Page 11 - Course Catalog 20-21

www.lodiusd.net COURSE CATALOG & COLLEGE/CAREER PLANNING GUIDE 10

FINANCIAL AID

Financial aid is awarded based on merit (academic achievement), financial need, or some combina-
FINANCIAL AID applicants are admitted without regard of their ability to pay. Schools who do maintain need-blind
tion of both. Some schools will offer merit scholarships to attract students who are high achieving
relative to the school's applicant pool. Few schools maintain "need-blind" admissions, meaning that

admissions will state this in the financial aid information.

More than half of all student applicants apply for financial aid. Colleges themselves are the greatest
sources of financial aid because they distribute money made available through the U.S. government.
Aid from colleges is usually awarded as a package consisting of:
·
· A grant, this is a gift and does not have to be repaid.
A student loan, this must be repaid by the student.
· Work-study, this is an opportunity to work for pay for a certain number of
hours per week on campus.

FAFSA

The FAFSA, Free Application for Federal Student Aid, is required by all

colleges in order to apply for financial aid. You can file on the web at
www.fafsa.ed.gov. You must first apply for a FAFSA ID number; you will
need this to electronically sign your FAFSA. The FAFSA cannot be filed
st
until after October 1 of the prior year in which the student plans to
attend college. In order to be eligible for the Cal Grant, FAFSA must be

From detailed financial information reported in the FAFSA, formulas produce the expected family

contribution, or EFC. This sum is considered an amount that the family can be reasonably expected
to pay over time, not just currently from income and assets. Each year, the Counseling Department
invites a guest speaker to explain line by line the process of filling out the FAFSA.

In addition to the FAFSA, some colleges also require the CSS College Profile when applying for finan-
cial aid. The Profile is offered through the College Scholarship Service, which is the financial aid divi-
sion of the College Board. You can apply on line at www.collegeboard.com or by phone. In either
case, you must complete the CSS College Profile short form. Copies are available in the counseling
office as early as October. The FAFSA is free, but the College Profile costs money. Fee waivers are
available to those who qualify. If a college requires it, however, one must be filled out. The College
Profile collects even more information about the finances of the student and parents.

Some colleges also require students to fill out a financial aid form from the college. Be sure to check
with the colleges you are applying to in order to ensure be sure that you complete all necessary
forms. Be aware of financial aid deadlines as well, these differ from one college to another.

Finally, there are scholarships offered nationally. Scholarship information that arrives in the Coun-
seling Office and Career Center is regularly updated in Naviance Family Connection, which is easily
accessible to students. Many books in the Career Center also list nationally offered scholarships.
More and more, the web is the source of national scholarship information. If there is still financial
need after scholarship possibilities have been exhausted, families can investigate loans. Some loans