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Welcome to Financial Aid an Introduction. This presentation will introduce you to some basic concepts of financial aid, how to apply, what types of aid are available, and more. We hope this video will be helpful in starting your college journey.
The financial aid process can be confusing however understanding the basics will go a long way in making you an informed recipient of financial aid. We will touch on a few topics such as what is financial aid, what are some of the sources of financial aid, and common terms you will encounter along the way such as COA, SAI, and financial need.
Financial aid is any funding provided to students and families to help pay for postsecondary educational expenses. This may include many areas of expenses such as direct college costs such as tuition and fees and other expenses like books and supplies. Financial aid cannot be used for non-education related expenses. We like to joke that spring break down in Florida, while stress relieving, would not be considered an educational expense.
Financial aid can come from many sources. Federal and state governments are by far the largest providers of financial aid however other areas to consider include employers, private sources of grants and scholarships, even your college or university
The various categories of Education expenses include tuition and fees, housing and food, books and supplies, transportation costs, and other miscellaneous and personal items. This is known as as the cost of attendance or COA. The cost of attendance is the estimated amount of funding suggested to meet your educational expenses for the academic year. It is important to note that you will see this amount included in your financial aid information but this is not a bill only an estimate of costs. Not all students will incur the same costs. At the start of each semester you will have an invoice from the school for charges directly assessed by the University. For most this will be tuition and fees however some students may have additional costs associated with housing and meal plans if they live on campus.
We will discuss the application process in an upcoming slide but when you apply for financial aid through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA you will receive a student aid index number or SAI number. This number is used by the financial aid offices to determine your eligibility for various funding sources. The calculation of the SAI is based upon the students income and assets and the parents income and assets if the student is considered dependent.
Financial aid can come from many sources. Federal and state governments are by far the largest providers of financial aid however other areas to consider include employers, private sources of grants and scholarships, even your college or university
The first step of the financial aid process is to complete an application. There are two applications that students may complete to receive financial aid. First is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or more commonly known as the FAFSA. This application may be completed on studentaid.gov which is the primary website for federal student aid. This application requires the income information mentioned before to calculate the student aid index number. The FAFSA uses tax information from two years prior. Since tax information is used to calculate the SAI the FAFSA must be completed each year. The second application is the Georgia Student Finance Application or GSFAPP. This application is available on GAfutures.org which is the state of Georgia's financial aid website. Since this application is only used to determine your eligibility for state aid such as the HOPE Scholarship, it does not require tax information and only takes a few minutes to complete. This application is good for 10 years and therefore does not need to be completed each year.
As mentioned before the federal government is the largest source of financial aid. The aid provided is primarily based on financial need. The application must be completed each Academic Year you are applying for financial assistance. In addition, other eligibility requirements must also be met. These requirements include determination of US citizenship or legal permanent resident status, not be in default on previously received federal student loans, and submission of supporting documentation if requested by the Department of Education through a process known as verification. Your financial aid office will assist you through any of these processes if needed.
To complete the FAFSA on studentaid.gov simply click the "start new form" button as shown. The first time completing the FAFSA may be daunting, however financial aid is here to offer assistance if you run into any issues. It usually takes 15 to 30 minutes to complete the FAFSA. The next step is for the financial aid office to receive your application and begin processing the financial aid offer. Watch your university email for updates and if any additional information is required.
There are several funding options available through the FAFSA if you qualify. The Federal Pell Grant is a grant for low-income households and since it is a grant is not required to be repaid. Other grant options include the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, available to maximum Pell recipients, and the TEACH Grant for students who are preparing for a career in the teaching profession. Federal Work Study funding may be available to students who are interested in working an on-campus job through the university, but at a minimum every student should be eligible for student loan assistance, however, remember loans are required to be paid back and should only be used if necessary to meet your academic goals.
Most USG institutions including 大象传媒 use a process known as Course Program of Study or CPoS for short. When a student registers for classes, it compares those classes to their degree program to ensure that those classes are needed to complete the program requirements. If they do not, the student is notified by their university email and then they update their schedule to eligible classes, or they can also talk to an academic advisor each semester to help student understand degree requirements and take the right classes. This program improves the student’s pathway to graduation as it helps them avoid taking unnecessary classes. Now, students are welcome to take classes in areas that interest them academically, even if they do not apply, however only class hours that are required for their degree will be eligible to receive federal financial aid. For example, if a student is registered for twelve hours for the semester, but only nine of those hours are required for their degree, they will receive a prorated amount of their eligible Pell Grant federal aid. Pell Grant is paid per credit hour up to a maximum of twelve credit hours, this is considered full time enrollment. To receive federal loans, you are only required to take six eligible hours per semester.
State aid is available to Georgia residents and some qualifying veterans. The two largest sources of funding from the state is the HOPE and Zell Miller scholarship programs. These are merit-based scholarships, in that the student qualifies based upon their academic performance, however there are other state funded programs that may have a need component and therefore will also require the FAFSA to determine eligibility. As mentioned previously you can find the application known as the GSFAPP used for state-based funding on the GAfutures.org website. The HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarships are used at Georgia universities while the HOPE and Zell Miller Grant is for the Georgia Technical College system. The Dual Enrollment program is available for high school students to earn college credits. Also, the state offers various other programs for students currently in the National Guard or planning to join the military in the future with th