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Western 101: FAFSA - What You Need to Know
FAFSA it is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid so
the big emphasis is that it's free. It doesn't have to be paid
for and it's the number one priority that we have for our
students that they complete every year that they attend on
planning school. The FAFSA like I said becomes available
January first and it becomes available online at fafsa.gov
because it is a government application, it is available on a
government website and we particularly reinforce that
students use fafsa.gov because there it is free. Our office
has a priority processing deadline of February first.
Students and parents can estimate their tax information on
the FAFSA. Which means they can do it January first, as
soon as it's available. They don't have to wait and they
to delay getting it done. To give a best estimate, we would
recommend that students or parents use a tax form from
a previous year. If it's pretty relevant and similar to the
current tax year. They can also use their W2 forms. They
can also use a recent pay stub. So the better the student's
estimate, the better the parent's estimate, when that
information gets to us, the more accurate it is, the more
accurate the information we can provide back to the student
will be. But if a student can get their application to us
earlier that will ensure they get a response from us in a
timely fashion. Allows them plenty of time to resolve any
issues or discrepancies we may have or if they have
questions or problems, allows us time to work together.
The later we get an application, particularly as it gets
closer to the start of the school year the more that can
jeopardize a students ability to plan and budget accordingly.
For more information on Financial Aid and FAFSA, please vist www.wiu.edu/fa