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Presentation Outline

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION	Options after high school and length of time to complete
WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID?	Understand the different types and sources of financial aid
GRADUATION REQUIREMENT	How to fulfill the State of Illinois graduation requirement for financial aid
FINANCIAL AID TERMINOLOGY	Understand basic terms used in the financial aid process
FINANCIAL AID TIMELINE	What happens between completing the FAFSA and receiving financial aid
FAFSA BREAKDOWN	Review the steps and questions in the FAFSA
ALTERNATIVE APPLICATION	Financial aid application for undocumented students
HELP AND RESOURCES	What to do if you have questions or need help along the way

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Postsecondary Education

Certificate

Associate’s Degree

Bachelor’s Degree

Master’s Degree

Doctorate Degree

1-4 semesters

Art, Business, Computer Information Systems, Education, Health Sciences, Mechanical Technologies, Public Service

2-3 years

4 years

Bachelor’s + 2-3 years

Associate of Applied Science (Career Programs)

Associate of Arts, Engineering, Fine Arts, Science (Transfer Programs)

Bachelor of Arts (business, communication, education, psychology)

Bachelor of Fine Arts (film, music, theater, visual arts)

Bachelor of Science (biology, computer science, engineering, nursing)

Business, Clinical Psychology, Healthcare Administration, Occupational Therapy, School Administrator, Speech-Language Pathology

Education, Healthcare, Law, Science & Research

Bachelor’s + 5-8 years

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What is Financial Aid?

Money to help students pay for college.
Helps cover they gap between the cost of college and what you can afford to pay.
There are different types of financial aid, some of which do not need to be repaid.
Can be given, borrowed or earned.

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Grants

Scholarship	Source	Amount	How to Apply
Pell Grant	US Department of Education	$7,395	FAFSA
Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)	US Department of Education	$100-$4,000	FAFSA
Monetary Award Program (MAP) Grant	Illinois Student Assistance Commission	$8,400	FAFSA
AIM High Grant (Illinois public universities)	Illinois Student Assistance Commission	Varies	FAFSA
Institutional Grant	College	Varies	FAFSA
Illinois Veterans Grant	Illinois Student Assistance Commission	Tuition & fees	ISAC Student Portal
Illinois National Guard Grant	Illinois Student Assistance Commission	Tuition & fees	ISAC Student Portal
Grant for Dependents of Police, Fire and Correctional Officers	Illinois Student Assistance Commission	Tuition & fees	ISAC Student Portal

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Scholarships

Scholarship	Source	Amount	How to Apply
Institutional Scholarships	College	Varies	Admissions application or separate scholarship application
Local Scholarships	Going Merry	$500-$2,500	Application open from January 15th through February 28th, 2025.
National Scholarships	Apply College Board BigFuture FastWeb Peterson’s Scholarships.com Scholarships360 Scholly by Sallie Unigo	Varies	Research and apply for through scholarship websites.

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Illinois Grants & Scholarships for Teachers

Grant/Scholarship	Amount	How to Apply
TEACH Grant	$3,772	ISAC Student Portal
Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship	$7,500	ISAC Student Portal
Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver (SETTW)	Tuition waiver at public universities	ISAC Student Portal
Early Childhood Access Consortium for Equity (ECACE)	Covers cost of attendance after other financial aid applied	ISAC Student Portal
Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois	Up to $23,000 over 4 years	Golden Apple

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Student Loans

Scholarship	Source	Amount	Interest Rate	How to Apply
Direct Subsidized Loan	US Department of Education	$3,500	6.53%	FAFSA
Direct Unsubsidized Loan	US Department of Education	$2,000	6.53%	FAFSA
Direct PLUS Loan (Credit Based)	US Department of Education	Up to cost of attendance	9.08%	FAFSA + Direct PLUS Loan Application
Private	Private Sources	Varies	Varies

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Financial Aid Terminology

Federal Student Aid: Office of the US Department of Education that serves as the largest provider of financial aid.
Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC): The State of Illinois college access and financial aid agency that administers state-based aid.
StudentAid.gov Account: The account you will use to access information about your federal student aid. You will need to create a username and password to create your account and will also use it to sign your FAFSA.
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA): An online application that determines eligibility for federal and state-based financial aid, such as grants, loans and work-study.
Contributor: A person whose information is needed to complete a student’s FAFSA, such as the student, student’s spouse, parent, and parent’s spouse.
FAFSA Submission Summary: A summary of the federal student aid you are eligible for, which may include the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans, and/or Federal Work-Study. It will also contain your SAI.
Student Aid Index (SAI): An eligibility index number that a college's financial aid office uses to determine how much federal student aid the student would receive if the student attended the school. It ranges from -1500 to 999,999.
Cost of Attendance: The overall cost to attend a college. It typically includes tuition, room and board, fees, transportation, books, etc.
Verification: The process colleges use to confirm that the data reported on your FAFSA is accurate. If you’re selected for verification, your school will request additional documentation that supports the information you reported.
Award/Offer Letter: A summary of the financial aid a college is offering you. Must be reviewed and accepted to be received.

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Do I need a StudentAid.gov Account?

Students	ONE PARENT needs an account	BOTH PARENTS need an account
All students	Parents are married or remarried and file taxes jointly	Parents are married or remarried and file taxes separately
	Single parent, not remarried	Parents not married but live together
	Single parent that lives with significant other (not biological parent)

Students without a social security number cannot complete the FAFSA.
Parents without a social security number will still need to create a StudentAid.gov account, and will be asked to verify their identity through knowledge-based questions or manual verification.

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Financial Aid Formula

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Financial Aid Graduation Requirement

For students attending an institution that charges tuition, such as a four-year college, community college or trade school.

For students who are undocumented or don’t have a social security number and are not eligible to complete the FAFSA.

FAFSA

Alternative Application

For students whose postsecondary plans do not charge tuition, such as the military, an apprenticeship or the workforce, or for students who don’t want to complete the FAFSA.

Opt-Out Form

All graduating seniors in the state of Illinois must do one of the following:

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Parent Information

Most students must report parent information until the age of 24, even if the student doesn’t live with them.
For financial aid purposes, only parents listed below should provide information on the FAFSA:

Biological parent
Adoptive parent
Step-parent (if married to biological or adoptive parent)

Which parent should report their information? Refer to Parent Wizard Tool in FAFSA.

Are the student’s biological/adoptive parents married to each other?

YES → Both parents’ information
No → Go to next question

If unmarried, to the biological/adoptive parents live together?

Yes → Both parents’ information
No → Go to next question

Did one parent provide most of the financial support for the student in the last 12 months?

Yes → That parent’s information (and spouse if remarried) should be reported
No → The parent with greater income and assets (and spouse if remarried)

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Financial Aid Timeline

Step	When?	Additional Information
Create your StudentAid.gov account	Now!	Must be complete BEFORE you can do the FAFSA (takes 1-3 days to verify).
Complete the FAFSA	December 1, 2024	Use taxes from the previous year (2023) and complete for following school year (2025-2026).
Confirmation Email	Immediately after submitting your FAFSA	Includes estimated eligibility for Federal Pell Grant and estimated SAI.
FAFSA Submission Summary	1-3 business days after confirmation email	Includes eligibility overview, FAFSA form answers, school information, and next steps.
Verification	Winter-spring	Students selected for verification will need to provide requested documents before receiving financial aid.
Review financial aid offer letters	Winter-spring	Colleges you’ve been accepted to and included in your FAFSA will send your offer letter, summarizing the financial aid you’re eligible for.
National Decision Day	May 1, 2025	Students make their financial decision and approve financial aid offer. Complete final required steps.

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What Do I Need to do the FAFSA?

StudentAid.gov Account
2023 tax returns and W2s
Date and month you established Illinois residency
Records of child support received
Current balances of cash, savings and checking accounts
Net worth of business, investments or farms

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Sections of the FAFSA

Student Section

Introduction: Personal Identifiers
Section 1: Personal Circumstances
Section 2: Demographics
Section 3: Financials
Section 4: Colleges
Section 5: Signature

Parent Section

Introduction: Personal Identifiers
Section 1: Demographics
Section 2: Financials
Section 3: Signature

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Parent Section

Parent receives email a with link to contribute

to your FAFSA

They are then prompted to log into their

StudentAid.gov account

Accept invitation
Provide consent
Import information from IRS
Similar questions as on student side

(Demographics, Financials, Signature)

*Will need to refer to 2023 tax return for

some questions

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Alternative Application

Undocumented students may be eligible to apply if they meet all of these criteria:

Student resided with his or her parent or guardian while attending an Illinois public or private high school.
Student will graduate from a public or private high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma in Illinois.
Student attended school in Illinois for at least 3 years as of the date the individual graduated from high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma.
Student provides an affidavit stating that the individual will file an application to become a permanent resident of the United States at the earliest opportunity the individual is eligible to do so.
Student has not established a residence outside of Illinois.

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Sections of the Alternative Application

Section 1: Student demographics
Section 2: Student income and assets
Section 3: Dependency questions
Section 4: Parent demographic and financial information
Section 5: Household information about independent students
Section 6: School choices
Section 7: Review/edit data, certify eligibility, and sign

*PIN is generated by ISAC and emailed to student

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Verification

A process used by schools to confirm your application data is accurate.
Do not be alarmed! It’s a common process.
Students, not parents, are notified about being selected for verification.
You may be asked to submit additional documentation.
Provide only the information requested.
Submit all documents on time.
Keep copies of everything you submit!

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Receive and Review Offer Letters

Colleges will send a financial aid offer letter, outlining all types of financial aid (grants, scholarships, loans, work-study) students are eligible for:

Things to consider:

Deadline for accepting/declining offers
Types of aid included (select gift aid before student loans!)
Pay attention to student loan types and interest rates

Questions to ask:

Are there any conditions (maintain a certain GPA)
Is the aid renewable?
What will your out-of-pocket cost be?

Compare your offers:

Consider big picture cost
Room and board

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Financial Aid Offer Letter Examples

Student with 3.0 GPA and -1500 SAI living on campus

Northern Illinois University		St. Xavier University
$31,030	Cost of Attendance	$55,140
$7,395	Federal Pell Grant	$7,395
$8,400	State of illinois MAP Grant	$8,400
$1,000	Federal Work-Study	$1,000
$1,000	Merit Scholarship	$19,000
$3,000	Private Scholarships	$3,000
$5,500	Federal Direct Loans	$5,500
$4,735		$10,845

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How Can We Make It More Affordable?

Talk to your student about your plan to afford the cost of college.
Compare all of your financial aid offers line-by-line.
If you need to take out student loans, don’t take out more than you need!
Apply for as many scholarships as possible.
Consider starting at community college.
Live at home to save money on housing and food.
Be mindful of your major choice by considering starting and mid-level salary.
Use online tools to estimate costs:

Federal Student Aid Simulator
MAP Grant Estimator
Net Price Calculator
Student Loan Repayment Calculator

Check with your employer, church, community groups, etc for scholarship opportunities.

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WE ARE HERE TO HELP!

FAFSA Completion Workshops	Tuesday, December 3rd Tuesday, January 14th Periods 1-7	Parent and student make appointment to complete the FAFSA in College & Career Center.
ISAC Office Hours	Every Tuesday starting January 21st Advisory through 5th period	Questions or help with FAFSA or Alternative Application
Future Fridays	Every Friday during advisory in College & Career Center	FAFSA questions Scholarship applications Help with verification Review offer letters

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Additional Resources

Schoology

Reavis Website

Federal Student

Aid YouTube

Text Help 847-243-6470

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