FAFSA Tips
Each year, students receiving financial aid must complete the FAFSA. Errors on your FAFSA may result in delays of the processing of your financial aid, and in some cases may require you to submit more paperwork to make corrections. Be sure to read the instructions carefully. If you have questions, refer to the Help provided on the FAFSA website (http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/) or contact the Financial Aid Office.
Common Errors to Avoid
- Social Security Numbers
- Divorced/remarried parental information
- Income earned by parents/stepparents
- Untaxed income
- U.S. income taxes paid
- Household size
- Number of household members in college
- Real estate and investment net worth
- Make sure you are answering for the student in the student sections and the parent(s) for the parent section.
Tips when completing the FAFSA:
- Make sure your name and social security number exactly match what is provided on your Social Security Card.
- Do not leave any answers blank. If a question does not apply to you, fill in a zero.
- Report income and taxes using the 1040 federal tax form, not W-2 forms. The FAFSA will refer to which lines you will find the information required.
- Report all sources of untaxed income where required, including Social Security, child support, and Aid to Dependent Children (ADC).
- If the custodial parent (the parent the student lives with more than half the year) is remarried, step-parent information MUST be provided.
- The student should always be included in the household size, even if s/he did not live with parents during the previous year.
- Sign the application!
- For Dependent Students, both the student and at least one parent MUST sign the FAFSA. When applying online, that means both must have their own PIN, which will be used each time you resubmit the FAFSA in the future.
FAFSA Corrections
How do I correct mistakes on the FAFSA?
You can make corrections on-line at FAFSA on the Web. Select “Make corrections to a processed FAFSA.” If you have the paper Student Aid Report (SAR) that may have been mailed to you once the FAFSA was processed, you may make corrections on the SAR and return it to the Federal Processor, as listed on the SAR. DO NOT send SAR corrections to our office.
What do I do if I submitted my FAFSA using the wrong Social Security Number (SSN)?
If you have submitted the FAFSA using an incorrect SSN, you must complete a new FAFSA
using the correct information. You may not submit corrections to the SSN using the SAR or on the web.
Do I need to submit another FAFSA if I will not be attending until Spring, if I originally intended to enroll in the Fall?
If you have already submitted the FAFSA for the Fall but are not attending until Spring, you do NOT have to submit a new FAFSA. The FAFSA is good for the entire academic year. You should contact the Student Financial Services office, however, so we are aware of the change in your plans.
Do I need to correct the FAFSA if I’ve gotten married since submitting it?
Marital status cannot be updated during the financial aid award year for which you’ve already submitted the FAFSA. When you file the FAFSA for the next academic year, you should indicate your proper marital status at that time.
How do I make corrections to the FAFSA to indicate that I now have a child that I support (for whom I provide 50% or more of support)?
This correction can be made online at the FAFSA website or by submitting the correction to the Federal Processor by mail on the paper SAR.
I did not include Saint Joseph College in my list of schools to receive my FAFSA. How do I send it there
?
If you did not choose Saint Joseph College as one of the schools listed on your Student Aid Report (SAR) to receive your information, you must add it on your FAFSA. Call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1.800.433.3243 to add Saint Joseph College’s school code (001409) as one of the six schools. You can also make this correction at the FAFSA
website by choosing “Add or Delete a School Code”. Please do not send in your Student Aid Report as it will not be used to process your financial aid and will be returned to you by mail. All FAFSA information must be received electronically from the Federal Processor.
