Money for College

What students need to know about financial aid

Understanding College Cost and Financial Aid As Easy as

1, 2, 3

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2

How much does college cost and what is included in the cost?

What are the different types of financial aid? Grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans.

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3

How does a student apply for and receive financial aid?

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Access Presentation

• Log into Schoology -> under Groups -> click on Class of 2026 -> Click on Resources on the left hand side and you should see a folder for Spring 2025 Presentation

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Do your research

Depending on the program, institution, and location can affect how much money you will need to pay for college.

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$ California Community Colleges

$ California State Universities

$ University of California

$ Private Institutions

$ Out of state colleges

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Tuition and fees

Room and board

Direct Cost

(billed by the college)

Indirect Cost

(not billed by the college)

Cost of Attendance

Books and supplies

Transportation

Personal Expenses

Off-campus housing

Determining a Student’s Financial Need

A student’s financial need is calculated as the difference between the cost of attendance and the Student Aid Index (SAI).

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Cost of Attendance - Student Aid Index = Student Financial Need

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Student Aid Index

• Eligibility index number that your college’s or career school’s financial aid office uses to determine how much federal student aid you would receive if you attended the school

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• This number results from the financial information you and your contributor(s) provide on your FAFSA® form

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• This number is not a dollar amount of aid eligibility or what your family is expected to provide. A negative SAI indicates the student has a higher financial need.

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Types of Financial Aid

Money you do not have to pay back

Federal/state money

University grants

Grants

Borrowed money to be paid back, with interest

Subsidized

Unsubsidized

Do not borrow more than you absolutely need

Loans

Financial support awarded to a student, based on academic achievement or other criteria that may include financial need

Scholarships

Money earned by the student through part-time jobs that are either on or off campus

Based on financial need

Work-study

Scholarships

• Most scholarship applications require students to submit a personal statement
• start working on your personal statement during the summer
• Various deadlines
• Redwood Scholarship Website
• https://sites.google.com/a/vusd.us/redwood?pli=1

Apply! Apply! Apply!

How do I get financial aid?

• FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
• https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa

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• California Dream Act
• https://dream.csac.ca.gov

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Be sure to check each individual school’s website to find out what forms are required and when they must be filed.

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When applying, use a non-VUSD email.

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Keep your Financial Aid

• SAP – Satisfactory Academic Progress
• GPA – must maintain 2.0 grade point average
• PACE – must complete 67% of attempted units
• SAP is Cumulative – your past stays with you

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$ Dual and Concurrent Students: Your GPA and PACE stays with you!

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Sequoias College Promise

at COS

$ “Free Two Years Community College”

$ Intent is to help students who do not qualify for financial aid

$ Each college can design own program

• Check with college before enrolling

$ COS created Sequoias Promise Grant

• Waive first 4 semesters of full-time enrollment (12 units)

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$ MUST COMPLETE A FAFSA OR DREAM ACT TO QUALIFY!

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Tips & Suggestions

• Keep track of important date and deadlines- admissions and financial aid.
• Complete financial aid applications early.
• Never pay for financial aid applications and scholarships.
• Search and apply for scholarships. Scholarships takes both work and luck.
• Start with grants and scholarship resources before loans
• Minimize loan borrowing. Only borrow what you need.

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Next Steps

• Your job is to now continue to review and refine this list over the next year. By the beginning of your senior year, you will want 6-8 colleges on your list that you plan to apply.
• This is the time to do your research, as well as, visit college campuses.
• Review scholarships
• Work on personal statement for scholarships

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APPLY HERE:

LINK

• I will be out during Fall 2025 and will return in Spring 2026.
• You will be notified of your assigned counselor in May.
• After June 6th 2025, I will not be available. All communication should be directed to your assigned counselor.

Thank you!