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New financial aid terms to add to your vocabulary
January 04, 2024
With the release of the new 2024-25 FAFSA, our vocabulary is being expanded.
Students and parents may want to become familiar with the following new terms:
Contributor – Anyone who contributes to a student’s FAFSA, such as the student, the parent(s), or the student’s spouse.
FAFSA Submission Summary – The output document provided to a student, summarizing all the data input on the student’s FAFSA form.
Federal Tax Information (FTI) – The data and information related to federal tax paying.
FTI Approval – Formal approval granted by any FAFSA contributors for the Department of Education to retrieve and use FTI to calculate financial aid eligibility.
Primary Parent – In cases of divorce or separation, the primary parent is the parent who provides the most financial support to the student. The primary parent (and if remarried, the step-parent) will contribute information to the student’s FAFSA.
Student Aid Index – Measure of a family’s ability to pay for a student’s education. The student will receive the Student Aid Index (SAI) after completing the FAFSA. Colleges and universities will use the SAI in calculating financial aid offers.
Unusual Circumstances – Specific unusual circumstances (as outlined in the FAFSA) that allow an otherwise dependent student to submit a FAFSA without parent information. The student will receive a provisional SAI and the financial aid office will determine whether the circumstances justify making the student independent for calculating financial aid.