Foreign Student Financial Aid Application

Foreign Student Financial Aid Application

Foreign Student Financial Aid Application

High school seniors anticipate the time of year that they can start to apply for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, beginning January 1st of the student's senior year. If a student or parent is ambitious and attempts to fill this out before then, they will not be able to. If they really cannot wait to find out what their predicted financial aid will be, a great website called Fafsa4caster predicts the aid the student will receive based on their parents' previous year tax information.

When to Fill Out the FAFSA

Although the FAFSA officially opens January first every year, most parents cannot file the FAFSA until they complete their taxes, and that is often not until February. Although FAFSA states students can apply for federal financial aid any time, the money may not necessarily be there. Oftentimes, grant money is gone by March and April. Even if a student qualifies for grant money, the state may have run out of money.

Types of Federal Financial Aid Available

Federal Grants are a need based on parent income. Students receive different amounts of grant money based on the type of grant. Students must also be enrolled at least part-time. This is not to be confused with a loan; grant money is money a student does not need to pay back.