Transcript Slide 1

View these stories
• http://youcango.collegeboard.org/stories
College Application & Financial
Aid Workshop
Don’t think you can go
to college?
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Financial Aid is money received from state and federal
governments and private institutions that is awarded to
help students pay for college expenses
• Grants and Scholarships
– money you do not pay back (with exception)
• Work study
– Money the student earns by working in a job
provided by the school
• Loans
– Money that you must repay
– Subsidized versus unsubsidized
– Additional unsubsidized versus PLUS
Use student loans as a last resort.
• Aid for all income levels
FAFSA4caster
• Use FAFSA4caster to see how federal student aid can
help you pay for college.
• Get an idea now what you May qualify for next year.
o www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov
• To get started you need your parents info and
estimated income for 2011
Source for Statistics:
The College Board, “Regional Variation in
Charges,” Trends in College Pricing, Oct. 2008
The Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA)
What is the FAFSA?
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The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
is a form that current and prospective students must
annually complete to apply for federal student aid
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Applications are available electronically or in paper
form
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Students are encouraged to apply as soon as
possible on or after January 1st
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Completing the FAFSA is just the first step in the
financial aid process
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MTI will host a FAFSA COMPLETION NIGHT IN
FEBRUARY. LISTEN FOR ANNOUNCEMENTS.
Before Beginning the FAFSA
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Check ALL application deadlines
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School and state deadlines* may differ from federal guidelines
Confirm your dependency status*
Search for school codes*
Determine how you will submit the FAFSA
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Electronically (up to 14 days FASTER!)
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Electronic signature and submission requires a PIN
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Establish a PIN before (www.fafsa.gov) or during the
application process
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Manually
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Sign and mail the application to the address provided
*Can be done online at
www.fafsa.ed.gov!
Before Beginning the FAFSA
– Organize your documents
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2011-12 documents needed to complete the FAFSA include:
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Your Social Security Number
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Your Driver’s License Number (if any)
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2010 W-2 Forms and other records of money earned
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Your 2010 Federal Income Tax Return for the current tax
year
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Your parents’ 2010 Federal Income Tax Return (if you are a
dependent student)
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Your 2010 untaxed income records
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Your current bank statements
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Your current business and investment mortgage information,
business and farm records, stock, bond and other investment
records
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Your alien registration or permanent resident card (if you
are not a U.S. citizen)
“FAFSA on the Web”
Worksheet
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Allows you to read and complete FAFSA questions
before entering your information online
Questions are listed in the same order that they
appear on the official electronic application
Available online at:
 http://www.fafsa.gov
You can also obtain printed copies of this worksheet
by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) or
through your financial aid office
Complete the FAFSA Electronically
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Go to www.fafsa.gov and click on “Fill Out Your
FAFSA”
Complete the FAFSA by transferring the data from
your “FAFSA on the Web” worksheet to your
electronic application
Sign and submit the electronic FAFSA with your PIN
 Parent and student must have a PIN
 Remember, you can apply for a PIN before or
during the FAFSA process
 If you cannot remember your PIN, you may
request a duplicate PIN by visiting www.fafsa.gov
AM I Independent or
Dependent?
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Married
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100% Support Dependent Child
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Active Military
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Homeless and NOT living with parents
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Fosterchild
FAFSA Web site
Information to Keep In Mind
• Contact your COLLEGE to determine your award
eligibility
• Your FAFSA may be used to apply for aid from other
sources, including your COLLEGEl and state
• If you need help filling out the FAFSA or if you have
any questions about the FAFSA, call the Federal
Student Aid Information Center toll-free at
1-800-4-FED-AID
• Don’t forget to apply for grants, scholarships, or
other financial aid at the institution you want to
attend
• Use student loans as a last resort
State Grants and Scholarships
State Grants & Scholarships
• The Florida Department of Education, Office of
Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) administers
state-funded grant and scholarship programs.
• Bright Futures is only one of many different Florida
scholarship programs that use this one application.
• Please visit www.FloridaStudentFinancialAid.org for
detailed information, applications, and deadlines
• Apply between December 1st and June 4th – IF YOU
DON’T APPLY BEFORE GRADUATION, YOU CAN NOT
APPLY LATER.
• MTI WILL HELP SENIORS IN JANUARY 
Big Changes to Bright Futures
Academic Scholars
(award funding for up to 120 college
credit hours)
Florida Medallion
(award funding for up to 120 college
credit hours)
Gold Seal
(award funding for up to 90 college credit hours)
GPA
3.5 weighted GPA in only the courses listed
below taken before graduation
3.0 weighted GPA in only the courses listed
taken before graduation
3.0 weighted GPA using the 16 core credits required for high school
graduation, AND a 3.5 unweighted GPA in a minimum of three Career
and Technical Education credits in one vocational program
Courses
used for
Calculating
GPA
4 English
4 Math
3 Science
3 Social Studies
2 Foreign Language
+2 additional core academics can be used to
achieve required GPA
4 English
4 Math
3 Science
3 Social Studies
2 Foreign Language
+ 2 additional core academics can be used
to achieve required GPA
4 English
4 Math
3 Science
3 Social Studies
1 Performing Arts
1 HOPE
Test Scores
ACT Composite Score = 28
SAT R/M Combined = 1270Seniors 1280
Juniors
All tests must be taken by 6/15/2012 for
qualification
ACT Composite Score = 21 Seniors 22
Juniors
SAT R/M Combined = 980Seniors 1020
Juniors
All tests must be taken by 6/15/2012 for
qualification
ACT = R18 Eng.17 Math 19
SAT = R440 M440
CPT = R83 SS83 El Alg. 72
A student must qualify on the ACT alone, the SAT alone, or the CPT
alone. Test types cannot be combined.
Community
Service
Hours
100 Community Services Hours – Hours
must be documented and approved by
school prior to graduation.
75 Community Service Hours – Hours must
be documented and approved by school
prior to graduation.
30 Community Service Hours – Hours must be documented and
approved by school prior to graduation.
Student Application
www.facts.org
• Florida Academic Counseling and Tracking for
Students (facts.org) is Florida's official online
student advising system that can assist high school
students, college students, parents, and even
counselors to help plan and track educational
progress in Florida
• Go to www.facts.org:
• Click on “High School Students”
• Click one of the links under “Plan and Track
Progress”
• Requires User ID/Password
• FORGOT ID/PASSWORD – Student Identification
Number is SSS# + X
www.facts.org
Use facts.org to Check Bright
Futures Eligibility
COLLEGE APPLICATION CHECKLIST
FOR OCTOBER – DECEMBER
• FACTS.org – It is never too early to go
online
• ID 2 or 3 colleges
• Search by major not by football
• Go on School website – Educate self on
admission deadlines & application
• SIGN UP FOR ACT, SAT, PERT
• PICK UP & FILL OUT BRAG SHEET FOR
RECOMMENDATIONS
• CHECK OUT FINANCIAL AID WALL &
WEBSITES
• FAFSA4Caster.ed.gov
• Community Service Hours
• COMPLETE ALL 4-Year University &
Private School APPLICATIONS (see each
school)
• After 1st semester COMPLETE Community
College & Some Technical School
Applications
WHICH TEST – SAT vs ACT
SAT
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No Science
No Trig
Vocabulary Emphasized
Non- Multiple Choice Questions
No English Grammar
Questions go from easy to hard in most
sections
Guessing is penalized
Scoring – you get a point for every RIGHT
answer & lose fraction of point for a WRONG
answer. No deduction for an BLANK answer.
ACT
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SAT TEST LENGTH
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Reading – 70 Minutes
Mathematics – 70 Minutes
Writing (MC) – 25 minutes
Writing (ESSAY)
Science Reasoning Section
Math includes Trig and Pre-Cal
Vocabulary less important
Entirely multiple choice questions
English Grammar is tested
Easy and hard questions mixed within each section
No penalty for guessing
Scoring – Answer every question. Your score is based
on the # of questions you get right
ACT TEST LENGTH
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Reading - 35 Minutes
Mathematics – 60 Minutes
English – 45 Minutes
Science 35 Minutes
FREE TEST PREP
o ACT: www.actstudent.org/testprep
 Free ACT Question of the Day
 Free Practice Tests
 “Preparing for the ACT – free guide to help you get ready and practice
tests
o SAT: http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice
 Free SAT Question of the Day
 Free Practice Tests
 Success Strategies and Plans to get your ready
o PERT: http://college.measuredsuccess.com/mscollege/do/log
 FREE on-line study guide and practice tests
o SPARKNOTES – Complete guide to the ACT and the SAT. Breaks
down the test into individual sections and gives suggestions for how to
prepare and what to expect.
 www.sparknotes.com/testprep/act
 www.sparknotes.com/testprep/sat
Searching for Other Types of
Aid
www.fastweb.com
• FastWeb offers a free scholarship database that
includes over 1.3 million scholarships worth over $3
billion
• FastWeb’s database allows you to also search for
internships or part-time job openings near your
home or school
• FastWeb is recommended by more than 16,000
schools and 3,600 colleges
• Access FastWeb by visiting www.fastweb.com
• requires User ID and Password
Other Sources
• Use www.finaid.org to search for available monies
through scholarships and grants nationwide
• The Web site www.scholarshipcoach.com provides
free information about scholarships, tuition
reduction, college savings plans, and other
opportunities
• Be aware of recent scholarship scams
• Scams can be received via phone, letter in the
mail, or E-mail don’t pay money to receive free
money!
• Visit the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Web site
at www.ftc.gov for additional information on scams,
or contact the FTC by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP (1877-382-4357) or TTY 1-866-653-4261
Thanks for attending
this workshop