The Office of Financial Aid at Indiana University, Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) will conduct an information session. Director Jennifer Chandler will lead the session and cover Free Application for Federal State Aid (FAFSA), Financial Aid, IUPUC paperwork, and payments at IUPUC.
The session is open to all students, including incoming freshmen, transfer students, and continuing students. It will be held in the Lecture Hall at the Columbus Learning Center on Thursday, Jan. 14 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Chandler emphasizes the importance of meeting the March 10, 2016 state deadline for filing the FAFSA and adds that participants need to be aware of recent changes.
FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID (FAFSA)
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the key application to determine eligibility for federal, state, and IUPUC financial aid. You are encouraged to apply online via FAFSA on the Web. By applying online, you have the advantage of online ‘chat’ help, edits that assist in accurately completing the FAFSA, and a shorter time to receive the Student Aid Report (SAR).
Completing the FAFSA and applying for student financial aid is free. You should be wary of mailings or web sites that offer to submit your application or to find money for school if you pay a fee.
Additionally, you are encouraged to research and apply for scholarships available at IUPUC administered by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships. Please note that the deadlines for scholarships vary and some fall earlier than the FAFSA March 10 Priority Application Receipt Deadline
The priority application receipt deadline is March 10 each year. By meeting the priority application receipt deadline, eligible Indiana residents are considered for state aid. Additionally, by meeting the priority application receipt deadline students will receive maximum consideration in the aid awarding process.
Students can apply after the March 10 receipt deadline. These students will be considered for Federal Pell Grant and Federal Direct Loans, but will not be eligible for most forms state aid.
For students and parents of dependent students that plan to file a federal income tax return, the recommendation is to complete your tax return(s) before submitting the FAFSA. If you have not completed your federal income tax return(s), apply with information based on your estimated federal tax returns prior to the priority application receipt deadline of March 10.
FOLLOW-UP STEPS
You can review the status of a submitted FAFSA 3 to 5 days after you have submitted it. You are encouraged to make corrections as soon as possible to assist in the timely and accurate processing of your financial aid.
If you completed the FAFSA with estimated federal tax information, you should update your FAFSA after this information is available.
The state requires that any FAFSA edit corrections must be submitted to the federal processor on or before May 15. After March 10, you are encouraged to check eStudent for any edits that must be corrected. Some potential required edits could be: confirming your high school diploma information (Academic Honors, Core 40, or General) has been correctly reported to the state, and confirming that your college choice is IUPUC
For complete details on filing, you may go online https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/announcements/fafsa-changes.”