FAFSA seems to easy?

[Ann.without.an.e]

For years it has been built up as this horribly difficult thing to trudge through.  I just did it by transferring my IRS docs and I think I completed everything in 45 minutes max.  I haven't submitted because I seriously feel like I must have done something wrong.  Is it really that easy?

[Jean in Newcastle]

Yes

[dirty ethel rackham]

I think it must be easier because you are not having to rush through getting taxes done in order to complete FAFSA and then praying that the IRS upload would work before the deadline ***.  We needed to do taxes because I am self-employed with variable income and we had some other issues that would have made a big difference.  Now the CSS Profile is another story ... a while ago, someone here likened it to a financial colonoscopy without the benefit of anesthesia.   ETA:  *** This is due to the schedule change ... doing it now rather than by March 1.

Edited October 3, 2016 by dirty ethel rackham

[quark]

Mine was so quick even without the IRS direct thingy. I have not submitted yet either.

[JanetC]

But don't get too comfortable if you have any CSS Profile schools on your list. That one is painful.

 

Also, check the financial aid websites for any school-specific forms or procedures.

[MerryAtHope]

We submitted on the first for both of my kids. Even with having to set up an ID for my second child it was super easy (and I love that at the end of doing oldest ds's FAFSA, there was a place to just click to transfer all of the parent-data to a sibling's FAFSA--no need to do another IRS transfer or type in numbers for assets etc... again, as it was already done. Just enter the second student's info & you both sign, and that's it. I loved not having to pull out all the documents and estimate everything and then having to re-do it again after the taxes were filed. Piece of cake in comparison. I took extra time to read & review everything too since it seemed almost too easy! 

[mamakelly]

It's pretty easy. Although I'm annoyed that we now use last year's taxes for next years fafsa. My Dh made more money last year then he will this year!

[G5052]

For us, it's always been the craziness of getting the taxes done in time that was the problem because I wanted it done via IRS transfer for privacy reasons. There are other things that I have to look up too though.

 

I've got it on my calendar for Thanksgiving Week.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Easy.  I'm surprised it took 45 minutes!

 

 

[Garga]

Isn't it the common ap that's the hard one? Isn't that the one where you upload counsellor letters and course descriptions, etc? I think that's the bugger.

 

What's the CSS profile?

[The Girls' Mom]

It has always seemed easy to me.  Third year, for four different people, and I've never really had an issue.  

[regentrude]

Compared to the CSS profile, FAFSA is a piece of cake - IF one has one's documents in order. I can imagine the FAFSA being a night mare for people who cannot locate their financial information easily and quickly.

[Sunshine State Sue]

Isn't it the common ap that's the hard one? Isn't that the one where you upload counsellor letters and course descriptions, etc? I think that's the bugger.

Yes, the common app is a bugger.

 

 

What's the CSS profile?

Some schools (more often private schools) require the CSS profile in addition to the FAFSA.  The CSS profile wants a whole lot more detail about your finances.  I am glad I never had to fill one out.

[Ann.without.an.e]

Easy.  I'm surprised it took 45 minutes!

 

 

Only because I thought it was supposed to be hard so I kept double checking everything and searching for more pages of stuff to enter and I had to set up online accounts/signature passwords for both dd and me.  Mostly, I was over thinking it  :hat:

[Ann.without.an.e]

But don't get too comfortable if you have any CSS Profile schools on your list. That one is painful.

 

Also, check the financial aid websites for any school-specific forms or procedures.

 

 

Almost all of the schools require CSS and I started into that one last night too and I feel so confused by it.  agh!

[dirty ethel rackham]

Almost all of the schools require CSS and I started into that one last night too and I feel so confused by it. agh!

You might want to clarify that almost all of your schools required it. Out of 10 private schools we looked at, only one required the CSS profile. I think another school had an additional form for their school.

 

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

[Ann.without.an.e]

You might want to clarify that almost all of your schools required it. Out of 10 private schools we looked at, only one required the CSS profile. I think another school had an additional form for their school.

 

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

 

9 out of 11 of the schools on dd's list require it  :confused1:

Edited October 3, 2016 by Attolia

[cjzimmer1]

I found the FASFA to be very easy and while we didn't do the CSS profile I did look it over and It didn't look too bad either.  But I think some of the difference is how much assets you have.  We have 1 savings/checking account, one house, 1 retirement account.  That's it.  I had no other assets to report.  DS had 1 savings account and 2 educational savings accounts.  So we had a total of 6 things to report all of which were a matter of log in and pulling off the current value on the date I filled out the form.  Took longer to remember all the log in and passwords than to fill out the form.

 

I suspect for people who own investment property, hold multiple types of saving/investing/retirement accounts, are self employed etc.  things can be difficult.  But I guess there is an advantage to being poor.  You just don't have much to report.

 

Our taxes are also very straightforward.  I'm usually done in under two hours once we have all the paperwork.

[dirty ethel rackham]

9 out of 11 of the schools on dd's list require it  :confused1:

Yikes.  But, if you have to do it for one, i guess it doesn't matter how many more there are.

[Ann.without.an.e]

Yikes.  But, if you have to do it for one, i guess it doesn't matter how many more there are.

 

 

Yes, one or a million - it is just one thing to do I suppose  :coolgleamA:

[angela in ohio]

Yep, the FAFSA is like a teeth cleaning. The CSS is a root canal. :D

 

The good news is that you only have to do the CSS once per child (at least at both of our schools so far.)

 

We had to do the CSS for most of the school's each dd applied to. The problem is that each school you check adds a few "extra" questions that only they want answered. So you get the basic questions and then a bit more for most schools - kind of like the Common App and each school's additional individual questions and essay. We don't have much (which is paying off with two in meet-full-need schools!), but it was a pain to look up all the info on our house, vehicles, tuition, dh's retirement accounts, etc.

Edited October 3, 2016 by angela in ohio