Myth Or Fact - FAFSA Edition

There are eligibility requirements for federal aid, but ethnicity and age are two factors that are NOT considered.

Submitting the FAFSA is completely free. No matter what you might hear, it is FREE to fill out and submit the FAFSA. The word itself stands for “Free Application for Federal Student Aid."

Even if you support yourself and file your own taxes, you may still be considered a “dependent” student in terms of federal aid.

The FAFSA needs to be completed again prior to every year you plan to attend college, preferably by the March 1 priority deadline to receive the best aid offer available to you.

You can begin the FAFSA as early as October 1 during your senior year of high school. Just list all the colleges you’re considering — it’s OK if you aren’t accepted or don’t apply to all of them.

You can list up to 10 colleges or universities on the FAFSA form and can change those at any time. If you don’t end up applying or getting accepted into every one, that’s OK. You will be reviewed for aid after you are admitted to the schools you choose.

Federal student aid can include different kinds of assistance, like grants, work-study funds, low-interest loans and more!

Students will need to accept or decline any offered aid, and they may need to submit more documentation as needed after the FAFSA. Students should also apply for other scholarships and grants throughout their college journey.

Scholarships can be based on academic merit and financial need. But there are also scholarships given based on many other criteria.

Accepting financial aid early helps prevent delays in the aid process, but if you choose not to attend a school, you can simply notify them to cancel.

About 90% of first-time WVU students receive financial aid of some kind.

Even seemingly small changes to your family’s situation can change the amount of aid you may receive. Your results can vary year to year, especially if your family has more than one child in college. Plus, some state, institutional and private scholarships require a FAFSA regardless of your parents' income.

Your parents’ citizenship actually has nothing to do with your eligibility for federal aid. In fact, the FAFSA doesn’t even ask about it.