Preparing for college is an extremely stressful time. First you must pick a school you would love to go to, picking a major, passing your ACT and SAT tests, and begin applying to schools. So parents as well as students are considering how they will finance this expensive education.
Each year Congress saves money for students as financial aid. To get this aid students have to complete more forms in order to determine the eligibility. This aid can be in the form of a loan, a grant, or gift and a scholarship. The majority of people prefer to receive grants because this money does not have to be repaid.
So that the government decide how the funds will be distributed some more forms will have to be completed. The first form that you will have to fill out is the so-called Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This form can be filled out on paper and online. It evaluates the need of every student by gathering the necessary information concerning their household, demographic as well as financial information.
Besides, if you are, at the moment, a freshman, then you will be also required to complete a CSS Profile Application additionally. Moreover, this is available to all the other students to complete since it is one more way for the government itself to obtain the necessary information to get the grant money.
As soon as this important information is collected it is brought together and then it comes up together with the EFC number.
Next you will want your COA, i.e. cost of attendance. Every school figures its own COA founded on tuition, room as well as board, fees plus estimated expenses for diverse costs, such as textbooks, supplies, personal, and so on. The sum varies from one school to another.