Countdown to FAFSA
Do you have your FSA ID ready?
When will the FAFSA open for 2024-25?
Federal Student Aid, a division within the U.S. Department of Education, oversees the FAFSA, and they promise the new FAFSA will open by December 31, 2023; other than this, no details are known about the opening date. Due to the upcoming winter break, MNPS will not likely send another email communication about the FAFSA before January. Please take a few minutes to review these resources so you are ready!
Federal Student Aid has provided many new tools and resources to help students and family members prepare for the FAFSA launch. In this newsletter, we have selected information from Federal Student Aid that we feel will help you understand your role in securing money for college.
In case you missed it, we highly recommend that you first refer to our previous newsletter here!
7 Things to Know About the 2024-25 FAFSA
Federal Student Aid has identified "7 Key Changes to the 2024-25 FAFSA Experience" in an article. Below are summaries for each identified "key change," however, for more information and context, please read the full article here.
1. The 2024-25 FAFSA form will launch in December 2023. What can students do now to prepare for the launch? Get an FSA ID at StudentAid.gov.
2. Anyone who provides information on your FAFSA form will be considered a "Contributor." In most cases, a student's "Contributor" is a parent and their spouse. Review the image below to see who needs to contribute information to the student's FAFSA.
(Click to enlarge and see the image in a new window.)
3. You must provide consent and approval to be eligible for federal student aid. This "consent and approval" refers to allowing an IRS transfer of information into a student's FAFSA form. Allowing the transfer is required for anyone considered a Contributor - even if they didn't file a tax return, filed taxes in another country, or they don't have a Social Security Number.
4. You won't be able to access the FAFSA form without a StudentAid.gov account. Every student applying for financial aid and anyone considered a Contributor must have an FSA ID, created at StudentAid.gov. We strongly urge any Contributor to create an FSA ID ahead of the FAFSA launch; however, any Contributor that does not have a Social Security Number must wait until the FAFSA launch has happened.
5. You may qualify for additional Federal Pell Grant funds. Currently, the maximum Pell Grant award is $7,395; the maximum award is anticipated to increase for the 2024-25 FAFSA, and the amount will be announced in 2024.
The next bullets will contain new terms/concepts for students; however, for anyone that has filed or supported a FAFSA in the past, these bullets have new terminology for familiar concepts.
6. The formula used to determine your financial aid eligibility is changing. Previously called the "Expected Family Contribution," the newly-named "Student Aid Index" (SAI) is the product of the FAFSA that helps institutions determine the amount of financial aid for which you qualify.
7. The Student Aid Report is now the FAFSA Submission Summary. The FAFSA Submission Summary (which is a new name for the Student Aid Report) highlights your federal student aid eligibility using your FAFSA form answers, your SAI, and an estimation of the amount of federal student aid you may be eligible for.
2024-25 FAFSA FAQs videos
Do you have 10 minutes to spend learning about the new FAFSA? Click this link to watch a playlist of brief videos explaining the new FAFSA processes. These animated videos are approachable and easy to understand! Check them out. Topics include:
- What is the FAFSA?
- What's changed for the 2024-25 FAFSA form?
- Who is a Contributor on the 2024-25 FAFSA form?
- Why do my Contributors and I Need our Own StudentAid.gov Accounts for the 2024-25 FAFSA form?
- What does it mean to provide Consent and Approval on the 2024-2025 FAFSA form?
The first video in the playlist is available below.
Webinar video available: 2024-25 FAFSA Contributor Prep
If you're interested in diving deeper into understanding the role of the Contributor, check out the webinar video below! Recorded on December 14, 2023 to explain this responsibility in greater detail, this video is about 45 minutes long; however, the chapter titles/times are listed below. Feel free to pick-and-choose the chapters that you think are most relevant to you. Just navigate to the time (minute:seconds) of the chapter you need.
0:00 - Introduction
1:54 - Federal Student Aid Overview
6:06 - Contributor Overview
8:35 - Is An Additional Contributor Required
17:09 - Creating a StudentAid.gov Account / FSA ID
24:05 - Ways to Start FAFSA and Inviting a Contributor
33:32 - Responsibilities of a Contributor
41:09 - Submitting the FAFSA
44:17 - FSA Tools and Resources
What can I do while I wait for the FAFSA to open?
1.) Students - go to StudentAid.gov and create your FSA ID account. Reminders:
- If you don't know your Social Security Number, ask your parent or guardian and memorize it.
- For your account, use your personal email address - NOT your school email address.
- Passwords cannot contain your username, first or last name, or your date of birth. Get creative!
- Phone numbers and email addresses can only be used one time per FSA ID. This means that students and parents need to enter their own phone number and/or email address. Federal Student Aid will not allow repeats.
2.) Contributors - see steps suggested above for students. Create your own FSA ID. It usually takes 1-3 days for FSA ID applications to process and become verified; however, in some cases, it may take up to 10 business days. Remember - parents without Social Security Numbers will still have to apply for an FSA ID; however, they need to wait until the FAFSA actually launches before attempting.
3.) Follow Federal Student Aid on social media. These accounts will post updates on the FAFSA process and will share when the FAFSA has launched.
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Get Assistance
Students and families at GEAR UP sites can also reach out to their GEAR UP staff member. These schools include: Antioch High, Cane Ridge High, Glencliff High, John Overton High, Maplewood High, Pearl-Cohn High, and Stratford STEM Upper.
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About MNPS
Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, creed, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, color, age, and/or disability in admission to, access to, or operation of its programs, services, or activities. MNPS does not discriminate in its hiring or employment practices.
About this Message
This email was sent to current 12th grade students at MNPS neighborhood high schools, as well as their family members according to Infinite Campus.