OCD or Perfection? Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 (edited) I dropped out of college in my undergrad because I never had the money to pay for it and to support myself. I was 18, had just moved into the US, had no parents and big hopes for myself. I never filed the FAFSA because I was scared of documentation-some people have that phobia. It seemed insurmountable at the time. This cost me considerably (as dropping out of college does anyone). I was so scared in fact that I was happier working seven nights a week at front desks of hotels that catered to strippers, drug-dealers and those "hourly" clients, for $7/hour while going to college than filling out a few simple forms that would've got me thousands of dollars in completely free money.. Working seven nights a week, especially when you have full-time college during the day is unhealthy for anyone and I got burnt out. Despite a 4.0 gpa, I was forced to drop out of college. Since then, I have filled out my FAFSA twice, got a completely free ride through an associates degree and undergrad, both of which I was able to finish with a 4.0 GPA and still have change left over. Now I have zero undergrad debt (I still worked throughout, only better paying jobs) and am eligible for $20,500 in loans for graduate school just from the government. I also expect my graduate schools to place significant importance on my FAFSA in making award decisions for aid/scholarships. The FAFSA is scary-but it is so goddamn worth it! There are some things to consider as you start the 2014 academic/fiscal year: How you file your taxes plays a big role. I'm sure most people on this forum are filing independently, but in case you aren't, only ask your parents to claim you if they plan on contributing significantly for your graduate school. If they claim you as a dependent, the government views their income as a source of moneys available for your college funds. If you were working last year but not the coming year (while in college) fill out an income adjustment form available at your college's fin-aid office. File taxes and FAFSA early. Unknown to most people, you can file your FAFSA before filing taxes. If you're not filing taxes, you can still file FAFSA and use the "not filing" option under taxes. If you need to file a FAFSA against a deadline where you don't expect your W2s to be in by, use FAFSA's income estimator and then go and correct values later. Alternatively, you can also use the last pay stub to file your taxes. It has all the information you need that will be available on the W2. I might be able to help with some questions and will tell you if there are some I can't answer. Edited January 23, 2014 by OCD or Perfection? OCD or Perfection? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingin6789 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Hey there. I just did my taxes and am a seasoned FAFSA filler-outer. Five long years!!! I don't know if I should fill out my FAFSA, however, because I haven't been accepted or rejected anywhere yet. I do want to make the March 15th preferred submission date for full consideration of grants and loans though! Should I just put down all the schools I applied to on my FAFSA and cut as needed if I get rejected or get other funding? Thanks for you help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleDarlings Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Hey there. I just did my taxes and am a seasoned FAFSA filler-outer. Five long years!!! I don't know if I should fill out my FAFSA, however, because I haven't been accepted or rejected anywhere yet. I do want to make the March 15th preferred submission date for full consideration of grants and loans though! Should I just put down all the schools I applied to on my FAFSA and cut as needed if I get rejected or get other funding? Thanks for you help! That's what I did. I did my FAFSA on January 2 and at that point I had only been accepted to one program and wasn't sure I would attend. I still did the FAFSA, I didn't work so I had no tax info for them except my parents information which was useless because I filled it out as an independent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingin6789 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Thanks for your advice, corrupteinnocenc! I will fill out the fafsa since my taxes are done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCD or Perfection? Posted January 31, 2014 Author Share Posted January 31, 2014 Fill out FAFSA, send information and nothing else matters. Your aid is disbursed through your office of Fin-aid. If you don't enroll at an institution, no hard done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingin6789 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Thanks, OCD. I just submitted my FAFSA =) I must say, this is the second year I've been considered independent, and it's so painless when I don't have to provide my parents' info! It is a breeze now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loric Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 The whole FAFSA-avoidance thing just baffles me. It takes maybe 5mins or so to fill out the forms online and hit submit.. you just need to have your last set of taxes handy. And yet people still avoid it. I don't get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingin6789 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) The whole FAFSA-avoidance thing just baffles me. It takes maybe 5mins or so to fill out the forms online and hit submit.. you just need to have your last set of taxes handy. And yet people still avoid it. I don't get it. I always dreaded the FAFSA before I turned 24 because of one thing: my parents' tax information. They're separated now, but it always took them past March 15 to get their taxes done. This drove my FAFSA anxiety level sky-high! I'm assuming other prospective grad students or current grad students don't dig the FAFSA is because their parents may have done it for them throughout undergrad. So maybe, for them, it's like doing taxes for the first time (a bit intimidating at first, but so easy once you get the hang of it). Edited January 31, 2014 by gingin6789 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loric Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 That's another thing I don't get.. getting all the way through a bachelors but still having your parents do everything for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imaginary Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Many people absolutely need their parents' tax information, and are not able to access it on their own. I worked in Financial Aid for a while.. there was a girl who came in, crying, because her mother refused to provide her tax information. She was told that she could fill out a form stating that she was not going to use her parents' information, but that she would be ineligible for anything but loans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loric Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I dont understand why people's parents are that stupid/obnoxious/etc... either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-ttl Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I dont understand why people's parents are that stupid/obnoxious/etc... either. ....believe me, anyone having to deal with parents who are like that don't understand why either. :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCD or Perfection? Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 The whole FAFSA-avoidance thing just baffles me. It takes maybe 5mins or so to fill out the forms online and hit submit.. you just need to have your last set of taxes handy. And yet people still avoid it. I don't get it. Loric, a LOT of people are just very anxious about paperwork. I remember the first few times I grabbed the FAFSA form from my community college fin-aid office. The many green pages with boxes and initials etc etc were so intimidating, I'd throw it into the trash and just go swipe my credit card and throw away my extremely hard-earned cash. Then, one day my elder brother told me how easy it was to do it online and I could just link it to the IRS system and woaalla! I get the same anxiety every time I have to take my car for inspection or go to the DMV or go to the social security office. And I go camping into mountains, travel into deserts where you have to take your own water supply for up to a week. However, I have actually put off registering my car in my name for more than two years after I purchased because I don't want to go to the DMV office and this can't be done online. We are all different and have different strengths...and weaknesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr protagonist Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Quick question -- does filing FAFSA have any bearing on admission/funding decisions? What I mean is, will filing late (say, today) cause any major issues? Or, do programs usually make their admission decisions, then begin funding decisions (and if this is the case, would they contact a student if their FAFSA has not yet been completed?). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guttata Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Quick question -- does filing FAFSA have any bearing on admission/funding decisions? What I mean is, will filing late (say, today) cause any major issues? Or, do programs usually make their admission decisions, then begin funding decisions (and if this is the case, would they contact a student if their FAFSA has not yet been completed?). Shouldn't have any bearing on your admissions decision at all either way. Will not affect your stipend package. Might affect (as in, might offer you) work-study funds or loans. I haven't filed since my first year of undergrad, now in my 2nd year in a PhD program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr protagonist Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 Great, thank you so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seeingeyeduck Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 Shouldn't have any bearing on your admissions decision at all either way. Will not affect your stipend package. Might affect (as in, might offer you) work-study funds or loans. I haven't filed since my first year of undergrad, now in my 2nd year in a PhD program. Is this true even for state schools? I got into a UC and am only now figuring out the financial info since they all told me the tuition would be covered. In hindsight that was pretty stupid of me. But I'd like to figure it out before the priority deadline. Unfortunately the recruitment day is after the deadline. I'm in a weird situation where my boyfriend has been helping support me, so I can make art, and I don't make much. However we are planning to get married this month, so then technically I would be his dependent? Should I wait til after the marriage to file the paperworks so I don't have to send updates? I didn't even know if I will file taxes this year since I made so little last year. Will this affect my prospects for funding next year, or do packages tend to cover both years (MFA)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boba felt Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 (edited) Ugh, fafsa. I'm independent filer, now unemployed. My fafsa said my EFC was $10,000 and I want to punch something. I only qualify for tons of loans and less than $1500 in work study. Hope that phd funding comes thru!!! Edited February 7, 2014 by Boba felt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guttata Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 (edited) Is this true even for state schools? I got into a UC and am only now figuring out the financial info since they all told me the tuition would be covered. In hindsight that was pretty stupid of me. But I'd like to figure it out before the priority deadline. Unfortunately the recruitment day is after the deadline. I'm in a weird situation where my boyfriend has been helping support me, so I can make art, and I don't make much. However we are planning to get married this month, so then technically I would be his dependent? Should I wait til after the marriage to file the paperworks so I don't have to send updates? I didn't even know if I will file taxes this year since I made so little last year. Will this affect my prospects for funding next year, or do packages tend to cover both years (MFA)? MFAs are a different beast that I don't know much about, as I'm in biology where full funding packages (tuition waiver + stipend) are the norm. I'm not sure what the standard is in degrees where you typically pay your own way (or if that's even true for MFAs). But yes, the FAFSA operates exactly the same way for private and state schools; I've been at both. Edited February 7, 2014 by guttata Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maleficent999 Posted February 9, 2014 Share Posted February 9, 2014 I submitted my FAFSA and a few days later before my FAFSA was processed, I received my funding package that covers tuition and I have a stipend that is enough to live on. In that case, does the FAFSA even matter? I don't plan on taking out loans so will it really change anything? I was working full-time this past year but I won't be in grad school. Should I fill out an income adjustment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCD or Perfection? Posted February 10, 2014 Author Share Posted February 10, 2014 You should absolutely. Loans are a choice you have. But the FAFSA opens the door for free money also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maleficent999 Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 You should absolutely. Loans are a choice you have. But the FAFSA opens the door for free money also. Is that something I can do now or do I have to wait until I quit my job and am enrolled? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCD or Perfection? Posted February 10, 2014 Author Share Posted February 10, 2014 The purpose of the income adjustment form is to state how your income will be considerably different THIS year compared to the year BEFORE. You can file it at any time as it contains information based on future expectations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
likemythesis Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 As a child of divorced parents who refused to let the other know about their finances, I've been doing my own FAFSA a long time. Here we go again~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GradschoolUSA Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 Hey guys I'm new to this and my case is somewhat unusual. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice I'm a US citizen by birth but I've been lived in India since I was a kid, my parents being Indian citizens. Can I file for a FAFSA? Where do I start? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now