FAFSA or no FAFSA?

[Vida Winter]

Is there any reason to file a FAFSA if your family will not be eligible for federal student aid? DD has been accepted and expects to receive a substantial merit scholarship to an out of state university and will be applying for at least two more merit scholarships. On the phone, they say that the FAFSA would only be necessary for federal grants and loans. We are wary of phone conversations -- sometimes the information you get varies with the person who takes the call. One admissions rep who no longer works there had told us verbally that they superscore the ACT when in fact they do not.

 

Would it be wise to file the FAFSA just in case other merit scholarships require it as a prerequisite? Even though it does not look like it is required, we are concerned that it may be an added requirement at the last minute. I hate to supply more information than is necessary.

[TranquilMind]

Is there any reason to file a FAFSA if your family will not be eligible for federal student aid? DD has been accepted and expects to receive a substantial merit scholarship to an out of state university and will be applying for at least two more merit scholarships. On the phone, they say that the FAFSA would only be necessary for federal grants and loans. We are wary of phone conversations -- sometimes the information you get varies with the person who takes the call. One admissions rep who no longer works there had told us verbally that they superscore the ACT when in fact they do not.

 

Would it be wise to file the FAFSA just in case other merit scholarships require it as a prerequisite? Even though it does not look like it is required, we are concerned that it may be an added requirement at the last minute. I hate to supply more information than is necessary.

 

I've heard that parents MUST have their privacy violated in order for their child to receive any aid at all, including merit aid, which I find ridiculous.

 

I hope that is wrong, because we have to go through this next year.

[misty.warden]

I'd make sure I was speaking to each agency that gives the scholarships, not just the college she's applying to, and ask if they give the funds directly to her or to the bursar's office/financial aid office of the college. Generally speaking, my experience has been if someone isn't sending you a check personally for winning a scholarship and instead pays the college directly on the same schedule as loan disbursement, you must have filed FAFSA to qualify.

[creekland]

There are two issues that come into play when colleges and outside scholarship deals require the FAFSA.

 

The first, is some do it for record keeping (how many of what economic group comes in with what scores, etc).

 

Other colleges and outside scholarships that require the FAFSA are really giving out need-based aid, though some call it merit aid because they choose who gets aid based upon their need. (It's sort of a hybrid - not just merit and not just need.)

 

Some do offer merit aid without requiring the FAFSA. In these cases, the only reason you might want to submit the FAFSA is if there is any way at all you think your finances might change over the year - medical issue coming up? House fire? Loss of job? Without a FAFSA being submitted, you can NOT qualify for federal aid. With it, you can adjust things and perhaps still get aid if the need arises.

 

Otherwise, you can opt out of the record-keeping types by not submitting the FAFSA (but yes, you won't get the merit aid either).

 

And, you could be limiting yourself from those hybrid aid forms if any exist.

 

The best way to know if the FAFSA is needed or not is to check with the college financial aid office and/or outside scholarship head honchos to find out.

 

There are many people who do not fill out the FAFSA. It's not a sin. It just can restrict aid at some places - not all.

[MIch elle]

It was a TOTAL waste of our time!

 

My ds received merit aid awards prior to completing the FAFSA from private AND out of state public U's. He ended up using none of those merit aids because the in-state college was the best cheapest option and that is where he happily is.

[Nissi]

Thanks ladies, this is helpful. We were thinking of not completing the FAFSA.

[Gwen in VA]

At least at my kids' college, all merit aid recipients were eligible for work-study positions. (At that particluar college, all merit-aid recipients had to fill out the FAFSA.) Eligilibity for work-study is a definite perk if you do end up filling out the FAFSA!

 

Some work-study jobs can be boring and tedious, but some can be resume-builders. My dd ended up doing collections management at her college art museum. Since she was interested in art conservation, that work-study job was EXTREMELY relevant to her career interests! :-) Her position there also led to her senior thesis topic! Her work came up at all of her grad school interviews.

 

Needless to say, I am a fan of work-study!

[Pegasus]

FAFSA submission is necessary for taking out federal direct loans to the college student. These are available regardless of your financial situation (you do not need to prove financial need). FAFSA submission is required for SOME merit aid opportunities. Our state lottery scholarships require submittal of FAFSA, even for the scholarships that are strictly merit based.

 

I'm not thrilled with providing so much of our private financial information when we are not eligible for need-based financial aid but the merit opps are too good to pass up.

[Vida Winter]

We are thinking about submitting the blasted form just to cover ourselves in these corner cases. For merit-only scholarships would they hold it against her and deny the scholarship if they thought we could afford to send her with no aid (even though that is not the case at all)?

[Gwen in VA]

For merit-only scholarships would they hold it against her and deny the scholarship if they thought we could afford to send her with no aid (even though that is not the case at all)?

 

For many schools, merit aid is MERIT aid, and it is not based on financial need (or lack thereof) at all.

 

Your particular school may have a different approach.

[creekland]

We are thinking about submitting the blasted form just to cover ourselves in these corner cases. For merit-only scholarships would they hold it against her and deny the scholarship if they thought we could afford to send her with no aid (even though that is not the case at all)?

 

I don't have a link to it, but I remember reading a thread on college confidential where someone posted stats stating that kids who applied for need-based aid, but didn't get it, ended up with more merit aid than those who never applied for need-based aid (from the same school - obviously, not every school was included as not all offer merit aid).

 

It made me think that there are probably more of those hybrid "merit" aid deals than most realize (with higher cut offs than need based aid). My thoughts are just musing though. Who knows why it happens?

 

I know my guys had merit aid offers in before submitting the FAFSA for some of their schools, so some do go purely off merit. For those with admissions decisions after FAFSA is submitted, it's difficult to tell.