How to apply for financial aid?

[greeneryforests]

Hi everyone. I am so confused on how to apply for financial aid. For each school do I need to go to the financial aid sections and submit applications? Is this the only way to open up a the window of teaching/research assistantships....or do schools just offer those to you even if you don't apply for financial aid?

 

I did not have to take out loans of undergrad so I am confused on how to go about doing that for grad. If I apply for financial aid, am I asking the school to loan me money? How do I get federal loans?

 

Help!

[GandalfTheGrey]

Federal loans are through the FAFSA, and school-specific financial support depends on the school, so you should read each school's financial aid page.

 

You should definitely start by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ as this is the only way to qualify for Federal loans, which will most likely make up most of your financial aid package. Based on this information, your eligibility for federal loans will be determined. Filling out the FAFSA takes time and there is a lot to read, but the instructions are clear. Make sure to actually read and print everything, don't just keep clicking "next". When you fill out your FAFSA, you'll specify which schools you are applying to and those schools will have access to your information. Once you decide which school you go to, you will accept/decline loan offers and fill out paperwork through that school.

 

Individual schools may also have grant aid available, which varies by school. Some schools announce that a certain number of students will be given a certain amount of aid, while other schools may just "surprise" you with an addendum to your admission letter offering you some amount of money. Some schools may have certain scholarships that accepted students may apply for before the decision deadline. Some schools may require a separate application for aid in the form of RA appointments, but all the schools I applied to that offered RAships just had us include our interest in RA-ing as part of our SoP.

[greeneryforests]

Ok I understand much better now. Thank you so much!