Completing the Free Application
for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
JIM ANDERSON
DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL AID
MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY
What We Will Cover This Evening
 Who Must Complete the FAFSA
 How and When the FAFSA Should
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Be Filed
Using Estimated Information
IRS Data Retrieval Tool
Avoiding Common Errors
NJ HESAA Supplemental Questions
Review of the Form
Who Must Complete the FAFSA
 All students wishing to apply
for funding from Federal,
State, and most often
institutional financial aid
programs
 Often required even for
students offered academic
merit awards
 Must be filed each year for
each student in the family
When To File
 Forms can be filed at any time on or after January 1st
for the academic year that follows (after January 1,
2015 for the 2015-2016 academic year)
 Review the filing deadlines for all schools
 File the form by the deadline of the school with the
earliest deadline
 Meet state program deadlines (June 1 for renewal
applications)
Using Estimated Information
 If you must file prior to completing
taxes, use care to estimate as accurately
as possible
 Use prior year tax return as a guide
along with last pay stub or W2s
 Estimated Award Letters/Award
Adjustments
 Verification – Federal, State,
Institutional
IRS Data Retrieval Tool
 Should utilize if available
 Can be used if return was filed electronically one to two
weeks prior or if filed manually, six to eight weeks prior
 Cannot be used if:
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Married Filing Separately
Married, Filed Head of Household
If an amended return has been filed
If a Puerto Rican or foreign return was filed
IRS Data Retrieval Tool
 Benefits of using – Verification
 You can update the FAFSA after initial filing
Avoiding Common Errors
 Reporting parent information in the student section
 Listing parental marital status incorrectly
 Listing incorrect Social Security Number or driver’s
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license number
Reporting wrong date of birth
Not using correct legal names
First and last names in the wrong places
Transposing digits or letters
Using commas or decimal points, adding zeros
Avoiding Common Errors
 Entering the incorrect address (permanent, home
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address should be listed)
Reporting wrong income tax paid
Incorrectly claiming head of household (if student or
parent filed tax returns with wrong filing status, they
will have to file amended return before receiving
federal aid)
Misreporting assets
Failing to sign the FAFSA
Filing the wrong year’s FAFSA
Forgetting to list colleges
NJ HESAA (Higher Education Student
Assistance Authority) Supplemental Questions
 Link is provided at the end of the FAFSA process,
easy to miss
 What if you miss it?
 Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) Program
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Available only if you attend a NJ school
List a NJ School first on the FAFSA
Review of the Form
 www.fafsa.ed.gov
 NOT www.fafsa.com
 www.pin.ed.gov
 Process changing in April
Resources - Links
To apply for a PIN:
 http://www.pin.ed.gov/PINWebApp/appinstr.jsp
To file the FAFSA on-line:
 http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
To calculate your EFC:
 https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/paying-your-share/expected-familycontribution-calculator#
EFC Formula
 http://ifap.ed.gov/efcformulaguide/attachments/090214EFCFormulaGuide1516.pdf
FAFSA on the Web Worksheet
 https://fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1516/pdf/fafsaws15c.pdf
Filing the FAFSA Guide
 https://www.edvisors.com/fafsa/book/direct/
Questions?????