All students needing financial assistance to attend college should apply for financial aid.

A student's eligibility for financial aid is based upon a number of factors, including the size of your family, how many members of the family are in college, how close your parents are to retirement, and, of course, family resources (income and assets).

Even though your family's circumstances may appear to be very similar to your neighbor's, there may be substantial differences in the components used to calculate financial aid eligibility. One of the most common differences is meeting deadlines. Missing a deadline could substantially impact the amount of grant aid for which you may be eligible.

If you are not eligible for need-based financial aid, many options are still available. One option is to look for merit-based scholarships, which consider academic or other talents. Additionally, you may consider borrowing through the unsubsidized loan program, or having your parents borrow through the PLUS program.

FAFSA stands for "Free Application for Federal Student Aid."

Applying for financial aid is free. To apply for federal and state financial aid, you will need to complete the FAFSA application. Using the CCCApply to FASFA Transfer Module you can transfer application data directly to the FASFA form from the CCCApply application to save time.

Yes. Even though you may not think you qualify for aid, you should at least complete the FAFSA. The application is free and many campuses use it to assess your eligibility for some scholarships and non-need-based loans, including the unsubsidized and PLUS loans.

All students who may need financial assistance for college are encouraged to apply for aid. Even those who think they may not be eligible may be surprised. So make sure you apply.

Eligibility depends upon a number of factors, including parental income and assets, the number of people the parents support, and the number of children attending college. Even if a student isn't eligible for grants, there are a number of loan programs available.

Your eligibility will also be based on some additional factors.

First, there are basic requirements that are not related to your financial need. To be eligible for most financial aid you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen (see the FAFSA for more detail).
• Be registered with Selective Service (if required).
• Be working toward a degree, certificate or eligible goal (like transfer).
• Not owe a refund on a federal grant or be in default on a federal educational loan.
• Be a high school graduate or have the equivalent of a high school diploma (like a GED), or take a special test to show you have the ability to benefit from college education.
• Not have been convicted of drug possession or sales in the recent past (see the FAFSA for more detail).

Then, your family income and assets and other financial factors are reviewed to see if you are financially eligible. Your eligibility is relative to the cost of college. For example, you might not be eligible for much money at a low cost college but you may be eligible for more money at an expensive college.

And finally, you have to make progress towards your educational objectives to keep your financial aid eligibility while you are in college.

The college financial aid office will explain eligibility to you and answer your specific questions.

Financial aid is made available to assist students and families in meeting the costs of a postsecondary education. If you believe you will need assistance in meeting those costs, you should apply for financial aid.

To receive financial aid you must apply for it. The biggest mistake students make is not to apply because they don't think they'll qualify. To apply for federal, state and college financial aid programs, you need to complete the FAFSA and for the Cal Grant program you must submit a GPA verification form by March 2nd. Some institutions may also request additional documents such as tax returns to complete your financial aid file so please respond immediately to all requests made by the campus financial aid office.

For some students, financial aid plays a large part in deciding which college to attend. To assist in the decision process, some campuses will send out a preliminary award letter to let new students know approximately how much financial aid they may be eligible for at that campus. These letters are usually based on estimated information only, and the final award may change once supporting documents are reviewed by the financial aid office.

While it is recommended that you complete your tax return prior to filling out your FAFSA, it is not essential. You can fill out the FAFSA using estimated information from your W-2; however, take care in estimating your figures. Any large discrepancies between your FAFSA and your tax return may have a large impact on any preliminary financial aid award you receive.

Although you can apply for federal aid any time after January 1, you should wait until you receive your W-2 forms. These provide a fairly accurate estimate of your earnings. Although you can use estimated information on your FAFSA, it is recommended that you file it using a completed tax return for better accuracy.

If necessary, you may correct the information submitted on the FAFSA when you receive your Student Aid Report, or provide your campus with a copy of your tax return (check with the campus financial aid office to see if they need your tax return). Also, if you use estimated information, your financial aid eligibility may be revised once you update your income information.

Make sure you submit the FAFSA and the GPA verification form before March 2 in order to meet the Cal Grant deadline.

By completing the FAFSA and supplying any other required documents to the financial aid office, you are considered for federal grant and loan programs. In order to be considered for Cal Grant, as well as for college funds, you will need to meet the priority deadlines. For Cal Grant you will also need to complete a GPA verification form.

To apply for a loan, you will need to complete a promissory note through your campus. Contact the financial aid office to find out when and how to apply for a student loan.

Approximately three to four weeks after submitting your FAFSA, you should receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) from the FAFSA processor. The SAR will list all of the information you put on the FAFSA. This information also is forwarded to the colleges you indicated to receive copies of the information. Once the colleges receive the information and verify it with any additional documents you submitted at their request, they will notify you of your aid eligibility or send you a letter requesting additional information.

If you haven't received a Student Aid Report, you can call the federal processor at (319) 337-5665. You will need to provide your Social Security number and date of birth as verification.

You also can write to:

Application and Pell Processing Systems Division
U.S. Department of Education
600 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-5453