College Tips For Completing Financial Aid Forms
By: Gen Tanabe
Co-founder of SuperCollege.com and co-author of "Get Into Any College" and "Get Free Cash For College."
At the end of Chapter 11 of our book, Get Into Any College: Secrets Of Harvard Students is a letter that explained the financial strain of having a parent laid off which convinced Harvard's Financial Aid Office to increase their offer of financial aid to a student by thousands of dollars.
While most students will not have this kind of experience, there are effective ways that you can make your needs known to the financial aid officers. The best way is to complete the myriad of forms carefully.
Be Thorough. By this we mean both making sure that you complete every blank and that you include as much information as you have.
Be Honest. You don't want lies about your financial aid application coming to haunt you as a student. And trust us, you won't be a student for long if this happens.
Show That You Need Aid (If Indeed You Do). If you are in need of support, which is the case for most students, demonstrate it. In the space provided on the application or in a separate letter, explain any factors that you think might affect your family's ability to pay. Make sure to note any extenuating circumstances that the government or colleges may overlook. Such circumstances include unusual medical or dental expenses, costs for a sibling's education, or a parent's recent unemployment.
Make Copies As Cheat Sheets. After you have completed all of your application forms, make sure that you make copies of them. You will be using some of this information when applying to other scholarships and also when applying for aid for the following year.
You've been through the grueling process once, make it easier for yourself the next time by having your photocopies to use as cheat sheets.
Co-founder of SuperCollege.com and co-author of "Get Into Any College" and "Get Free Cash For College."
At the end of Chapter 11 of our book, Get Into Any College: Secrets Of Harvard Students is a letter that explained the financial strain of having a parent laid off which convinced Harvard's Financial Aid Office to increase their offer of financial aid to a student by thousands of dollars.
While most students will not have this kind of experience, there are effective ways that you can make your needs known to the financial aid officers. The best way is to complete the myriad of forms carefully.
Be Thorough. By this we mean both making sure that you complete every blank and that you include as much information as you have.
Be Honest. You don't want lies about your financial aid application coming to haunt you as a student. And trust us, you won't be a student for long if this happens.
Show That You Need Aid (If Indeed You Do). If you are in need of support, which is the case for most students, demonstrate it. In the space provided on the application or in a separate letter, explain any factors that you think might affect your family's ability to pay. Make sure to note any extenuating circumstances that the government or colleges may overlook. Such circumstances include unusual medical or dental expenses, costs for a sibling's education, or a parent's recent unemployment.
Make Copies As Cheat Sheets. After you have completed all of your application forms, make sure that you make copies of them. You will be using some of this information when applying to other scholarships and also when applying for aid for the following year.
You've been through the grueling process once, make it easier for yourself the next time by having your photocopies to use as cheat sheets.
posted by Jared Wash at 10:33 AM
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