Tag: Paying for College

Glass jar full of coins, spilling onto porch with fall flowers and pumpkins.
All, Financial Fit

Understanding College Financial Aid Awards

Lisa Rielage

If you submitted financial aid applications (FAFSA and possibly the CSS Profile) along with college applications, then acceptances may come with financial aid awards. Sometimes colleges mail an actual letter, but they might also be in a section of the student’s application portal for each college. Financial aid includes grants (gift aid that doesn’t have to be paid back), work study (money paid to a student because they work in a campus job associated with a work study program), and loans (that have to be paid back with interest after leaving college).

Understanding financial aid award letters can be tricky. Formats vary wildly from one college to another. In particular, loans which might not be clearly labeled. You might see terms like “Fed Sub,” “Unsub,” or “Parent Plus” instead.

It’s easy to get excited about a college that awards a $20,000 tuition discount, while ignoring that they are $30,000 more expensive than other colleges on your list. Compare the final net cost, not the discount amount. Here are a few resources that can help you determine if a college is a good financial fit.

Compare Financial Aid Awards

Financial Aid Shopping Sheet This fillable form allows you to input data from each financial aid offers into a standard format. This one is from the state of New Jersey. I like it because it helps you total up both direct and indirect costs that could be very different depending on the colleges you’re comparing. For example, transportation might include public transportation, a car (plus gas, insurance, and parking), or plane fare. You should fill out a sheet like this for each college you’re comparing. Remember that these are annual costs, if students at one college take 5-6 years to graduate, include that in your comparison too.

Financial Path to Graduation This government site walks families through a series of questions to determine the cost of attendance vs different types of aid offered. A couple helpful features of this tool are that it asks about other resources for paying for college, like 529 plans or state grants. It also clearly includes the cost of loans (both interest and fees) and helps you visualize student debt at graduation and the estimated total cost of student loans. It even pulls in graduation rate, average income, and loan default info to help you decide if each college is a good option.

Appealing Financial Aid Offers

Financial aid awards are not written in stone. It’s possible to appeal financial aid offers, especially if you think the FAFSA missed nuances in your family’s financial situation. Families may struggle with writing an appeal letter that is clear and compelling. Some colleges have their own appeal application or form. If yours doesn’t the Swift Student online tool has a series of prompts to help you put the facts together in way that financial aid offices will understand and consider acting on. Swift Student has many templates to cover specific situations, like a changed financial situation, unusual expenses, or emergency costs.

College financial aid offices can override financial aid awards through “professional judgement.” But what situations would be worth appealing and what documentation would be compelling. This set of Professional Judgement Tip Sheets helps college financial aid officers weigh appeal requests. They include case studies that can help you understand what might form the basis of an appeal and what information may be asked for.

Financial Fit Matters

For most families, cost is just as important for college fit as size, location, and academic programs. Make sure you understand the financial aid award and what it would actually cost to attend each college. It’s OK to decide that a school isn’t a viable choice based on the total cost (even if it’s a popular or selective college).

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Financial Fit, Military

ROTC Scholarship Board Dates 2022-23

Lisa Rielage

The ROTC scholarship boards for the 2022-223 have concluded. Most students should know by now if they were selected for a scholarship. I’ll update this page when dates for the ROTC scholarship boards for 2023-24 are available. Students who are applying in 2023-24 who would like help with their applications may be interested in working with me. You can read about how I support students with their military college program applications on the Services page or you can reach out to schedule an initial meeting.

Students often ask when they should submit their ROTC scholarship applications.  The short answer is to submit a strong and application early enough to be competitive when there are still many scholarships available. For many students, that means they need to be ready to submit complete packages by the beginning of October senior year. For some students, it may be better to wait to improve standardized test or fitness test scores or have first semester grades in hand, even if that means waiting until a later board. But be diligent about making the deadlines, because late applications are not considered.

In the sections below, I’ve listed most of the ROTC high school scholarship board dates for the 2022-23 academic year. These are the scholarships for high school seniors in the Class of 2023 (or students who have graduated from high school, but not enrolled in college).

Current juniors in the Class of 2024 should expect ROTC scholarship applications to open in spring/summer before year. (I’ll update this post as soon as the information for the new application cycle is available.) College students interested in ROTC scholarships should contact the staff of the ROTC units at their college or nearby colleges that have a crosstown agreement with their school.

How Do ROTC Scholarship Boards and Deadlines Work?

You definitely don’t want to miss the application deadlines. Usually, applications that are not complete when the application closes do not go before a review board at all. Some services allow interviews to occur after the scholarship deadline, as long as the interview is completed before the final board of review. Because ROTC scholarship applications are more complicated than the average college application, you should start early and work diligently through the process. Keep reading for info on deadlines and when you should submit your application.

Some services score each package submitted by the document deadline. Others, like Navy ROTC, review a set number of packages at each board. Usually, students who are offered scholarships will hear results 2-3 weeks after the end of a board. Applications for Space Force scholarships have a two part review process, so those notifications occur around 40 days after the review board. Notifications can be made by email, through the scholarship portal, or from the student’s recruiter. However, final turn down notification may not occur until after the final board for the selection cycle.

Army ROTC 4-Year Scholarship Board Dates

The application portal for the Army ROTC scholarship for high school students opened on June 12, 2022.

Army ROTC Scholarship Information

Scholarship Application OpensJune 12, 2022
Deadline to Submit Documents for First BoardOctober 10, 2022
First Selection BoardOctober 12, 2022
Deadline to Submit Documents for Second BoardJanuary 16, 2023
Second Selection BoardJanuary 23, 2023
Deadline to create an online application for a High School Scholarship February 4, 2023
Deadline to Submit Documents for Final Board (Missing Items)March 6, 2023
Final (Third) Selection BoardMarch 13, 2023
FY23 Army ROTC Scholarship Board Dates

Students who are not selected for a scholarship on one board may be considered at subsequent boards, but aren’t completely reevaluated. The candidate score from their board review carries over to later boards. Students can update their SAT or ACT test scores, which may improve their overall chance of being selected for a scholarship.

Air Force ROTC & Space Force ROTC High School Scholarship Program Board Dates

The application for the Air Force and Space Force FY23 scholarship for high school students opened on July 1, 2022. The Initial Online Application was due no later than December 31, 2022 and Completed Applications (including fitness tests) were due no later than January 12, 2023.

The application for the next High School Scholarship Program for students starting college in Fall 2024 opens July 1, 2023.

Air Force ROTC Scholarship Information (Includes Space Force)

High School Scholarship Application OpensJuly 1, 2022
Deadline to Submit Documents for First BoardOctober 14, 2022
First Selection Board (23HS01)October 17-21, 2022
Deadline to Submit Documents for Second Board (Interviews)November 30, 2022
Last Day to Submit Initial Online ApplicationDecember 31, 2022
Last Day to Submit Completed ApplicationJanuary 12, 2023
Second Selection Board (23HS02)January 3 – February 3, 2023
Deadline to Submit Documents for Third Board (Interviews)March 10, 2023
Third Selection Board (23HS03) [Only convened if needed]March 13-17, 2023
FY23 Air Force ROTC HSSP Board Dates

Marine Option boards are coordinated by each Marine Corps Recruiting District. Typically there is a board in in November and February. Board results are usually announced a month after the end of the board.

Navy and Marine Corps ROTC Scholarship Information

First Selection BoardNovember 2022
Deadline to Submit Completed ApplicationJanuary 31, 2023
Second Selection BoardFebruary 2023
FY23 NROTC-Marine Option Scholarship Board Dates

The Navy holds frequent review boards for Navy Option and Navy Nursing applicants from September through April. One issue with the Navy ROTC scholarship board schedule is that results from later boards may come out after May 1, the date most colleges use as an enrollment deadline. This can leave students in the position of choosing which college to attend without knowing if they would have a scholarship. This is a good reason not to wait for the last minute to submit a scholarship package.

Navy and Marine Corps ROTC Scholarship Information

Four Year Scholarship Application OpensApril 1, 2022
Last Day to Submit Completed ApplicationJanuary 31, 2023
FY23 Navy ROTC Scholarship Board Dates

When to Submit ROTC Scholarship Applications

If the application opens in July and the first board is in October, submitting an application in August that was rushed and has a weak score on the fitness test doesn’t present a strong case. The board isn’t going to give a pass on a slow run time just because the student submitted their package early. On the other hand, don’t wait until the last minute. If the board receives strong applications on earlier boards, they may select fewer scholarships on the later boards or cancel them altogether. Note for example that the third Air Force board will only convene if needed.  

Too often later applications reflect procrastination, not time spent working hard improving the application. My general suggestion is to work on your application over the summer, so you are ready to submit in the fall, but consider if another test sitting or targeted fitness training would improve your package. You may also want to skip the first board if your application would not stand out in a highly competitive group (see notes in the Army ROTC section).

ROTC scholarships can pay for tuition, fees, books, and a monthly stipend at civilian colleges that have a ROTC unit on campus or a crosstown agreement with another college. Also, some services allow scholarship selectees to use the scholarship to pay for food and housing instead of tuition. Graduates become officers in the military and have a 4-10 year military service obligation as “payback” for the scholarship.

If you have questions about the details of a ROTC scholarship, reach out to the staff of the ROTC units at colleges you’re applying to. If you’d like personalized assistance, this is one of my specialty areas at Admissions Decrypted. The best time to connect with me is junior year or earlier, so don’t wait until crunch time to ask for help. If you’d like help with your military college program applications contact me to set up an initial meeting.

Learn about FAFSA and how it can help pay for college
All, College Fit, College Planning, Financial Fit

Learn About FAFSA

Lisa Rielage

If you have a high school student, you might see articles each fall about FAFSA. Maybe you’re wondering if you need to be worried about it. Maybe you are just wondering, “What is FAFSA?” Read on to learn about FAFSA, why it matters, and where to get help completing it.

What Is the FAFSA?

FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The new application opens each fall on October 1 for financial aid that students would use the following college academic year. It is a form that collects information on student status and their family financial situation in order to determine eligibility for federal student aid, including Pell Grants, federal subsidized and unsubsidized loans, and federally supported work study programs. In addition, most colleges rely on the FAFSA as a basis for awarding need-based grants from the college.

FAFSA an instrument of the US Department of Education, and the official Federal Student Aid website is robust and worth your time. It includes sections on how financial aid works, types of aid, and how federal aid is calculated. The section on completing the FAFSA form has lots of information on required documents, factors that determine dependency status, and providing financial information. Rather than quoting each of these sections here, I encourage you to go directly to the Federal Student Aid website. Not only is the information there up to date and official, but you are likely to find explanations you didn’t even realize you should be asking about.

That said, I will address a few frequently asked questions that I get each year.

Who Needs to Complete a FAFSA?

The student submits the FAFSA, but in most cases will require information about parent income and assets. The best practice is for the student to start the process by creating a FAFSA ID and then invite a parent to create a supporting account. Any student who is interested in using federal student loans, or who seeks need-based aid from colleges should submit a FAFSA. In addition, many state grant programs require students to submit the FAFSA to establish eligibility.

Some colleges require submission of a FAFSA for specific scholarships from the college. For example, the Virginia Tech Emerging Leader Scholarship for members of the Corps of Cadets requires annual completion of the FAFSA. You should read the financial aid pages for each college you apply to in order to learn about FAFSA requirements and deadlines.

Does Submitting the FAFSA Hurt My Chance of Admission?

Let me turn this question around. Are you in a good position if you are admitted to a college you can’t afford to attend?

A student might choose not to submit a FAFSA if: they can pay the entire cost of attendance for all four years, and they are confident that their financial situation will not change. Colleges are not generous when they suspect families of playing games by claiming no financial need when applying but then trying to negotiate a tuition. Some colleges will not award additional financial aid until the following year, if the student did not initially submit a FAFSA, even if the family’s financial situation changed.

If you aren’t sure how much each of your colleges is likely to cost, you want to use their Net Price Calculator and other resources to estimate annual cost of attendance and the total cost of a degree.

Only a handful of colleges are need blind for admissions. Many colleges consider how much financial aid each student would “cost” their financial aid budget when they build their incoming class. Students who know that they want to be considered for need-based aid not only should submit the FAFSA and do so in a timely way (I suggest by the end of October), but also need to ensure that their college list includes schools that are good financial fits for their family budget.

Related: What College Costs

When Do I Have to Submit the FAFSA?

You don’t have to submit on October 1, but be aware of deadlines at individual colleges. Schools often have a fall deadline for priority financial consideration that would require not only financial aid paperwork, but also a completed college application. I recommend that families try to submit the FAFSA before the end of October. (Note that you will also see dates that are state deadlines for submitting the FAFSA. This represents the last date to submit FAFSA for that school year in order to be eligible for state grants, but may be long past when colleges have allotted their need-based financial aid for the year.)

Note: If you know that you will not be eligible for need-based aid, but want to use federal student loans, you have the option of waiting to submit the FAFSA after colleges give admissions decisions and letting the college financial aid office know that you are only submitting for the purpose of federal loan eligibility. (But do read the previous section on who should submit a FAFSA.)

What Information Do I Need to Complete the FAFSA?

Questions will ask about current assets and income from the “prior-prior” year. A student applying for aid for the Fall 2023 college semester would use income information from the 2021 tax year. More information on required documents and instructions are available on the Federal Student Aid website.

Does It Matter What Order I List Colleges on the FAFSA?

It depends. Colleges can no longer see the other schools you send FAFSA information to or what order you list colleges on the form. This was a change around 2016 after some colleges started using the college list to infer how interested the student was. This tea leaf approach was unfair, since students didn’t necessarily put intentional thought into completing that section. So the order doesn’t matter for college admissions.

But FAFSA is also sent to state agencies responsible for awarding state aid for college. Some states require schools to be listed in a specific order. Currently, if you are a resident of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, or West Virginia, state aid is dependent on where you list an eligible state college. In addition, there are 33 states, districts, and territories that require students to list an eligible in-state college to be considered for state grant aid. You can check your state on the Student Aid website.

Where Can I Get Help on the FAFSA?

In addition to the Help section on the Federal Student Aid website, there are blue question marks within the FAFSA itself that open up help boxes for specific topics. Federal Student Aid even has a YouTube channel.  Each year there are institutions that create line-by-line walk through videos. I suggest you stick with videos from state education organizations or non-profit colleges. Remember that FAFSA is the FREE Application for Federal Student Aid. You should not pay anyone to submit this for you.

Is FAFSA the Only Form I Need for Financial Aid?

About 300 colleges, universities, and scholarships use an additional financial aid form called the CSS Profile. This asks more detailed questions about family assets to determine what a family’s financial resources are.  The calculated Expected Family Contribution (EFC) for the FAFSA and CSS Profile are often different because they use different formulas.  The CSS Profile is now free for families that make up to $100,000. For other students it is $25 for the first submission and $16 per additional report. But remember students only need to complete the CSS Profile if they apply to a college or scholarship that require it.

Um, How Do You Say FAFSA?

Great question. Say it like one word, FAF-sah.