Mysteries of Financial Aid

This week I met with Jim Buske of the Student from UW’s Student Financial Services Office to learn about financial aid. There are four types of financial aid: scholarships (merit-based), grants (need-based), loans, student employment

There are two basic distinctions for financial aid: need based and non-need based. Need based aid is determined by information students submit on their FAFSA. Students can begin filling out their FAFSA on January 1, but tax information is required so a student needs to have both their tax information and their parent’s tax information prior to completing his or her FAFSA. Since financial aid does run out, students should get their FAFSA submitted as early as possible. The government uses a student’s FAFSA to determine a family’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC). That information is then sent to UW, where the Student Financial Services Office subtracts a student’s EFC from the cost of their education and develops a financial aid offer for the difference.

Most of the financial aid offers are federal student loan offers, FELP loans. There are two types of FELP loans: subsidized and unsubsidized. Subsidized loans are loans that the government will pay interest on while student is in school and for a short period of time thereafter. Unsubsidized loans are loans that accrue simple interest while students are in school, but that interest is then added to the principal amount when a student graduates. In addition to federal loans, there are non-traditional loans offered by most banks that can help supplement the cost of education. Students should carefully assess non-traditional loan offers before accepting one and should avoid borrowing more than they absolutely need. Furthermore, student loan payments are not tax deductible. Students are able to consolidate their federal student loans once throughout their lifetime.

Students are also encouraged to apply for scholarships on campus. Each school on campus has different application forms and deadlines, so students should contact their department to get scholarship information. Start inquiring about scholarships the November of the year before you want to get your scholarship.

Click below to hear the whole interview. -Brittany Burr, Talking Cents Team Member

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2 Comments »

I just listened to your podcast on the Mysteries of Financial Aid. Overall I thought the podcast was very informative and hit on all the basic topics and elements of financial aid.

Being someone who is completely dependent on financial aid, scholarships, and working during the school year to pay for my schooling, a lot of the content was pretty basic. I’m sure for most individuals this would not be the case. I think that it would be interesting, and I personally would be interested, in listening to some sort of follow up podcast that can elaborate on some of the information presented within the podcast and about financial aid.

I think that its a great idea to provide podcasts on different issues that are relevant to college students and that provide valuable information from people within the field. I look forward to listening to more! Thanks.

Comment by Jenn — April 9, 2008 @ 10:03 am
Jenn, Thank you for your feedback. When I conducted the interview, I didn’t know anything about financial aid, so I was just skimming the surface. Our team will be sure to keep you suggestion in mind in the future.

Comment by Brittany — April 9, 2008 @ 10:30 pm

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