The 
Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the FAFSA, is the most important step to qualify for financial aid for college. This is the required form to receive federal money, such as Pell Grants, loans, and work study. Information from the FAFSA is also used by colleges to decide on grant awards and scholarships. Homeschoolers should familiarize themselves with the FAFSA and make sure they are ready to take care of this important step in the college planning process. Here is the information you need to navigate successfully through this process.
Opens in October
High school seniors typically fill out and file applications in the fall of their senior year of high school. If you are the parent of a senior, you should look at the FAFSA when it opens October 1st (of your child’s senior year in high school). For most families the FAFSA takes about thirty minutes to complete. While the application is available until June, many colleges and state financial aid programs set an earlier deadline for making their financial aid awards. It is to the student’s advantage to file early, as many awards are available on a first come, first served basis.
File Based on Prior-Prior Year Income
Many assume they can’t file the FAFSA until they have received their tax information from their employer and completed their tax returns. In fact, families can file as early as October of the fall of senior year. The system uses what is called “Prior-Prior year income.” The FAFSA award will be filed based on previous tax returns so there is no need to wait even if your income has changed. Filers can instruct the FAFSA to automatically update information based on IRS returns when filed.
No Commitment
Unfortunately, some parents fear if they fill out the FAFSA it is like they’ve signed on the bottom line and agreed to pay for college. It is important to realize that filling out the FAFSA makes it possible for your student to qualify for federal, state, and college scholarships. It isn’t obligating you to pay a certain amount or take responsibility for college costs. Filing the FAFSA does not commit you to taking out student loans. What you decide to pay for college is a separate decision to make later. Refusal to fill out the FAFSA puts your child in a very difficult position. It may even disqualify your child from merit based scholarships offered by some colleges.
Double Check Answers
The most common mistake on the FAFSA is to leave an answer blank. If a question doesn’t apply to you, enter a zero. Take the time to check over your answers and make sure you correctly enter social security numbers and that you use the correct legal name.
Don’t Overlook State Money
Many states have financial or merit aid scholarships that require students to file the FAFSA. Some states provide all assistance on a first come, first served basis. Filing early can give your student the best odds of qualifying for all of the aid they are eligible for. On the FAFSA you will be able to find a link to your state college financial assistance programs.
File Every Year in College
If your student is receiving federal or state financial aid, they will need to continue to file the FAFSA every year during college. Many grants from colleges also require that the student continue to file annually. Students who did not receive financial aid the first year may not need to continue to file the FAFSA. If you are unsure if your current college student needs to file, they should contact the financial aid office at their college.
Understand Dependency
There is a lot of misinformation floating around about students filing the FAFSA as independent. Some parents believe that simply declaring they are not providing financial support will make it so their student can get more financial aid. The rules governing student independence are specific and detailed. Before you decide not to file a FAFSA make sure you understand this will make it so your student cannot receive aid they may be entitled to.
Learn About Financial Aid and Scholarships
The FAFSA is a key step for most students in the quest to access financial aid and college scholarships. It is important to understand that it isn’t the only step. Carefully planning a well-selected list of colleges is the single most important step in lowering the cost of college. Some colleges do a better job helping students with high financial need, and some colleges are more generous with merit scholarships. Understanding your student’s individual profile can help give them the best outcome possible and lower the cost of college.
So how does a homeschooler get past the “School Section” where you have to “Enter the name, city, and state of your high school, then click Confirm.” a list of government schools loads and, of course, a homeschool doesn’t. Then when you try to advance past the next page which appears to be about entering colleges, the prompt says, “You must select at least one school before proceeding to the next page. You may search for a school by selecting the State and entering the City and/or School Name, or by entering the Federal School Code.” If there is no college, what does one do?
Hello,
Are you referring to question 27? If so, that only needs to be completed if the student has graduated from high school. If the student has graduated and you don’t see the applicable school listed just press – “next” – and the school code will be entered as zero. The question is just for the purposes of the Dept of Ed gathering information it will not affect your student’s financial aid. Here is a link with more information. I hope that helps!
Barbara
I’m currently filling out my FAFSA and have reached the School Selection section. I’m homeschooled, and, of course, that doesn’t show up in the school search engine and there’s no code I can enter in the Federal School code section. Zero is not an acceptable answer, and nothing I do is getting me past that one section. Am I doing something wrong, or is there just some bit of info I’m missing to get past?
Hello,
Thanks for your question. When the FAFSA asks for the Federal School Code they are not asking for a code for your homeschool. Instead they want to know where to send this FAFSA information to. So you should list a choice of college or university that you would like to receive your FAFSA information.
Under the “Student Eligibility” part of the FAFSA it asks for school name, city and state. There is no 27 next to the page. We homeschool and when I followed your step above to someone else based on question 27, it didn’t let me hit next and continue. It makes everything on that page an error. There is no way to continue without filling in something. ???
Are you stuck on the question “What will your high school completion status be when you begin college for the 2018-2019 school year?” What happens when you enter “homeschool”? I suggest logging out and trying again in case there was a software error. Sorry, I know these online forms can be frustrating!
We are stuck in this same spot. No, it is not, “What will your high school completion status be…?” It is a later point in the student eligibility section, actually, the next “page” after that one. Has anyone gotten past this question?
If logging out and relogging in on another browser doesn’t fix the problem my suggestion would be to call FAFSA support at 1-800-433-3243. Unfortunately they don’t have chat support, but I think you need someone there to take a look. I hope that helps. It is really frustrating to get stuck on an online form.
I used “Open High” then my city “Richmond” and my state “Virginia” and didn’t chose any of the choices the search produce but hit ‘Next’ and moved on. I’ve done this since my first in 2011 and it seems to work.
I got around it by:
1. Selecting a school that came up in my search
2. Continue entering our information
3. Use check for errors to go back through and change name of high school before signing and submitting.
I was notified by a small college that since my child was home schooled, he isn’t eligible to receive a pell grant, any truth to this? Is so, what are homeschooled kids eligible for?
This is not correct. Pell Grant eligibility is determined by income and income eligible homeschool graduates can receive the Pell Grant. Homeschoolers need to comply with their state requirements regarding graduation from high school and this shows they meet the “ability to benefit” requirement of financial aid. I suggest you reach out to the financial aid office at the college and try to set up a meeting with a staff member.
Is it possible for a graduate to fill out FASFA without any parental info given? We won’t be financially involved in their schooling whatsoever and I’m personally not comfortable filling out the extensive amount of info needed when this will be their responsibility, their future. I understand the reasoning behind it’s being requested, so please don’t respond to that. I’m literally wanting to know if they can still fill out the form but leave all parental questions blank.
Except in unusual circumstances such as where the child is in foster care or has been emancipated, parents are required to fill out the FAFSA for the student to be eligible for Federal aid or aid from colleges. It is essential to understand that filling out the FAFSA doesn’t obligate the parent to pay for college. All it does is allow the student to receive aid from other sources. The FAFSA information is no more than what families fill out when filing a tax return. If the parent refuses to pay for college or fill out the FAFSA the student is most likely going to be unable to attend college until they are 24, married, or in the armed services.