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The dreaded FAFSA: daunting but totally worth it! Here's some help


OCD or Perfection?

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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?

 

Yes! You are eligible to file a FAFSA. Anyone with a SSN is. If you will not be filing taxes, just indicate that on your FAFSA.

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Yes! You are eligible to file a FAFSA. Anyone with a SSN is. If you will not be filing taxes, just indicate that on your FAFSA.

 

I had another question. Should I provide my parents information and say that they filed a foreign tax return? Or would it be better to indicate that I would not be filing taxes and not provide information about my parents. My income is currently zero.

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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?

 

I still file and am eligible for a university need-based grant of about $5000 a year. I have a decent stipend but end up paying a lot for books (we read about 30-40 books a semester) and still have to pay fees ($750ish a semester). Since those are accounted for in my taxes and, therefore the amount that goes onto my FAFSA, the university determines that even with my stipend I have unmet financial need.

 

Edit: I replied to the wrong post. Whatever.

Edited by jmu
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That's good to know though. I didn't think about financial aid from the university. I don't make a ton right now but for some reason it said I'd only be eligble for loans, which I don't plan to take. I'll definitely have to fill out an income adjustment once I get there because I won't be working full-time and will depend totally on the stipend for living expenses.

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If I am working now but will be enrolling as a full time student- how does this affect the aid I receive from FAFSA? All the tax info I input is my own, and indicates that I am working full time on a decent salary. An income adjustment form was mentioned above but I'm a bit confused when in the process that might take place or what it entails. If someone could explain in more detail that would be great.

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I just submitted mine to 10 of the 15 schools I applied to. How do I handle the other 5 since there is a limit of 10?

That's a good question that I remember seeing someone on FAFSA FAQs...I don't remember the answer sorry. Fifteen schools though? DAMN! I only applied to three :'(

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If I am working now but will be enrolling as a full time student- how does this affect the aid I receive from FAFSA? All the tax info I input is my own, and indicates that I am working full time on a decent salary. An income adjustment form was mentioned above but I'm a bit confused when in the process that might take place or what it entails. If someone could explain in more detail that would be great.

Yes! I was in exactly the same position as you in my (unfinished) undergrad. I made $44,000/year at the time I enrolled for my BSc. And then I was overseas so I wasn't gonna be making any money etc etc. Those forms need to be filled out at the office of fin-aid at your college. They might need you to meet with a fin-aid counselor who will ask you some FBI-style questions for veracity of the information you put down. That's what happened with me.

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Yes! I was in exactly the same position as you in my (unfinished) undergrad. I made $44,000/year at the time I enrolled for my BSc. And then I was overseas so I wasn't gonna be making any money etc etc. Those forms need to be filled out at the office of fin-aid at your college. They might need you to meet with a fin-aid counselor who will ask you some FBI-style questions for veracity of the information you put down. That's what happened with me.

Is that after I enroll? Isn't the financial aid information already decided at that point? I just worry that it will hurt what loans/grants I am eligible for through FAFSA. 

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I just submitted mine to 10 of the 15 schools I applied to. How do I handle the other 5 since there is a limit of 10?

Apparently, the answer to this is you wait for the FAFSA to be accepted, log into the website again, submit a corrected FAFSA with the same information, except delete the old schools and add the new schools.

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Yes! I was in exactly the same position as you in my (unfinished) undergrad. I made $44,000/year at the time I enrolled for my BSc. And then I was overseas so I wasn't gonna be making any money etc etc. Those forms need to be filled out at the office of fin-aid at your college. They might need you to meet with a fin-aid counselor who will ask you some FBI-style questions for veracity of the information you put down. That's what happened with me.

Same question as the person above, when does this take place? After the beginning of the year or now?

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