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Feb. 1 Financial Aid Priority Funding Deadline Approaches

If you and your student are interested in receiving financial aid for the 2010-2011 school year, now is the time to fill out your Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA should be completed every January for your student to qualify for aid in the upcoming school year. Visit www.fafsa.ed.gov to apply online.

After the FAFSA has been completed, you may qualify for financial aid including federal and state grants, federal and state work study, and federal student loans. Many institutional scholarships, grants, and loans also require a completed FAFSA before they can be awarded to your student.

Remember the priority deadline for your application to be received is Feb. 1. Since it takes a few days for the information to be processed, we recommend submitting the form online a few days in advance. Meeting the priority deadline will assure your student receives the best aid possible. Many federal and state awards are given to those who file before the deadline passes. Since these funds have limited budgets, and these budgets are currently being cut as a result of the economy, filing after Feb. 1 may potentially result in a loss of funding.

Information you will need before the FAFSA can be successfully submitted:

  • Student’s PIN (students apply for a PIN at www.pin.ed.gov).
  • Parent’s PIN (parents apply for a PIN at www.pin.ed.gov).
  • Your 2009 1040 Forms, or if you have not yet filed your taxes you may estimate your income using W2’s or your last pay stub from 2009; once your taxes have been filed, you may visit the FAFSA website and update your information.
  • Current bank account and investment information.

If you have questions about the FAFSA process, feel free to contact Gonzaga’s Financial Aid Office at (800) 793-1716, locally at (509) 313-6582, or on the web at www.gonzaga.edu/financialaid or finaid@gonzaga.edu .

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