This document provides an overview of financial aid basics for paying for college. It discusses the main types of financial aid including grants, scholarships, loans, and work-study. It also outlines the key steps and tools used in applying for financial aid, including completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and CSS Profile if required by colleges. Experts provide advice on topics like the best times to complete financial aid forms, additional sources of aid including state programs and scholarships, and emphasizing applying for aid even if you don't think you will qualify.

1. Paying for College: FAFSA, FinancialAid,
and More
DeanBentley, Executive Director,FinancialAidEngagement,The
CollegeBoard
MorraLeeKeller,DirectorofTechnicalAssistance,NationalCollege
AccessNetwork
Tom McDermott,AssistantVice ProvostforFinancialAid,Johns
HopkinsUniversity

2. • FinancialAid Basics
• ToolsandCalculators
• College BoardOpportunityScholarships
• CSSProfile
• Additionalwaystopayforcollege & sourcesofinformation
• Advicefromfinancialaid experts
• Q&A
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What We’ll Cover

3. • Typesoffinancialaidinclude:
o Gift aid - grants and scholarships
o Loans -money that must be repaid
o Workstudy – money that must be earned
• Some scholarshipsmaybeawardedbasedonachievement, meritor otherfactors.
• Some financialaidmaybeawardedbasedon financialneed.
• Financialneed is determined using theExpectedFamily Contribution(EFC)
o EFC is a measureof a family’s financial strength based on information submitted on the
financial aid application.
o Financial Need= Cost -EFC
• Fourmain sources:
o Federal government
o State governments
o Colleges and universities
o Private organizations
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Financial aid is money that
can help students and
families pay for college
related expenses.
ThereareBILLIONSof dollars of undergraduateaid
available.
It canhelp you afford a collegethat you might’veruled out
as too expensive.
Evenifyou think you won’t qualify, you should stillapply.
Financial Aid Basics

4. 4
BigFuture.org
College Board
Resources

5. 5
BigFuture.org
Tools and
Calculators

6. • Gives you—for free—a personalized estimate ofwhat college will cost you.
• Asks you questions about finances, GPA, test scores, activities, andother factors that may qualify you for
financial aid.
• Makes sure you’re much moreinformed when deciding which colleges you can afford.
• Colleges anduniversities arerequired topost a Net PriceCalculator on their website.
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Net Price Calculator
FocusonNetPricenotStickerPrice
TotalCostof Attendance
- GiftAid
= Net Price

7. • Nowopen atfafsa.govforstudentsentering collegeFall 2020.
• Theapplicationgives studentsaccessto federalstudentaid andinstitutional
financialaidatmanyinstitutions.
• Parentsshouldworkwiththeir child tocompletethe form,as it requiresparentaltax
information.
• Parentswill need tocreate aFederal StudentAid ID (FSA ID) toaccessfederal
studentaid websitesandcompletethe FAFSA.
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Free Application for Federal
Student Aid
Completing the
FAFSA

8. • Learnaboutthe College BoardOpportunityScholarships,which allowstudentsto
earnscholarshipsfrom$500-$40,000.
• Studentsin theClassof2020canqualifytowina $1,000scholarshipjust for
completing the FAFSA!
Goto opportunity.collegeboard.orgto learn more
• Startingin November,College Boardis offeringfree, personalized FAFSA
reminders andassistancebytext message toall studentsregistered forthe College
BoardOpportunityScholarships.
• This assistanceis powered byourpartnerstheBenefits DataTrust,anationalleader
in public benefitsenrollment.
• Studentscanopt-outanytime.Informationwill never besharedwithathirdparty.
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Get help completing
the Free Application
for Federal Student
Aid (FAFSA)

9. Toreceive thisassistance,yourstudentshould:
1. Go toopportunity.collegeboard.orgtocreate anaccountorlog-in
2. Head totheCompletethe FAFSAscholarshiponthe MyActionPlanpage
3. They’ll see“Click hereif youhavequestionsorneed help completing the
FAFSA”–click!
4. Submittheirfirstname andmobilenumberin the form.
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Get help completing
the Free Application
for Federal Student
Aid (FAFSA)

10. • The CSSProfile™ is a financial aidapplication used by many colleges toawardtheir own dollars on topof
aidyou might receive fromfederal andstate sources.
• Complete the CSSProfile toapply fora college’s financial aidprograms if it uses CSSProfile. Use FAFSA to
apply forfederal andstate aid. You can fill out the FAFSA andCSSProfileat the same time.
• By filling out the CSSProfile,you can beconsidered for nonfederal financial aidprograms fromalmost 400
colleges, universities, professional schools, andscholarship programs.
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Tools and Resources:
CSS Profile
Available Oct 1st for the future academic year
at: cssprofile.org
For example the application is now available for
students entering college Fall 2020or Spring 2021.

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…the college or university
your child may be interested
in attending…
Financial aid officers are the
best resource to help families
navigate school specific
requirements and funding
opportunities.
Federal websites also provide
good resources.
Who is the best
source for
information?

12. • 529College Savings Plans
o It’s a way for families to save money for education related expenses includingtuition,
room and board, books, fees and computer equipment. Moneygrows tax free.
Typicallydistributed tax free, too.
• CollegeSavings.Org -Nationalclearinghousefor529planinfo.
• Scholarshipsarewaystoearnmoneyforcollege thatyoudon’thavetopayback.
o Search for scholarships on BigFuture wherethereare morethan 2,200programs
totaling more than $6Bin scholarships.
o Be sureto research thescholarship application requirements and complete them on
time.
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Other Ways to Pay
for College

13. • Tell us a little abouttheNationalCollege Access Networkandhowyouareinvolved in
financialaid.
• Whenis thebest time forhigh schoolseniors tocompletethe Free Applicationfor
Federal StudentAid (FAFSA) andwhatadvicedoyouhaveforparentsaboutthe
FAFSA?
• Whatshouldparentsdo whentheir child is a freshman,sophomore,orjuniortoplan
forhowtopayforcollege?
• Whatshouldparentsof seniorsdo tohelp theirchild planforhowto payforcollege?
• Dostudentsneed toknowwheretheyareattendingcollege beforecompleting the
forms?
• Whataregoodplacesforstudentstolookforscholarshipsor othernon-federal
sourcesof aid? Dostatesofferfinancialaid?
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What do students and parents need to
knowabout paying for college?
Advice from
MorraLee Keller, Director of Technical Assistance
National College Access Network

14. • Tell us moreaboutfinancialaidatJohnsHopkinsUniversity andhowandwhen high
schoolstudentsmayapply.
• Does applyingforfinancialaidhurtastudent’schancesofbeing admitted?
• Whatadvicedo youhaveforparentscompleting theFAFSA andCSSProfile?
• Shouldastudentstill applytothe JohnsHopkinsif their parentthinkstheywon’t
qualifyforenough financialaid?
• What’sthe differencebetween aneed-basedgrantandmerit-basedscholarship?Do
private/outsidescholarshipsaffectotherfinancialaidawards?
• What’syouradvice tostudentsandparentsabouttakingoutloanstopayforcollege?
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Howdo colleges decidewho gets
financial aid and scholarships?
Advice from
Tom McDermott, Assistant Vice Provost for Financial Aid
JohnsHopkins University

15. Please submit your questions in
the Q&A module on the bottom
right-hand corner of your screen.
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Q&A

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More Resources:
Estimate your financial aid eligibility and netprice:
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/paying-your-share/focus-on-net-price-not-sticker-
price
https://professionals.collegeboard.org/higher-ed/financial-aid/netprice/participating-schools
Create your username and password for the online Federal Student Aid System:
https://fsaid.ed.gov/
Complete the FAFSA:
https://fafsa.ed.gov/
Complete the CSS Profile:
cssprofile.org
Learn about College Board Opportunity Scholarships:
• https://opportunity.collegeboard.org/
Learn about federal financial aid:
• https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/
Resources for parents:
• https://parents.collegeboard.org/

17. Thank
you.
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