{"id":3263,"date":"2020-06-12T10:18:59","date_gmt":"2020-06-12T15:18:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/?post_type=advice&#038;p=3263"},"modified":"2023-05-19T13:36:53","modified_gmt":"2023-05-19T18:36:53","slug":"financial-aid-what-is-the-fafsa","status":"publish","type":"advice","link":"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/advice\/financial-aid-what-is-the-fafsa\/","title":{"rendered":"Financial Aid: What is the FAFSA?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you want to improve your earning potential, you may want to go back to school to finish your education. Completing one&#8217;s education is among the best steps anyone can take to earn more money. These days, employers demand educated workers. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/workingnation.com\/cael-linking-learning-work-help-adults-succeed\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In response, colleges and universities are improving access to adult education.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n    <div class='abound-tweet'>\n        <a href='https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=+Completing+one%27s+education+is+among+the+best+steps+anyone+can+take+to+earn+more+money.+https%3A%2F%2Fabound.college%2Fgradschool%2Fadvice%2Ffinancial-aid-what-is-the-fafsa%2F'> Completing one&#8217;s education is among the best steps anyone can take to earn more money. <span class='abound-tweet-direction'>Click to tweet<\/span><\/a>\n    <\/div>\n    \n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/business\/business-news\/back-school-older-students-rise-college-classrooms-n191246\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">9.6 million adult students <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">are expected to enroll in a college course by 2020. If you\u2019re considering a return to school, you&#8217;re probably wondering how you\u2019ll be able to pay for it. Luckily, financial aid resources are plentiful. No matter your age, education level, or background, you can find the money you need to complete a degree.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>FAFSA (Free Application for Student Aid)<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you\u2019ve been to college before, it&#8217;s likely you\u2019re familiar with FAFSA, the Free Application for Student Aid. Over 22 million American students apply for this aid every year. The Office of Federal Student Aid hands out more than $150 billion in federal grants, loans, and work-study funds each year. More than 13 million students pay for college or career school through FAFSA!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This is the place to start if you are thinking about how you will pay for college. FAFSA\u2019s basic eligibility requirements are quite broad and need-based. Certain non-citizens, like those with a Green Card may also be eligible. You can find more details on FAFSA\u2019s eligibility requirements <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.ed.gov\/sa\/eligibility\/infographic-accessible\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>FAFSA offers three<\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/Pn4OECMTh5w\"><b> types of aid<\/b><\/a><b>: grants, work-study, and loans.<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Grants <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">are funds awarded to students based on financial need. Grant money does not have to be repaid.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Work-study <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">is money earned through a job on or near campus. If you qualify for work-study, the school you attend will give you a job in a university office or department. The money you earn can go towards tuition, living expenses, or other school-related necessities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Loans <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">are amounts of money given to you under the condition that you will repay the loan with interest. The repayment options can be flexible. Some are income-based, meaning that the monthly payment amount is dependent on how much money you make. This ensures that payments are relatively manageable, no matter your income. Also, those who work for a nonprofit organization may qualify for loan forgiveness after ten years.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Here are some other important FAFSA <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.ed.gov\/sa\/eligibility\"><b>facts<\/b><\/a><b>:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">There is no age limit for federal assistance. Just about everyone is eligible for at least some type of federal student aid.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">You won&#8217;t need a credit check to receive federal student aid. This includes most federal student loans.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">As the name implies, applying for aid is free. Avoid companies charging a fee to complete the application.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n    <div class='abound-tweet'>\n        <a href='https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=No+matter+the+school+%26%238230%3B+you+should+apply+for+financial+aid.+Even+if+you+think+you+won%27t+qualify%2C+the+application+is+free%2C+so+you%27ve+got+nothing+to+lose%21+https%3A%2F%2Fabound.college%2Fgradschool%2Fadvice%2Ffinancial-aid-what-is-the-fafsa%2F'>No matter the school &#8230; you should apply for financial aid. Even if you think you won&#8217;t qualify, the application is free, so you&#8217;ve got nothing to lose! <span class='abound-tweet-direction'>Click to tweet<\/span><\/a>\n    <\/div>\n    \n<h3><b>Final Thoughts on FAFSA<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">No matter the school you\u2019re attending, you should apply for financial aid. Even if you think you won&#8217;t qualify, the application is free, so you&#8217;ve got nothing to lose! Though it may not cover all your costs, FAFSA is a great first stop when exploring your financial aid options. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Next, you may want to explore the many scholarship opportunities available. We will explore those in more depth in the next article in <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">our financial aid series.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>More About Abound:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> We\u2019re here to help.\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/\">Abound: Grad School<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0can help get you in touch with schools that we can confirm are\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/about\/how-schools-are-selected\/\"><strong>Accessible, Affordable, Accelerated, and Advanced<\/strong><\/a>. Take a look at the\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/gradschool\/colleges\/\">schools<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0we trust and find the program that works for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<h6><a href=\"https:\/\/abound.college\/privacy-terms\/\">Disclaimer<\/a>: This article contains affiliate links to products and services. We may receive commissions for purchases made through these links.<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve been to college before, it&#8217;s likely you\u2019re familiar with FAFSA, the Free Application for Student Aid. Over 22 million American students apply for this aid every year. The Office of Federal Student Aid hands out more than $150 billion in federal grants, loans, and work-study funds each year. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":3264,"template":"","class_list":["post-3263","advice","type-advice","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","abound_advice_topics-financial-aid","abound_advice_topics-affordability"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Financial Aid: What is the FAFSA? - Abound: Grad School<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019ve been to college before, it&#039;s likely you\u2019re familiar with FAFSA, the Free Application for Student Aid. 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