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Financial Aid 101

Presented by:

Kai Kim

Savannah Labarda

Ashleigh Gilfort

Kei-Dee Romero

USC College Advising Corps

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Types of Aid

01

Applications

02

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Paying for College

What you see on the website.

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What you actually pay!

Sticker Price

Net Price

Colleges have financial aid estimators on their website that can help you predict how much it might cost for your family.

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Types of Aid

01

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  • Grants
  • Scholarships
  • Work study
  • Loans

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Grants

  • Minimum 3.0 GPA
  • Degree Requirements: 2 year program, AA, or Bachelor Degree
  • Covers 4 years of tuition & fees at eligible CA schools
  • Minimum 2.0 GPA
  • Degree: 1 year program, Certificate, AA, or Bachelor Degree
  • Covers 2-4 years of tuition & fees at eligible CA schools; $1,672 Access Award for 4 years

Cal Grant A

Cal Grant B

  • No GPA requirement
  • Degree: At least 4 months in length
  • Covers: occupational & technical programs

Cal Grant C

GRANTS DO NOT HAVE TO BE PAID BACK!

Cal Grants can be awarded through FAFSA or CADAA

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Grants

  • No minimum GPA requirement.
  • Degree: 1 year program, Certificate, AA, or Bachelor Degree
  • Awards up to $7,396 per year for up to 6 years (12 semesters) at any eligible school in the U.S.
  • Based on SAI (Student Aid Index)
  • Student must be U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen

Pell Grant (Federal)

GRANTS DO NOT HAVE TO BE PAID BACK!

Pell Grants are only awarded through FAFSA

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Scholarships

Free money awarded to students for academic achievement, interests, special talents, financial need, or a combination of different factors.

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🚩 Application Fees

🚩 Guaranteed Winnings

🚩 Requiring Credit Card Information

🚩 Unsolicited Winning Notification

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Red Flags – Scholarships Contd.

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Work Study�Part-time job

  • Need-based (Offered through FAFSA)
  • You can use the money to pay for college

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Tutor

Tour Guide

Library Assistant

Research Assistant

Teaching Assistant

Campus Bookstore Employee

Maintenance

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Work Study – How It Works�

  • You must submit FAFSA!�
  • Specific Work Study Job Opportunities�
  • Work Study funds are sent through a regular paycheck�
  • Why Work Study → Work-study won’t reduce your future student aid

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LOANS

Do not accrue interest while you are in school at least half-time.

Begins to accumulate interest when it is disbursed.

Subsidized

Unsubsidized

You may be offered loans from various sources ALL LOANS HAVE TO BE REPAID, interest rates vary!

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Institutional Aid

Colleges themselves offer students grants, scholarships, and/or loans, to help them attend their college!

Merit (GPA)

Financial Need

Athletics

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Financial Aid Applications

02

You must complete an application every year that you are in college.

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Applications

Who should file FAFSA?

-US Citizen or permanent resident with a valid Social Security Number (SSN)

-Need an FSA ID

Who should file CADAA?

-Undocumented students:

with or without DACA,

with Temporary Protection Status (TPS),

“U” Visa holder

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-Must meet AB 540 criteria:

  1. attend school in CA for 3 or more years
  2. graduate with a High School Diploma or GED
  3. Enroll in an accredited higher education institution in CA
  4. Must file an affidavit stating that the filer will apply for legal residency as soon as possible

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Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

California DREAM ACT Application (CADAA)

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Important Information!

Filing a financial aid application, and which one you file is a very important family decision especially for mixed-status families

*Mixed status families have the option to submit CADAA this year (speak to an advisor for more info)

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Applications are due March 2nd, 2026

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Information you will need to apply

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Social Security Number (SSN) & Permanent Resident Number (for permanent residents)

2024 Tax Documents

Current balances of cash, savings, and checking accounts

Net worth of investments, business, and farms

Parents’ date of birth, SSN, email

List of colleges you want to send the form to (up to 20)

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Applications

Who should file the CSS Profile?

-Students who are applying to some:

-Private schools

-HBCUs

-Out-of-State Schools

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check each school’s financial aid website

CSS Profile

www.cssprofile.org

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Next Steps

03

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What comes NEXT?

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Check the status of your application and make corrections, if needed

Your FAFSA Submission Summary will include the Student Aid Index (SAI)

Review/compare your financial aid offers

Create a WebGrants 4 Students account (you will receive an email from CSAC)

Stay up-to-date on deadlines and requirements

Regularly check your email and school portals!

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College Application Data. Please show us your completed screen!

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Let’s Get Started

  • Google Californiacolleges.edu
  • Select Sign in with Google (under the username and password sign in)
  • Sign in with your lbschools email
  • At the top middle of the page HOVER over the word “Financial Aid”
  • Select Launch FAFSA or Launch CADAA from the drop down
  • Click Launch FAFSA or CADAA again (in a yellow box)
  • Pick your application
  • Create your account. All information in this section needs to be entered in exactly correct!
    • Do NOT use an icloud email
  • Go through all the questions to create your account
  • Save your login info somewhere safe

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Thank You