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hopskipjump
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I printed out the paperwork - it's not as terrifying as I was expecting, thank goodness. I do have some questions, though. :lurk5:

 

Question #26) What will your high school completion status be when you begin college in the 2016-2017 school year?

--High School Diploma (then answer question 27, which asks for the name of the high school and the city/state of the high school)

--GED

--Homeschooled

--None of the Above

 

DD should select Homeschooled, yes? But, it seems to lump Homeschooling in with GED and None of the Above AND insinuates that dd didn't earn a high school diploma. Which she will. From her homeschooling. :mellow:  These seem to contradict on another.

 

I'm thinking it really shouldn't matter either way for financial reasons... seems to simply be a data-collecting question?

 

Question #31) Are you interested in being considered for work-study? --yes --no --don't know

 

DDs current plans are to sign with a team and participate in her sport. She will not have time for work. But, if (heaven-forbid) something happen in the meantime (injury, burnout, whatever) - she would want to be considered for work study.

 

Is the financial information tied to this somehow? Like, will the universities sometimes offer more/less/different depending on how you answer this question, or will they simply include work-study #s in the end-package if you say yes or don't know to this?

 

Question #74) How many people in your parents' household will be college students between July 1, 2016 and June 30, 2017? Count yourself... You may include others only if they will attend, at least half-time in 2016-2017, a program that leads to a college degree or certificate.

 

I had thought the answer to this would just be "1" for DD#1.

 

But.... The PLAN is for dd#2 to be dual-enrolled next year in at least 6 credit-hours at the CC. So, that is "at least half-time," isn't it?  But, does dual-enrollment count in this situation? I believe her credit-hour costs will be free (we will have to pay fees/books).

Edited by hopskipjump
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I'm guessing that you would select homeschooling for question #26.  The reason being that if you selected diploma they could then go back to the high school to verify diploma status.  I don't know what the legal status of a homeschool is for conferring a diploma (my guess is that it varies from state to state).

 

I am very interested to see people's recommendations though... 

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Okay, dh is finally tackling this, yay.  Now he has questions along these lines, so thought I'd tack them on here...

 

#29 What will your grade level be when you begin the 2016-17 school year?

 - Never attended college/ 1st year

- Attended college before / 1st year

 

(and some other options that don't apply).

 

Dd has been attending the CC as a dual-enrolled student the past two years and will have 30+ credits.  So, the correct one to choose is the second one?  Or do they mean someone who had already graduated before and attended somewhere as a college student but didn't complete the first year?  Just want to make sure...

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I choose High school diploma, because my student will have one (from me, which is fine in my state.) Then I fill in Homeschooling as the name of the school and my city and state.

 

Dual enrollment does not usually count for any of the questions, unless you are planning on doing something like having your student get an associates and be a transfer student. (My dd has a year of college under her belt from DE, but she will be a freshman, not a transfer student.) When they are dual enrolled, they aren't working toward a degree (the fact that the courses could transfer and be used toward a degree later doesn't matter, they aren't currently working on a degree) so they aren't considered college students for FASFA.

 

I don't think the work study question is binding in any way. You could always say no later. But it's good to know if it's an option.

Edited by angela in ohio
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Dual enrollment does not usually count for any of the questions, unless you are planning on doing something like having your student get an associates and be a transfer student. (My dd has a year of college under her belt from DE, but she will be a freshman, not a transfer student.) When they are dual enrolled, they aren't working toward a degree (the fact that the courses could transfer and be used toward a degree later doesn't matter, they aren't currently working on a degree) so they aren't considered college students for FASFA.

Hmm.  But the second option says 'attended college before, 1st year', so does not seem to be referring to a transfer situation, so that's why I was wondering if I was supposed to choose that one... :confused1:    She actually also has a second transcript from one summer course she took at a State University (so, not the CC and not through a DE program, but she wasn't matriculated, she just took a course) - would that make any difference, do you think?

 

She is definitely going in as a freshman, but it seems both of those choices are for incoming freshmen?...

 

I would be less confused if the answer said 'attended some college' rather than 'attended college before' - the latter seems to imply to me that you'd applied and been accepted somewhere before, but I'm not sure if that's what they actually mean, since you're still applying as a freshman.

 

Gah, what obfuscating bureaucrat writes this stuff?  It's like they want to make it as muddled and unclear as possible...

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Question 29 Grade Level during 2015-26 school year.

 

According to Paying for College without Going Broke

 

"If your child will be enrolling for the first time as a freshman, use the appropriate response for "never attended college & 1st year undergraduate" even if he took college courses while he was in high school.  This question is used to determine annual borrowing limits for student loans and refers to the student's academic standing at school, not he number of years he's been attending college."

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Question 29 Grade Level during 2015-26 school year.

 

According to Paying for College without Going Broke

 

"If your child will be enrolling for the first time as a freshman, use the appropriate response for "never attended college & 1st year undergraduate" even if he took college courses while he was in high school.  This question is used to determine annual borrowing limits for student loans and refers to the student's academic standing at school, not he number of years he's been attending college."

 

Thank You!!!

 

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Re: Dual enrollment.

I looked up the year in school thing on the official FAFSA website: https://fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1617/help/fotw16b.htm

 

Select your grade level in college from July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017. If you are currently a senior in high school or will be a first-time college student, select Never attended college / 1st yr.

 

 

So, if your DE student is a senior in high school, they have still "never attended college" for FAFSA purposes.

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So, back to #26.  We have one vote for Homeschooled, and one vote for High School Diploma as an answer.  Obviously I can print off a nice looking diploma if needed, but there's no state-issued or otherwise official homeschool diploma option in my state, just whatever I'd jury-rig on my computer. ;)  Also, it is giving "Homeschooled" as one of the options to answer "High School or Equivalent completed", so by choosing "Homeschooled" you are still saying they completed high school, not dropped out and got a GED or something... yes???

 

More votes?

 

And it seems like if you answer "Homeschooled" it doesn't prompt you for High school name, city or state.  That seem right?  So far we've got "Homeschooled" chosen and those answers don't seem to show up except if we print it out, and then they're blank...  Guess if I chose "Diploma" I'd also have to use my completely made-up school name (okay, I did use it for the transcript - made it look spiffier ;) ).  Our state doesn't give homeschools names (I think some states actually make you do this?)

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Hmm.  But the second option says 'attended college before, 1st year', so does not seem to be referring to a transfer situation, so that's why I was wondering if I was supposed to choose that one... :confused1:    She actually also has a second transcript from one summer course she took at a State University (so, not the CC and not through a DE program, but she wasn't matriculated, she just took a course) - would that make any difference, do you think?

 

She is definitely going in as a freshman, but it seems both of those choices are for incoming freshmen?...

 

I would be less confused if the answer said 'attended some college' rather than 'attended college before' - the latter seems to imply to me that you'd applied and been accepted somewhere before, but I'm not sure if that's what they actually mean, since you're still applying as a freshman.

 

Gah, what obfuscating bureaucrat writes this stuff?  It's like they want to make it as muddled and unclear as possible...

 

A transfer student can still be a first year student. If you transfer to my dd's college, you start as a first year, for example. Or you may not have completed your first year. This question is to sort out first year transfers from first year just-finished-high-school students.

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So, back to #26.  We have one vote for Homeschooled, and one vote for High School Diploma as an answer.  Obviously I can print off a nice looking diploma if needed, but there's no state-issued or otherwise official homeschool diploma option in my state, just whatever I'd jury-rig on my computer. ;)  Also, it is giving "Homeschooled" as one of the options to answer "High School or Equivalent completed", so by choosing "Homeschooled" you are still saying they completed high school, not dropped out and got a GED or something... yes???

 

More votes?

 

And it seems like if you answer "Homeschooled" it doesn't prompt you for High school name, city or state.  That seem right?  So far we've got "Homeschooled" chosen and those answers don't seem to show up except if we print it out, and then they're blank...  Guess if I chose "Diploma" I'd also have to use my completely made-up school name (okay, I did use it for the transcript - made it look spiffier ;) ).  Our state doesn't give homeschools names (I think some states actually make you do this?)

 

That's what I do (issue my own diploma.) It seems to be listed as an alternative to graduating from high school. like the GED, and my student graduated from high school.

 

I didn't make up a name for our school. I just put Homeschool, the same as I did on the CA and every other application. 

 

I think both probably work just fine to communicate what your student is/did. It's probably more a matter of preference.

Edited by angela in ohio
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A transfer student can still be a first year student. If you transfer to my dd's college, you start as a first year, for example. Or you may not have completed your first year. This question is to sort out first year transfers from first year just-finished-high-school students.

 

I asked the financial aid office at a state university. The question is actually about "how much eligibility for federal loans do you have"?

 

If you have attended college and used your first year of eligibility for federal loans, but don't have enough credit to be a sophomore, you are a first-year with some college credit. If (like my DD) you attended CC DE (which doesn't give federal loan eligibility since you are not a high school graduate yet), you are a first year who has not attended college on the FAFSA.

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Re the Work Study question.

 

Dd answered yes for her second year of college. As part of her Financial Aid package, she was granted a certain number of hours that she could work. (I believe it's a set number, regardless of school.)  However, it is up to the student to find that job on campus.

 

She did not use any of the Work Study hours.

 

For her third year of college, she answered yes, that she would like Work Study hours. She was not given any hours.  It seems to me that she did not get these because she did not use them the prior year.  (That's fine, I don't know how the whole system works, if there are set hours awarded in total to the school or at a fed level or what.)

 

Not exactly the answer you were looking for, but just sharing our experience. 

 

 

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