The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the first required step in the financial aid process if the student is looking to receive any federal, state, and/or need-based institutional aid. If you have any questions you may contact Chrislin Wilder at (916) 577-2234 or cwilder [at] jessup [dot] edu.
The FAFSA is a universal application put together by the Department of Education that all institutions receiving federal/state aid use in an effort to determine a student's need for financial aid.
To find the student's need, we first need to understand the income and asset situation of the family. Therefore, the information requested on the FAFSA is tax information from the most recently completed tax year. For example: if you are filling our FAFSA for the 2010-2011 academic year (e.g. planning on enrolling in Fall 2010 or Spring 2011), you will need to have your 2009 income information.
Many students will need to provide parent information because they are deemed by the Department of Education to be 'dependent'. There are 13 Yes/No questions on the FAFSA which determine your dependency status. If you can answer 'YES' to any of those questions, you will be considered 'Independent' and will not need to submit any information about your parents (just yourself, and your spouse if you are married). The dependent questions include:
- Are you over 24?
- Are you married?
- Do you have kids or other dependents you support (at more than 50% of their need)?
- Are you working on your master's or doctorate degree?
- Are both your parents deceased or are you a ward of the court?
- Are you a veteran of the Armed Forces or currently serving on active duty?
- Are you emancipated minor or living in a legal guardianship situation?
- Have you ever been homeless or an unaccompanied youth?
The FAFSA can only be completed online at www.fafsa.gov. BE CAREFUL!!! Other FAFSA websites will charge you a fee for this free application! Make sure you go to www.fafsa.gov and complete this process. If you absolutely cannot complete the FAFSA online, please contact us to make alternative arrangements.
For the WJU Financial Aid Office to see your information, you must request your FAFSA to be sent to us by listing WJU. Our school code is 001281 or you may use the school look up feature.
You will be required to e-sign your FAFSA with your PIN. If you don't have a PIN, you may request one at www.pin.ed.gov. If you received one previously you can re-use it. For dependent students, both you and one of your parents must e-sign the FAFSA in order for it to be complete. If you or your parent forgot your PIN, you can also go to www.pin.ed.gov and request a duplicate.
Once you complete the FAFSA, you will receive a confirmation page with your unofficial results. These results come in the form of a number known as the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The financial aid department will then determine your eligibility for financial aid based on this number.
To confirm the information you submitted, you will receive an Electronic Student Aid Report (e-SAR) from the Department of Education. This is an opportunity for you to double check the numbers you submitted. Also, if anything came up as an error the e-SAR would let you know. For example: if your social security number didn't match your name, this information would be detailed under the comments section of your e-SAR and you would need to fix this error with the financial aid department by sending a copy of your social security card. If there are additional errors mentioned on your e-SAR, you will need to contact the financial aid department and they can help you solve these error. Other than that, the e-SAR is meant for you to keep for your records.
You will receive notification from the financial aid department at WJU for your next step in the financial aid process.
