Figuring out how to pay for college is stressful. If students wish to receive financial aid, the federal government is trying to make it easier for parents and college bound students going through the process.
Filling Out FASFA Forms Becomes Easier
The U.S. Secretary of Education announced that the process for filling out federal student aid applications to attend college has been simplified in the press release "U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings Visits Charlestown High School to Highlight Plan to Make Applying to College Simpler, Easier" on the website Ed.gov [October 2, 2008]. The form would be reduced to 26 questions from 100.
"This new form ... will provide real-time information on how much aid you can expect to receive, as opposed to how much you and your family are expected to contribute under the current system. This will put you in the driver's seat, with more time to investigate your options," said U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings in the press release "U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings Addresses John F. Kennedy, Jr. Forum at Harvard University" on the Ed.gov website [October 1, 2008].
New Website for College Bound Students
In addition, there is a new website called College.gov. It details why students should go to college, how to do it and how to pay for it. The site gives detailed information on how to apply for admissions, how to prepare and study, and how to apply for federal student aid.
The new site links to the FAFSA home page, which explains how to fill out the form. Completing the FASFA form online saves time. Students can expect a response in three-to-five days instead of waiting two-to-three weeks when using the paper form.
Financial Aid Forecaster
Another helpful government sponsored website is the FASFA4caster. This nifty site allows parents and students to get an early jump on the estimated amount of financial aid that the student can receive. In addition, using this site will allow parents and students to understand the process better and to find other sources of financial aid. Also, all of the data typed into the FASFA4caster can be transferred to the FAFSA on the Web application.
If a student is in high school, the parents and the student should start checking out these sites at their leisure before the senior year. The senior year goes quickly and there is so much to do and so many applications to complete. However, now that finding out about financial aid and scholarships is easier, those who are procrastinators will have an easier time finding funds to pay for college.
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