Form listed below to print off or you may sign up and find more information by going to this link:

Reciprocity

Financial Aid Information from ACT:  In this FREE eBook – Financial Aid: Paying for College and University – we help students through the financial aid process by teaching them:

·       The basics of financial aid

·       Where to find help paying for college

·       How to apply for financial assistance

·       How to estimate and compare the costs of their college choices

·       Ways to reduce and pay for the costs financial aid doesn’t cover

College Fee Calculators are located on Financial Aid Websites for individual colleges

One of the most important links is for Federal Student Aid.  There are application windows for applying and there are also deadlines that must be met.

FAFSA - https://studentaid.gov

Be AWARE of DEADLINE DATES for financial aid

Great Resources:

Lots of Information- https://studentloans.net/guide-to-paying-for-college/

Information of College Debit:  Debit.org

The path to financial aid: Financial Path

College Budgeting: My College Budget

Save Your Money, Save Your Identity:  http://www.studentaid.ed.gov/pubs