The process of receiving financial aid starts with FAFSA. By submitting your application, you apply for the U.S. Department of Education’s federal student aid programs. You are also registered to apply for funds from your state and school.

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid

To receive aid from, you must:

• Demonstrate financial need (except for certain loans)
• Have a high school diploma or a General Education Development (GED) certificate, pass a test approved by the U.S. Department of Education, meet other standards your state establishes that the Department approves, or complete a high school education in a home school setting that is treated as such under state law
• Be working toward a degree or certificate in an eligible program

• Be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen
• Have a valid Social Security Number
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress once in school
• Certify that you are not in default on a federal student loan and do not owe money on a federal student grant
• Certify that you will use federal student aid only for educational purposes

It is recommended you follow these 3 steps when beginning the FAFSA process:

1) Before beginning a FAFSA: Get organized. To simplify the application process, gather required documents and other information ahead of time.

2) Filling out a FAFSA: Fill out the application. The FAFSA has seven steps that ask about you, your financial information, your school plans, and more.

3) FAFSA follow-up: View your results online. You can check the status of your application, make corrections to a processed FAFSA, and get other information.

A few helpful things to adequately prepare you for the FAFSA process:

Documents you will need before the process begins:

• Your Social Security Number
• Your driver’s license
• Your W-2 Forms and other records of money earned
• Your (and your spouse’s, if you are married) Federal Income Tax Return
• Your Parents’ Federal Income Tax Return (if you are a dependent student)
• Your untaxed income records (veterans benefits, child support earned, worker’s comp)
• Your current bank statements
• Your current business and investment mortgage information, stock, bond and other investment records
• Your alien registration or permanent resident card (if not a U.S. citizen)

View this helpful worksheet to determine your dependency status.

** If the FAFSA considers you to be dependent on your parents or family, you will need to provide information about them on the application. The dependency status worksheet helps you figure out whether you're dependent before filling out the FAFSA.