By Catherine Mueller It is understandable – that overwhelmed feeling you get when thinking about how to pay for college. While much of that feeling is due to the amount of money involved, you can mitigate it somewhat with a college financial plan. The college financial plan consists of understanding the cost of attending college and
Four components of a good college financial plan Read More »
By Catherine Mueller Students eligible to receive the maximum Federal Pell Grant for 2025-26 will receive the same amount as was awarded in the current academic year. The maximum Pell Grant award for 2025–26 (July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026) will be $7,395. Pell Grant award amounts can vary based on a student’s eligibility and
Pell Grant award amounts unchanged for the 2025-26 academic year Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Anyone can get confused about which tax year to use for the FAFSA. The key to knowing which year to use is to subtract two from the beginning of the academic year. It’s often referred to as “prior-prior” year tax information. For example, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the
The key to knowing which tax year to use on the FAFSA Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Financial aid professionals often want to get to know their students to provide the most appropriate assistance. One way to do that is to know a student’s financial aid history and a new report is now available to make that part of the job easier. In a recent Electronic Announcement, the National Student
NSLDS Financial Aid History Report (FAT001) now available Read More »
By Catherine Mueller It’s not that you don’t want to write the essay. You do! If you are like so many other people, the real reason you find essay writing difficult is you want it to be perfect. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting to write the perfect essay, it becomes an issue when it’s holding
The real reason admission and scholarship essays are so hard to write Read More »
Tip of the Week The ups and downs of funding If you weren’t buckled in your seat, you might have been shaken up a bit. For those in higher education (and for many others as well), yesterday was a day that turned out to be one heck of a roller coaster ride. News trickled out
Tip of the Week – January 29, 2025 Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander It’s okay if you’re not entirely sure where you plan to go to college when completing the FAFSA. You can go ahead and complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) even if you haven’t made a firm decision on where you plan to go to college. The FAFSA is designed so
The complete guide to adding or deleting colleges on your FAFSA Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander College professionals can play a role in helping students succeed by helping them access benefits for which they are eligible. The Department of Education recently shared information for students who may qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. SNAP provides benefits to low-income individuals and families to help supplement their food
Student eligibility for SNAP Benefits Read More »
Higher Ed News Vol. 17 – Issue 2 FSA Training Center releases new learning tracks Federal Student Aid is offering more training to help financial aid professionals prepare for and manage the 2025-26 processing cycle. Federal Loan Servicing Center closures due to hazardous weather conditions Severe weather and resulting closures are unpredictable, but the Department
Mapping Your Future Higher Ed News – January 23, 2025 Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Schools that were not able to complete their Financial Value Transparency (FVT) and Gainful Employment (GE) Debt Reporting by January 15 now have an additional month to do so. In a January 17 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education announced that they reopened the reporting process for debt reporting until February 18 to
FVT and GE Debt Reporting Process reopened until mid-February Read More »
