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How to Fill Out FAFSA Forms

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the application form to receive federal education loans and scholarships. The application process requires some preparation, including the completion of your tax return, but it is relatively straightforward and can be completed quickly if you have all the documentation prepared in advance. The FAFSA website provides a usefull worksheet to help you gather all the paperwork.

Social Security Number
Driver's license (if any)
W-2 forms and other records of income
Tax returns (may require parent's tax returns)
Current bank statements
Alien registration or permanent resident card (for non-U.S. citizens)

Instructions

- 1
  Complete the Dependency Status Worksheet (see References), which asks you basic questions such as your date of birth and marital status. Record this status for your application.
- 2
  Fill out the FAFSA on the Web Worksheet (see Resources), which is a three-page form that will prompt you to provide all the necessary documentation for your personal and financial status. If you can complete all the necessary sections here, you will be ready to go online and enter the information on the actual application. If you are a dependent, you may need your parent's financial information to fill out this form.
- 3
  Determine the school codes of the institutions you are applying to. This information is available from the Office of Financial Aid of the schools, or you can search on the FAFSA Federal School Code Search page (see Resources).
- 4
  Apply for a Federal Student Aid PIN (see Resources). This PIN will allow you to file electronically.
- 5
  Log into the FAFSA website and begin the application process, entering the data as prompted.

FAFSA Application Instructions

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