Financial Aid Information

Financial aid for higher education is awarded in two broad categories: need-based aid and merit-based aid.

Need-based aid is awarded based on the difference between the costs associated with attending a college and a family's ability to pay those costs. The family's ability to pay is calculated by the federal government with a formula and financial information gathered in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.

• The FAFSA is used to determine eligibility for federal and state funded grant, loan and work study programs. It is also used by colleges and universities to award scholarships, loans and other funds in their own financial aid budget. The FAFSA is usually available January 1 and should be filled out as soon as possible. State and federal money can dry up and is awarded on a first-come, first served basis. You do not have to have your tax forms completed and can estimate figures, if necessary, and update them later. Visit the FAFSA Web site.
• Some universities use the CSS/Profile, a financial aid form administered by the College Board. The CSS/Profile takes into account some information not used by the FAFSA, and can result in a different expected family contribution, or EFC. As the College Board charges a fee to process CSS/Profile and report the results, we recommend only using it if required to do so by a college where a student has filed an application. The CSS/Profile can be completed at any time. Visit the CSS/Profile Web site.
• Some colleges use their own financial aid form, in addition to the FAFSA. Please consult each college's financial aid Web site to see which forms are required and the deadlines for submission. Late submission can drastically affect financial aid awards, so please be careful!

Merit-based aid is awarded to students for a wide variety of reasons and can come directly from the college the student will attend or from a privately-funded source.

• Merit-based scholarships awarded by a college are used to entice a student to accept the college's offer of admission and enroll. Merit-based scholarships can be awarded for academic, athletic or artistic abilities, or perhaps to meet a college's diversity goals, or just about anything you can imagine!
• Privately funded scholarships are created by individuals, groups, local community organizations and are awarded to help students and the organization's goals. There are thousands of such scholarships annually awarding millions of dollars! The only limitation is the student's and the family's wherewithal to search for and fill out scholarship applications.

There are a number of online scholarship search engines, and they can vary widely in how well they screen scholarships for which you would be ineligible. Three sites our students have found helpful include Fastweb.com, Scholarships.com and SchoolSoup.com. Beware! There are a number of unscrupulous people out there as well. A good rule of thumb to avoid financial aid scams is to never pay money to apply or get information, assistance, etc. with financial aid.

Perhaps the best resource of all is the Financial Aid office of any college. (And they will never charge you for their help!) Financial Aid officers all over the country are happy to advise families and often conduct workshops as part of a campus visit. You do not have to have applied nor been accepted at a college in order to contact them. Don't hesitate to call or e-mail them with questions.

The SSA College Counseling Office also maintains a list of scholarships that send us information. We recommend that you check this list frequently for the most up-to-date information. View a list of scholarships programs that have contacted Shady Side.