With college application season just wrapping up, many families’ thoughts are turning to financial aid. College Coach’s finance experts are flooded this time of year with some variation of the question, “Do I need to complete a FASFA if I’m not going to qualify for financial aid?” The short answer to that question is “no.” The FAFSA is a financial aid application, and no student is required to apply for financial aid. Believe me, colleges will be more than happy to admit your child without providing you any financial assistance. Still, there are many reasons why you may want to complete an aid application even if you don’t expect to qualify for need-based assistance:

Many high school seniors wait until they’ve been accepted to a college to worry about how to pay for it. Unfortunately, however, by the time you receive a college acceptance, you have likely already missed the school’s financial aid application deadline, and may have missed out on thousands of dollars of assistance. When, then, should you be applying for financial aid? Find out on the Edmit blog, where former Boston University and Tufts University financial aid officer, Shannon Vasconcelos answers the most common questions about timing that financial aid application.

It’s almost October 1, commonly known as FAFSA time around here, and we have guidance for those completing the form this fall. We also have advice for teacher recommendations, from how they’re used to who to ask to how to ask for them. In Office Hours, we’re working through the supplemental questions for Haverford, Swarthmore, and Bryn Mawr, three colleges on the outskirts of Philadelphia.

How Many Years Can I Receive Financial Aid for College?

It takes 4 years for a student to complete a typical undergraduate degree, right? Not necessarily. Today, students are taking longer to graduate for a variety of reasons, from a decline in personal and institutional resources to indecision about choice of major at the time of enrollment. If you’re currently weighing options for a fifth year (or more) of college, we’ve provided a few things to consider as you manage your college payment plan.

150 Percent Rule for Subsidized Direct Student Loans: A new federal regulation may impact students who receive Federal Subsidized Direct Loans. These programs are now available for only 150 percent of the semesters that the college publishes as the typical time it takes students to complete their degree or certificate. This “150 percent rule” means students in a four-year degree program will be eligible for subsidized student loans for the equivalent of six years.  Eligible fifth and sixth year students should be able to benefit from this loan program as long as they meet the college’s definition of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and are on track to graduate within this time frame.

On the latest episode of Getting In: A College Coach Conversation, guest host Sally Ganga kicks off our first segment, by welcoming College Coach finance expert Michelle Richardson to discuss the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as the FAFSA. They cover the basics, like what info the FAFSA requires and who should complete it, as well as more nuanced questions regarding divorce and other family situations, plus the logistics of just how colleges receive this information.

In case you haven’t heard, financial aid application season is now upon us. Not quite sure when you should be applying for financial aid? Check out this installment of the brand new College Coach video series, We Can Explain, where we answer the question, “When Should You Apply for Financial Aid?”

On the latest episode of Getting In: A College Coach Conversation, guest host Ian Fisher welcomes a special guest to discuss what you can do with a humanities degree. During Office Hours, he talks with colleagues to better understand what demonstrated interest means and goes on to cover where to get help filling out the FAFSA.

With the new school year under way, parents of high school seniors are now seeing college on the not-too-distant horizon and realizing they will soon be faced with large tuition bills. “Will I qualify for financial aid?” they wonder. While the need-based aid calculations are fairly complicated, and based on each family’s individual financial circumstances, there is some federal student aid which is not need-based, that every student meeting basic criteria qualifies for. What are those basic criteria? Former Becker College and Anna Maria College financial aid officer, Laurie Peltier, breaks it down in the latest installment of the College Coach video series, Ask the College Finance Expert.

Divorce is never easy, and paying for college is no cake walk either. Combine these two situations and things can get very complicated very quickly. If you are experiencing a separation and/or a divorce, we thought it would be helpful to give you some tips on how you might approach this major financial decision, what the rules are in the financial aid process, and, finally, how your situation affects various aspects of college financing once your child enrolls in college. Given the complexity of the topic, this will be a two-part series. In Part One, we’ll discuss your first steps and the financial aid application process.

So let’s get started!

On the latest episode of Getting In: A College Coach Conversation, host Ian Fisher talks about internships for high school students and tackles a number of our listeners’ questions.