Financial Aid: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
(Continued from 1)

How Do I Search for Scholarships? Are There Grants for Adults Returning to School?
Searching and applying for scholarships requires effort and is not easy, but well worth your while. Several free scholarship searches are available on the Internet. Additional sources of private aid and grants can be found in the Financial Aid section. Included are sources for returning adults. A special report, Scholarships for Re-entry Students: Grants and Retraining Assistance for Adults Returning to College, is available for immediate download. It may be helpful to compose a personal profile of academic information, goals, interests, special talents, extracurricular activities, and achievements that could qualify you for awards.

What Happens After I File the FAFSA (the Free Application for Federal Student Aid)?
The FAFSA will be processed by the U. S. Department of Education within approximately four weeks, and a Student Aid Report (SAR) will be mailed to you. This same information is also sent to the colleges you listed on the FAFSA. The SAR will contain the information from your application, and if there are no errors or questions, will provide your Expected Family Contribution (EFC), or what you will be expected to pay toward your education. You can estimate your EFC by using the many free calculators available on the Internet.

How is My EFC Determined?
Your EFC is determined by using the information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and a "federal methodology" formula. The formula considers income, assets, family size, and the number of family members enrolled in college.

After receiving your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) figure from the federal processor, the financial aid office at your school then subtracts your EFC from the school's average cost of attendance to find your financial need. Contact your school to get a breakdown of their cost of attendance.

Based on estimated financial need, the financial aid office will prepare a financial aid or "award" package. The FAO applies available resources to try to meet your financial need. However, the school is not obligated to meet your financial need, and may be unable to do so dependent upon the types of aid available. This aid may include federal and state grants, scholarships, loans, and federal work study. Grants (i.e., the Federal Pell Grant and the Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant) and scholarships do not have to be repaid. Loans, such as Federal Subsidized or Unsubsidized Stafford loans, must be repaid.

Why is the EFC on the SAR Different from the EFC of the School?
Your EFC is generally calculated using one or two methodologies: the Federal Methodology (explained above), and the Institutional Methodology. The Institutional Methodology determines eligibility for institutional grant programs. Universities may use this methodology and/or the federal methodology to determine eligibility for grants or other private funds. One difference between the two formulas is the federal methodology does not consider home equity in assets calculation.

Next...