Financial aid is generally viewed from two different perspectives: the merit award perspective and the need-based perspective.

• The merit award perspective focuses on what assistance you might receive to pay for your college based upon your merits as a student, an athlete, an artist, a leader, or some other personal characteristics.
• The need-based perspective focuses on what assistance you might receive to pay for your college based upon your family’s financial situation.

Financial Aid Calculator

This free service can help you plan more effectively to meet college costs. The Financial Aid Need Estimator estimates what your family might expect to pay toward college costs and provides you with the basic costs of attendance at specific institutions.

Calculator

The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)

The most common way to receive financial aid is through filing the FAFSA.  This federal form takes into account the student and parent's income, assets, net worth, etc. The student cannot file this form until January 1st of their senior year.  Once filed, it is sent to the individual colleges, who in turn send the student a Financial aid letter (or Student Aid Report) in late March/early April.  This letter will explain in detail what the student will receive from each school, in terms of financial aid. This aid could be loans, grants (free money), scholarships, or work study.  Each school will offer a different amount since each school costs a different amount.  The key is to look at the bottom line cost to determine which school offers the best amount, if the student's decision is dependent upon money. 

To learn more information about the FAFSA, visit www.fafsa.ed.gov. 

The CSS Profile

Typically used by the selective colleges and universities who use the information collected on the PROFILE to help them award nonfederal student aid funds.  The information on the PROFILE is more in-depth and takes into account things such as car payments, house payments, private school tuition, etc.

To learn more information visit https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/prf/index.jsp