Federal Student Aid (2024)

FAQs

What to do when financial aid is not enough? ›

Not maintaining satisfactory progress at your college or degree program. Not filling out the FAFSA each year you are enrolled in school. Defaulting on a student loan.

Request a Reevaluation of Your Circ*mstances

Sometimes a family's finances are not accurately reflected on the FAFSA^® form because of changes that have occurred, such as job loss/reduction, divorce or separation, or other special circ*mstances.

You could be eligible for as much as $30,000 of aid

In order to receive their share of these funds, students should complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Many students mistakenly believe that they do not qualify for federal aid.

For instance, you might no longer meet one of the basic eligibility criteria, or you might have changed majors and no longer be enrolled in a program that makes you eligible to receive a specific type of funding (for instance, a Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education [TEACH] Grant).

If your family's financial situation has changed since you submitted the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), you may be eligible for more money. This starts with appealing your award letter from your school. You might do this if your family has experienced a: Job loss or change in income.

In most cases, you won't have to verify income and tax information. However, if you are selected for verification, the school may ask you to submit a tax transcript or other documentation to confirm the information you reported.

Verification doesn't necessarily check the student's or parent's bank accounts. Rather, the school will ask for documentation to clarify information provided in the form. These documents can include income tax returns, W-2 forms, and 1099 forms.

Basically, there is no set income cutoff for aid. If you still think your parents are too wealthy to access financial aid, consider using either the Federal Student Aid Estimator or your school's net price calculator.

At what income level is FAFSA pointless? ›

There is no set income limit for eligibility to qualify for financial aid through. You'll need to fill out the FAFSA every year to see what you qualify for at your college. It's important to make sure you fill out the FAFSA as quickly as possible once it opens for the following school year.

It's possible that you might not receive your entire scheduled award for an award year. There are a few reasons for this, the most common of which are that you are not enrolled for the full year or that you are not enrolled full-time, or both. We calculate the percentage of the scheduled award that you did receive.

Student aid estimates for 2022-2023 show that average federal grant aid has increased to $10,677. In 2020-2021, the average grant and scholarship aid awarded was highest at private, nonprofit four-year institutions for students in households earning $30,001-$48,000 per year.

Award amounts can change yearly. The maximum Federal Pell Grant award is $7,395 for the 2023–24 award year (July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024). The maximum Federal Pell Grant award is $7,395 for the 2024–25 award year (July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025). your plans to attend school for a full academic year or less.

Any money left over is paid to you directly for other education expenses. If you get your loan money, but then you realize that you don't need the money after all, you may cancel all or part of your loan within 120 days of receiving it and no interest or fees will be charged.

If you don't feel you've been given enough financial aid, you can always ask for more. Maybe your family's finances have changed, or maybe you have a better offer from another school you can use to negotiate. In such situations, you can submit an appeal letter requesting additional financial aid.