College Financial Planning Workshop III Planning to Budget Glow Foundation 2010 Glow Online Curriculum Session 5

Page 2 What this Session will Cover  Student Aid Reports  FAFSA 4Caster  Financial Aid Award Letters  Financial Gaps  Excel Basics / Budgeting

Page 3 FAFSA What’s a SAR? Student Aid Report Compare your SAR to the copy of your FAFSA Gives you an estimate of your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and eligibility for federal aid

Page 4 What Happens After I Submit the FAFSA? Student Aid Report (SAR) Resubmit EFC Financial Aid Award Letters!

Page 5 What Happens after I submit? Explained What Happens After I Submit the FAFSA? Once all of your information has been received, the Department of Education calculates your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is the amount your family is expected to contribute to your college education. Your Financial Need for the purpose of financial aid is calculated as Cost of Attendance (COA) minus Expected Family Contribution (EFC) or Financial Need = COA – EFC. Various financial aid offices will access the information you provided on your FAFSA and will assemble your “award package” based on your financial need from the pot of money we talked about earlier. The California Student Aid Commission will also receive the information to determine your eligibility for state financial aids (including Cal Grant) if you are applying to at least one California school. (If you are offered a Cal Grant award, you will also receive a California Aid Report, or CAR, with an estimate of your state financial aid awards.) Remember, if you or your parents are filing taxes for this year, you need to go back and update your FAFSA information with your 2009 tax information.

Page 6 FAFSA4caster What’s a FAFSA4caster? ► Gives you an estimate of your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and your eligibility for federal student aid ► The 4caster asks you questions similar to those asked on the FAFSA

Page 7 fafsa.ed.gov – find it here

Page 8 FAFSA4caster

Page 9 Filling Out a FAFSA4caster

Page 10 FAFSA 4caster Account Setup

Page 11 Student’s Demographic Info

Page 12 Student’s Dependency Status

Page 13 Student’s College Plans

Page 14 Submit FAFSA4caster

Page 15 Estimated Federal Student Aid Eligibility

Page 16 Financial Aid 101 Keep this in mind as you review your award offer! Money you RECEIVE (Free Money!) Money you EARNMoney you BORROW Grants and Scholarships Work Study Program Federal Loans State Loans Private Bank Loans

Page 17 Financial Award Letters When getting your award letter:  Compare COA and Financial Awards across your college options – they can vary significantly  How much money is free vs. borrowed?  You decide what aid to accept

Page 18 Interpreting your Award Letter ►When you receive your financial aid award letters from your schools, they may include any combination of scholarships, loans, grants, or work study. ►Don’t feel like you need to accept all of the aid that is being offered. ►Look over everything carefully and read the terms and conditions for each type of aid. ►Note the value of the loans being offered in comparison to how much “free money” you are receiving (scholarships, grants). ►Scholarships may require that a certain GPA be maintained – understand the terms and conditions of all of your aid before your accept it. ►Financial aid award letters can vary greatly from school to school and can be a determining factor in your final choice of school.

Page 19 Interpreting your Award Letter – cost gaps ►When you are looking at the offer letter, consider the cost of the college, how much you or your family are expected to pay (your EFC value), and what makes up the total financial aid package. ►Even with a financial aid package, there may still be some unmet need (a gap in funding that you need in order to meet the college’s cost of attendance). ►If this is the case, you may have to consider taking out a personal loan. ►You could also try contacting the school’s financial aid office or write a letter of appeal, asking them to re-evaluate your award offer. In some cases, the financial aid office may be able to offer you more aid.

Page 20 Financial Gaps What is a Financial GAP? How can it be closed / reduced?

Page 21 Creating a College Financial Budget Expenses: Cost of Attendance  Fixed Expenses (E.g., tuition, rent, car payments, insurance)  Flexible Expenses (E.g., books & supplies, food, utilities/bills, transportation, personal care)  Discretionary Expenses (E.g., entertainment, going-out, gifts) Income: Sources of Funding  Parents or Savings / Investment  Job / Work Study  Grants (Pell Grants, ACG, Cal Grant etc.)  Loans (Stafford, Perkins, Plus, Private)  Others?? Funding Gap minus equals

Page 22 Microsoft Excel 101 What is Microsoft Excel?  Program that stores, sorts, and analyzes data.  Excel allow you to make calculations, graphs, and perform other data analysis We will use Microsoft Excel to create our budgets – Excel will allow us to calculate these numbers quickly with the use of basic math formulas

Page 23 Microsoft Excel 101 Excel Basics:  Review the Budget Directions – fins a good template [Microsoft has one, or contact Glow]  Review how to do simple tasks (“How To”) in Excel  Use “Shortcuts and Tips,” especially related to basic math functions  Review any other “Important Information” related to the budget you will create

Page 24 Recap:  Student Aid Report  FAFSA4caster  Financial Aid Award Letters  Financial Gaps  Excel Basics / Budgeting

Page 25 Homework: Finish your FAFSA4caster and Budget Find more scholarships And continue your planning and success in college