10 First Steps for Early FAFSA Success

Whether you like it or not, completing the FAFSA is the first step on the road to receiving financial aid for college. The FAFSA determines what aid you will receive from your college as well as state and federal governments. Some scholarship committees also use FAFSA.

By filing your FAFSA early, you will help ensure that you can receive the maximum amount of funding you're eligible for. So here are 10 straight-forward and helpful "musts" that will help you achieve early FAFSA success:

1. You Must File an FAFSA

If you expect federal financial aid of any sort, the only way to get it is by filing a FAFSA. It is also used by states and colleges for their financial aid, any federal student loans you need, and some scholarship committees, so there really is no way around it.

2. You Must File an FAFSA Early

Although the starting date has been moved up to October 1, the best FAFSA strategy has always been to file early to make sure you receive all of the financial aid to which you are entitled.

Once you have this out of the way, you should be able to get financial aid offers earlier, which will make comparing college costs easier.

3. You Must Know Your Deadlines

There are several deadlines in the college application process and you need to be aware of them all.

There is the college application itself - early action, early decision, or regular. There will be college, state, and federal financial aid deadlines, and also scholarship deadlines. Get organized so you can get everything done on time.

4. You Must Have an FSA ID

If you haven’t already applied for an FSA identification, get it done now so you can move forward on your FAFSA.

Your FSA ID is the username and password you'll use to log into the U.S. Department of Education (ED) to fill out or update your FAFSA each year. You can create one by providing your Social Security number, name, and birthday on the "Create an Account" page of the Federal Student Aid website.

5. You Must Use the FAFSA Website

Make sure the information you're getting or the personal information you're giving is on a trusted website. Any application but studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa is probably a scam.

6. You Must Know Your Definitions

Don’t assume anything—read the explanations and take the necessary time to think through your answers. Don’t listen to rumor mills when answering these questions:

• Legal guardian: Don’t answer that your parents are your legal guardians unless they have been so appointed by the state. Don’t answer this question unless an actual court has appointed someone as your legal guardian.
• Parent: You cannot just say that you live with grandparents or a parent with a lower income. There are specific rules to follow to determine which parent, and possible stepparent, information you will use.
• Household size: Read the rules to find out how to calculate the household size, especially if you don’t live with your parents or if you live in a household with step-siblings.
• Attending college: Include all members of your family who will attend college during the year under consideration, including yourself, but don’t include any parents in this figure.

7. You Must Check Your Work

Haste makes waste, as the old saying goes, and this is especially true when it comes to completing the FAFSA.

Make sure you understand the differences between parent and student sections, use the names shown on Social Security cards, and re-check the Social Security numbers you provide. Simple typos can lead to major headaches.

8. You Must Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool

Technically you don’t have to, but why wouldn’t you? Instead of sitting there and typing in all of the information yourself, use the DRT to directly populate the financial areas of your FAFSA from the appropriate federal income tax return.

9. You Must Include School Codes

The major tool most colleges use to make financial aid decisions is the FAFSA. You will want to use the correct codes so your selected colleges receive your information.

You can go back and add colleges later, but you want to make sure the preferred choices get your information as soon as possible.

10. You Must Sign the FAFSA

The last step is to use the student and parent FSA ID to sign the FAFSA. If it is not signed it will not be submitted. If you cannot sign with an FSA ID for some reason, the student and parent do have the option to mail a signature page. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)