1. PRESENTER
USC
LANCASTER
USC Lancaster
Kenneth T. Cole
Director of Financial Aid

2. 
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What is Financial Aid
Sources of Financial Aid
When to Apply
How to Apply
Scholarships
Filing the FAFSA (FAFSA Walk-thru)
What does the FAFSA tell us
After the FAFSA
Verification
The Financial Aid Office
Special Circumstances
CSS Profile
Important Dates

3. 
It is assistance in paying your Tuition, Fees,
Room, Board and other college expenses

It most likely will not pay your entire bill

4. 
Federal Government (Grants & Loans)
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State (Grants & Scholarships)
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Institution (Grants, Scholarships & Loans)
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Private Agencies (Grants, Scholarships & Loans)

5. 
Scholarships: October 2013
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Federal Aid: Before March 2014
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After that, limited funds may be gone

6. 
Institutional Scholarships:
◦ Contact the admissions office
◦ Contact the financial aid office
◦ Contact the department of your major
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Private Agencies:
◦ Contact them directly
◦ Check with your High School Guidance Counselor
◦ Search on-line: fastweb.com schoolsoup.com

Federal and State Aid:
◦ FAFSA Free Application for Federal Student Aid
◦ www.fafsa.gov (not .com)
◦ Applying is FREE (there is no fee)

7. 
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Common Requirements:
◦ 3.0+ GPA
◦ 1000+ SAT (Math+Verbal) or 22+ ACT
Applications:
◦ Essay
◦ Letters of Recommendation
◦ Hi-light your extracurricular activities
◦ Explain how your experiences will lead to your educational
goals
Search Engines:
◦ Fastweb.com
◦ Schoolsoup.com
When to apply?
◦ Start: October-January of your Senior Year

8. 
When should I file?
◦ Starting January 1st
◦ You can estimate your tax information
(don’t have to wait)
◦ Before the end of March

9. 
Must have a high school diploma or GED.
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Must be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a
regular student working toward a degree or certificate
in an eligible program.
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Must be a US citizen or eligibile non-citizen.
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Must have a valid Social Security Number.
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Must be registered with the Selective Service, if
required.
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There are other eligibility criteria, but rarely an issue.

10. 
What will I need to file my FAFSA?
◦ Your Federal Taxes (2013) – Or an estimate
◦ Your Parents’ Federal Taxes (2013) – Or an estimate
◦ Order Tax Return Transcripts from www.IRS.gov
◦ You can use the “IRS Data Retrieval” to download the tax information.
To do so, the student and/or parent must wait at least 3 weeks after filing
taxes.
(starting Late February)
◦ Your PIN.
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(Personal Identification Number)
A 4 digit number chosen by you.
Done within the FAFSA
You will need your SSN, DOB, Full Correct Name and Address
Must match the SSN Card.
◦ Your parents’ PIN.

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Get Ready: Taxes, SSNs, Dates of Birth
Log on to www.fafsa.gov
Click on “Start 2014-2015 FAFSA”
Create a PIN for yourself
Answer questions about yourself
Choose schools to send FAFSA to
Answer “Dependency Status” questions
Answer questions about your parents
Answer income information
Create a PIN for your parents’ and sign
Submit the FAFSA, and print Confirmation
3 weeks after taxes, IRS Data Retrieval

12. 
You can use estimated tax information
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Order a “Tax Return Transcript” from IRS.gov
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The FAFSA is filed by the Student (not parent).
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Make sure you have the correct SSN.
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Use the IRS data-retrieval 2 weeks after filing
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Make sure you sign it with a PIN
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Make sure your parents sign it with a PIN
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Check with the school 2 weeks later
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After you have submitted the application, you can go
back and make changes so long as you have your
PIN.

15. 
Am I Independent?:
◦ Over 23 years old?
◦ Veteran or on Active Duty?
◦ Parents Deceased and not adopted?
◦ Married?
◦ Children or other dependents for whom you –the
student- provide 50% of their support?
◦ Foster youth, emancipated minor, in legal guardianship,
or unaccompanied youth who are homeless.
◦ Note: Living on your own doesn’t qualify you as
Independent (you will need your parents’ taxes)

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25. 
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My grandparents/aunt/uncle/friend raised me but
did not adopt me, can I put their information on
the FAFSA?
◦ No, you must have your parents info
◦ If you can not reach your parents, put zeroes in their
section
◦ Ask for a “Dependency Override” from the school.
I am in Legal Custody, do I put my Custodian’s
information here?
◦ No, you should be Independent.
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My parents are Divorced, whose information do I
use?
◦ Custodial Parent and Step-Parent (if remarried)

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29. 
Do my parents’ need to File Taxes? Most likely
“Yes”, if…
◦ A single person’s income is more than $10,000
◦ A married couple’s income is more than $20,000
◦ their taxable unearned income more than $950
◦ they’re untaxed Self employed income is more than
$400

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35. If you don’t
know what it
is, you
probably
don’t have it!
35

36. If you don’t
know what it
is, you
probably
don’t have it!
36

37. If you don’t
know what it
is, you
probably
don’t have it!
37

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40. 
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Do I need to File Taxes? Yes, if…
◦ your total income is more than $5700
◦ your unearned income more than $950
◦ you’re Self employed earning more than $400
Can I, the student, work and still be eligible for
Financial Aid?
◦ Yes, up to $3750 a year is ignored
◦ Anything over that reduces your eligibility

41. 41

42. If your parents
claim you on
their taxes, do
not claim
yourself.
42

43. If you don’t
know what it
is, you
probably
don’t have it!
43

44. You may have
these starting
your 2nd year
of college
44

45. Only the student is asked
this question.

46. 46

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48. Be sure to hit the “Submit My FAFSA Now”
 follow ALL instructions.
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51. 
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What does the FAFSA tell me?
◦ It determines the Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
◦ It determines eligibility for Federal and State Grants
◦ It replaces a credit check for Federal Student Loans
What is the EFC?
◦ What your family could contribute towards the total cost of living
and paying for college
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What is the “Cost of Attendance”?
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Estimate of ALL costs to attend college
Usually based on 9 months living expenses
Tuition, Fees, Books, Supplies, Room, Board, Transportation
Other miscellaneous expenses
How do you calculate the “Need”?
◦ Need Formula: COA-EFC = NEED
◦ Need limits “need based aid”
 Grants
 Subsidized Loans

52. 
Update your Tax Info
◦ Do the “IRS Data Match” as soon as possible
◦ If you Amend your taxes, update your FAFSA
◦ You can’t use the IRS Data Match if you amended taxes
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The FAFSA will be sent to the colleges you listed
◦ They will receive an electronic copy
◦ Check with the college 2 weeks later
◦ You may be selected for Verification
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You will receive a Student Aid Report
◦ By e-mail (secure link) or by mail (paper form)
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You may be selected for “Verification”

53. What is Verification?
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A review and correction of your application information
Applications are randomly selected
The schools will notify you
Each school will need to verify you
What will you need to do?
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Complete, sign and return the “Verification Worksheet”;
Complete IRS data-retrieval (student and parent)
OR provide a Federal IRS Tax Return Transcript
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The college may be require you to send copies of other
forms: W-2s,1099-R, 1099-G, tax schedules, etc…
◦
You must do this promptlyorder a TAX RETURN TRANSCRIPT
You may
from the Internal Revenue Service online at
www.irs.gov or by phone at 1-800-908-9946.

54. 
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The FAFSA is available to the college in 2-3 business
days.
It may take 2 weeks for the Financial Aid Office to
process the application.
They will notify you if you need to provide more
information (ie verification)
Once your application is complete with the college,
they can award you financial aid.
Every college has their own process, learn it!
You may be required to set up an online account to
access your information.
If you have a “Special Circumstance” contact a
Financial Aid Counselor at the college.

55. 
Any circumstance that could change your eligibility for
financial aid
◦ Change in income
◦ Change in living expenses/housing
◦ Change in dependency status
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Each college has their own policies and procedures
Contact the Financial Aid Counselor at your college
Be prepared to provide evidence
No college is required to approve such a request

56. 
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A supplemental Financial Aid Application
Not required for Federal or State Aid
Used by many private colleges
For Institutional Scholarships and Grants.
Application fee of $9, plus $16 per college
Some fee waivers are granted
Administered by the College Board
The Financial Aid Office will inform you if they want
you to complete this.

57. 
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October: Apply for Scholarships
November:
Schools begin admitting
January: Scholarships awarded
January 1
FAFSA available
February 22nd College Goal SC -USCL
March
Have FAFSA filed
April
Schools begin awarding
April 15th Tax Filing Deadline
June 30th SC Tuition Grant Deadline
June
Award Letters sent
August 1st After this date, FAFSA is late
August
Bills due, School begins

58. 
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You must reapply for financial aid each year by renewing
your FAFSA
If you change schools:
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Add the School Code on the FAFSA
Contact their Financial Aid Office to get it started
You will lose out on “First Come, First Serve awards”
You will keep Pell, Loans and private scholarships (in most
cases)
There are many other sources of Aid.
◦ Search for scholarships in your community.
◦ Search the Web
◦ Don’t pay for a scholarship or grant application

59. Thank you for your
attention!
Contact Us!
USC Lancaster
Kenneth Cole
 BY MAIL:
PO Box 889
Lancaster, SC 29721
 BY PHONE: (803) 313-7068
 Visit Us: 127 Starr Hall, Hubbard Drive
 BY WEB: http://usclancaster.sc.edu/
A presentation like this is available at the USC Lancaster Financial Aid Office
Website