Completing the FAFSA^*

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, is the jumping off point for all financial aid. In other words, you must submit a FAFSA to be considered for grants, work-study, and federal student loans, including Federal Stafford and Federal PLUS loans.

The FAFSA examines your family’s financial situation and evaluates your eligibility for student aid based on U.S. Department of Education Guidelines.

The official deadline for submitting a FAFSA varies from state to state. To be safe, though, and to increase your chances of receiving financial aid, submit your FAFSA as soon after January 1 as possible.

Keep in mind—funds are limited for need-based financial aid, so you’ll want to apply as soon after January 1 as possible to increase your chances of getting financial aid.

To complete a FAFSA, use FAFSA on the Web at www.FAFSA.ed.gov or call 800-801-0576 to order FAFSA Express software. Or, you can submit a FAFSA through your high school or college financial aid office.

The FAFSA process takes about four to six weeks. Use this time to start investigating scholarships using the award-winning NextStudent Scholarship Search Engine.

* Please be aware that due to current conditions in the student loan market in particular and in the financial sector in general, NextStudent is not currently able to accept any new PLUS, Grad PLUS, Stafford, or Federal Consolidation Loan applications.

On October 1, 2007, legislation went into effect that cut $21 billion in subsidies to FFELP lenders like NextStudent. We have been searching, and continue to search, for avenues that would allow us to keep offering FFELP loans. But at this point, until market and regulatory conditions change, we find ourselves forced to suspend our federal education loan programs.

We value your business, and we want to make sure you’re able to get the money you need to pay for school. We encourage you to take advantage of college scholarships and your available federal financing options. But if you’re still in need of a parent or student loan, please give us a call, and we’ll do what we can to help.