Financial Aid

In accordance with the Higher Education Act of 2008 (HEOA), each postsecondary institution that participates in Title IV federal student aid programs must post a net price calculator on its website that uses institutional data to provide estimated net price information to families based on a student's individual circumstances.  All NPC's consist of two main components:  "institutional information" (cost of attendance, average amount of aid distributed, etc.) and "user information" (9 questions related to dependent status, income/tax info, number of dependents, etc.).  Families will plug this information into cells and move along to a new screen with the next question.  Families are encouraged to use the most accurate information they have in order to make the NPC outcome as close to a true figure as possible.  A very brief but helpful explanation of NPCs is available on College Board's website:  http://netpricecalculator.collegeboard.org/what-is-a-net-price-calculator.

 

Go to www.FederalStudentAid.ed.gov and click on the Parents/Students link to locate FAFSA4caster. You can also call 1-800-4-FED-AID.   

  

Access to the 2013-14 FAFSA opens January 1, 2013. You must complete and submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to apply for all federal student aid and to apply for most state and college aid. Apply online- FAFSA on the Web- at www.fafsa.gov.as soon as possible after January 1st of the student's senior year. Using the FAFSA on the Web Worksheet will help you gather the information you need in order to complete your FAFSA. You can complete a practice FAFSA at the site before January.

  

The FAFSA is free. If you are asked to pay a fee you are at the wrong site!

 

Students planning on starting college in the FALL 2013 will complete the FAFSA for the 2013-14academic year - the year they will start college. 

 

Both the student and a parent will need a PIN to electronically sign this document. You can apply for a PIN as early as November at www.pin.ed.gov. Be sure to keep them where you can find them when you need them.

 

Each college has their own deadline for submitting the FAFSA - watch for and mind these deadlines! Estimate your figures if you must to meet the deadlines. You can make corrections when exact figures are available.

 

Federal Student Aid provides free help online at www.fafsa.gov or you can call 1-800-4-FED-AID.

For any Illinois state aid questions, you can contact ISAC - Illinois Student Assistance Commission) at 847-948-8550 or 1-800-899-ISAC.

 

Under Docments to the right of this section, several financial aid handouts will soon be available for your use: Helpful Websites for Financial Aid and Applying for Financial Aid in 7 Easy Steps should answer most of your questions.

 

 

College Zone is a state of Illinois site that provides students with information about planning for college, finding a good college fit, applying to college, and financing college.