FINANCIAL AID NIGHT

MATERIALS BY:

NASFAA�(NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STUDENT FINANCIAL AID ADMINISTRATORS)

FEDERAL STUDENT AID�AN OFFICE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

​

SOUTH DAKOTA BOARD OF REGENTS (SDBOR)

Financial aid consists of funds provided to students and families to help pay for postsecondary educational expenses

​

​

• These funds can be:
• Scholarships
• Grants
• Student Loans
• Parent Loans
• Work Study
• Education Saving Plans (529)
• Employment

​

WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID?

WHERE CAN FINANCIAL AID COME FROM?

• Federal government
• States
• Colleges and universities
• Private sources
• Civic organizations
• Churches
• Employers

TYPES OF FINANCIAL AID

GIFT AID

SCHOLARSHIPS

• Money that does NOT have to be paid back
• Awarded on the basis of merit, skill or unique characteristics
• State and National Opportunities

GRANTS

• Money that does NOT have to be paid back
• Usually awarded on the basis of financial need (FAFSA)
• (Pell Grant, SEOG Grant, SDEAF Grant, SD Need Based Grant)

STATE SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

• Dakota Corps - Full tuition and fees
• SD Opportunity - $7,500
• Jump Start Scholarship - $1,500 first year
• SD Need Based Grant - $500-$2,000
• Build Dakota - Full tuition and fees
• Freedom Scholarship

Information on these scholarships and others, can be found on www.sdbor.edu

​

​

​

​

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

• www.scholarships.com
• www.fastweb.com
• www.collegeboard.com
• Scholarship Books available at libraries
• Searching and applying takes time, but worth it!

Do not apply for scholarships that ask for money to apply, those are scams!

​

​

​

​

EMPLOYERS

• Companies may offer scholarships available for children of employees as well as education benefits for their employees.
• Check to see if your employer offers tuition reimbursement or school sponsorships.

• Education benefits may be available to service members and their dependents

​

• Check schools websites for VA information

​

• Check with Veteran Affairs to determine eligibility

​

MILITARY

COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES

• Award scholarships and grants on the basis of both merit and need
• Use information from the FAFSA and/or institutional applications
• Deadlines and application requirements vary by institution
• Check with each college or university

SELF-HELP AID: EMPLOYMENT/WORK STUDY

• Allows student to earn money to help pay educational related costs
• A paycheck; or
• Nonmonetary compensation, such as room and board
• Often covers indirect educational costs
• Contact colleges to see what work study jobs are available
• Work Study-Still apply and interview

SELF-HELP AID: LOANS

• Money students and/or parents borrow to help cover college expenses
• Repayment usually begins after education is completed
• Can pay on while in school, reduces overall amount owed
• Recommend only borrow what is needed
• Look at loans as an investment into your future

SELF-HELP AID: PRIVATE LOANS

• From banks, credit unions or other student lenders
• Students may need a credit worthy cosigner to be approved
• Can see higher interest rates in private loans rather than federal loans (fixed or variable choice)
• Repayment options and fees will vary
• Some lenders will drop the cosigner after so many on time payments, etc.

​

​

SELF-HELP AID: FEDERAL LOANS

FAFSA (FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID)

• Application to complete online that determines eligibility for federal grants and loans to cover costs of education.
• Must be filled out once per year. Can be filed at any time during an academic year once it is made available.
• For the 2024-2025 academic year, the FAFSA will become available late December.
• Use 2022 tax year information for the 2024-2025 FAFSA application.
• All contributors to the FAFSA, must create an FSA ID to be able to log in and complete their sections of the application.

​

FAFSA (CONT’D)

• Contributors
• A contributor anyone contributing information for the completion of the FAFSA.
• This could be the student, a spouse and/or parent(s)
• A contributor is NOT someone who is attesting they are going to contribute to the students costs of their education.
• Provide Consent
• Starting the 2425 FAFSA year, all contributors must provide consent to allow FAFSA to transfer all contributor's data, from the IRS into the FAFSA for ease of completion.
• Providing consent is NOT someone who is consenting to contributing to the students costs of their education.

​

​

​

FAFSA (CONT’D)

• Most colleges set FAFSA priority dates or deadlines
• Priority Dates: Applications submitted before or on this date considered for certain types of aid first (Grants, Work-study, etc.)
• Deadline: Date application must be submitted to receive aid for the upcoming award period.
• Check with the college on these dates/deadlines.

​

WWW.STUDENTAID.GOV

Student Log In

If the student selects "Start a New Form" from the FAFSA^® landing page and they are not logged in to StudentAid.gov, they are taken to the “Log In” page to enter their log-in credentials. To access the FAFSA form, all students are required to have an FSA ID (account username and password). If the student doesn't have an FSA ID, they can select "Create an Account."

CREATE AN FSA ID

• All contributors to the FAFSA, will need to create their own FSA ID’s, using separate email accounts.
• Used to log in, complete and sign the FAFSA electronically.
• Do NOT use your k12@sd.us email address to create it.

LOG INTO FAFSA

Student Provides Consent

This page informs the student about consent and their federal tax information. By providing consent, the student’s federal tax information is transferred directly into the FAFSA^® form from the IRS to help complete the Student Financials section. The student selects "Approve" to provide consent and is taken to the next page. 

GENERAL INFORMATION NEEDED (STUDENTS)

• Name, Social Security Number, Date of Birth
• Address, Email Address, Phone Number
• Gender, Citizenship Status, Marital Status
• Name of high school, Students college/career plans
• Parents education status
• 2022 Tax Returns and Financial information

SCHOOL SELECTION

• School Selection (Colleges you want to receive your FAFSA information)

​

• Can add up to 20 schools

​

• Can access FAFSA again later to add/remove schools

DEPENDENCY STATUS

• Dependency Status questions in the FAFSA will determine if parental information is required.
• If a parental information is required, the student will send an invitation to the parent(s), to then log in using their FSA ID, to provide consent and enter the parent data into the FAFSA.
• If a parental information is required but you are unable to provide the information on your parents

OR

• If you feel that you may have special circumstances, please contact your colleges Financial Aid Department to discuss further and how to proceed.

​

​

​

​

​

Student Invites Parents to FAFSA^® Form

The student is asked to enter personal information about their parents to send them an invite to their FAFSA^® form. In this scenario, the student invites one parent.  Need to have a valid email address.

Student Signature

• On this page, the student acknowledges the terms and conditions of the FAFSA^® form and signs their section. After agreeing and signing, the student is able to submit their section of the FAFSA form.

​

• Since parent information has not been provided, the FAFSA form is not considered complete and can’t be processed yet.

Student’s Parent Email

This view demonstrates a parent opening the FAFSA invitation from their email. The parent selects “Log In" and is taken to StudentAid.gov. 

Student’s Parent Log In

The parent is taken from their email to the “Log In” page to enter their log-in credentials. To access the FAFSA^® form, all users are required to have an FSA ID (account username and password). If the parent doesn't have an FSA ID, they can select "Create an Account."

Student’s Parent Provides Consent

This page informs the parent about consent and their federal tax information. By providing consent, the parent’s federal tax information is transferred directly into the FAFSA^® form from the IRS to help complete the Parent Financials section. The parent selects "Approve" to provide consent and is taken to the next page. 

GENERAL INFORMATION NEEDED (PARENTS)

• Name, Social Security Numbers, Date of Birth, Address
• Marital Status (as of date filling out FAFSA)
• Email address, Family Size
• 2022 Tax Return and Financial information

​

Dependent Student’s Parent Signature

On this page, the parent acknowledges the terms and conditions of the FAFSA^® form and signs their section. Since all required sections are complete, the parent can both sign and submit the student’s FAFSA form.

Student FAFSA^® Confirmation

• Upon submitting the student’s FAFSA^® form, the parent is presented an abbreviated confirmation page. This page displays information about tracking the student’s FAFSA form and next steps.
• The student will receive an email with the full, detailed confirmation. With the student and parent sections completed and signed, the FAFSA form is now considered complete and submitted for processing.

FREQUENT FAFSA ERRORS

• Social Security Numbers don’t match
• Incorrect student or parental marital information
• Family size
• Real estate and investment net worth
• Do not Include:
• Your home, vehicles or retirement accounts
• FAFSA was not signed by student and/or parent

If an error is made, it can be corrected!

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

• Your college will review your FAFSA to determine your eligibility.
• Send you your financial aid package for you to review, sign and return
• Electronic and/or paper format
• Processing dates may vary greatly depending on institutional policy. Stay in contact with each school.
• Complete Master Promissory Note and Entrance Loan Counseling at www.studentaid.gov
• Research gift aid sources, apply for scholarships
• Renew your FAFSA every year (Complete 1 FAFSA per year)

​

Resources

Contact Info for SDSU Financial Aid

​

Phone: 605-688-4695

Email: SDSU.FinAid@sdstate.edu

​

Resources from our website:

​

Main Financial aid Page: https://www.sdstate.edu/office-financial-aid

Applying for aid guide:

https://www.sdstate.edu/office-financial-aid/applying-aid

​

​

​

FAFSA

StudentAid.gov

​

​

Scholarship Websites

www.scholarships.com

www.fastweb.com

www.collegeboard.com

​