Every year as part of our concierge counseling services, we send out information to our clients about financial aid processes, deadlines, and steps to prepare. We thought we would share the "Getting Ready to File the FAFSA" email from this year on our blog to open the information up to everyone who would benefit. 

Class of 2020 students and parents,
It's early September, which means we are one month away from the day the FAFSA goes live. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), a form required by all colleges to apply for financial aid, becomes available October 1. While most colleges have admission application deadlines that are later in the year (many in 2020), the sooner you file your FAFSA after October 1, the better (The FAFSA can be sent to a college before the student applies). Families should file the FAFSA whether or not they qualify for need-based financial aid because having the FAFSA on file is often a prerequisite for the student to be considered for even merit-based financial aid. 
Money Magazine has a nice article explaining more about the merits of filing the FAFSA (it's from a previous year -- we are just ahead of the game over here!) 
Here are three things you can do now to be ready for the FAFSA: 
1. Get a Federal Student Aid ID
You need a Federal Student Aid ID, obtainable at fsaid.ed.gov, to complete the FAFSA. Go to fsaid.ed.gov now and create one ID for the parent, and another for the student (the student and parent must each get their own ID).
2. Gather your documents
To accurately report the FAFSA’s requested information, you’ll need your 2018 tax returns, as well as your most recent bank and brokerage statements.
3. Fill out the FAFSA Worksheet
Every year Federal Student Aid releases a worksheet version of the FAFSA. The one for the 2020-2021 aid year will come out about 10 days ahead of the FAFSA going live (so, sometime around September 20th). The FAFSA won't be changing much this year, so using the old one will do just fine. We will send out the new one as soon as it is available. 
Taking these three steps should help you hit the FAFSA ground running on October 1.
Lastly, some students may need to file additional financial aid documents, known as the CSS Profile. To check if your student is applying to a college that also requires the CSS Profile, please review this list. 

 See below for the email we sent to our families about the FAFSA:  

By now, you have likely heard about the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA is live as of today, October 1st. 

What it is: "FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This form is used to determine the amount of money a family is expected to contribute to the price of attending a postsecondary institution. The results of the FAFSA are used in determining student grants, work study, and loan amounts."

Why it's important: Filing the FAFSA is important, regardless of whether or not you think you will qualify for financial aid. It's well worth your time to do so (plus it's easy, so no excuses). After you file the FAFSA (and have been accepted to a college), you will receive your formal financial aid offer (sometimes this comes with your acceptance, sometimes is comes separately). It's only then you will know how much your education is going to cost for that particular school (this is a reason you should consider waiting to accept an admissions offer until after you receive all financial aid offers if finances are an important part of the equation. Double depositing is also an ethical violation, so no deposits yet!). The FAFSA also serves as the paperwork necessary to qualify for federal loans (all students, regardless of income, qualify for $5,500 in federal loans. This is a student loan in the student's name). The interest rate you will get is way better than the bank for these federal loans. 

What can I do right now? There is no longer a PIN for the FAFSA; it has been replaced by what is called the FSA ID. The FSA ID is how you submit the FAFSA electronically. It serves as your certified digital signature. You can sign up for this now (and I recommend you do so if you have not already). Both you and your student will need an FSA ID to complete the FAFSA. Only one parents needs an FSA ID. You can get that set up right now through this link:  https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm 

When can I file the FAFSA? Starting October 1st, you will be able to use that FSA ID to complete the FAFSA. October 1 is the earliest you can complete the form. I recommend doing it as soon after October 1st as possible (within the first week that it's open). You do not need to have filed this year's taxes to complete the FAFSA. Instead, you'll be using tax information from the most recently filed tax year (this is also a relatively new change to the FAFSA, called Prior-Prior-Year. You can read more about that here). The important thing is filing early. 

Where do I go to file the FAFSA? This is the link you can use to file the FAFSA starting in October: https://fafsa.ed.gov 

What do I need to have ready? 

• Your Social Security Number
• Your most recent federal income tax returns, W-2s, and other records of money earned. (Note: You may be able to transfer your federal tax return information into your FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. If you have filed your taxes electronically you can use the IRS DRT, and you should because it minimizes the risk of your FAFSA being selected for verification, which happens to about one-third of filers and delays the sending of your financial aid offer)
• Bank statements and records of investments (if applicable)
• Records of untaxed income (if applicable)
• An FSA ID to sign electronically.

If you have any questions about how to file the FAFSA, there are numerous free resources out there. I am linking to a super in depth guide put out by a company called Edvisors, which specializes in college financial aid consulting. It's a terrific guide. 

For nuanced or unique questions, I would consult the website finaid.org. It's also fine to contact the financial aid office of your student's colleges directly. This is the one part of the process where it's okay for parents to steer communication. For everything else, students have to do the communicating themselves (you know the drill!) :) 

One more thing to be aware of with financial aid forms is that there are several colleges, especially private colleges, that require additional forms like the CSS profile or a university specific financial aid form. To check to see if any of your colleges require the CSS Profile (in addition to the FAFSA), you can check this link: https://profileonline.collegeboard.org/prf/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet.srv 

For every school to which you have applied, you should consult the school's financial aid webpage. Check the deadlines and requirements for each college. 

I hope your fall is off to a great start. I am thankful for so many things, and working with awesome students and families is one of the most important in my life. I truly love what I do and I am honored and thankful to you for allowing me the opportunity. 

Let me know if you have any questions! And feel free to forward this guide along to other families if they will benefit.

Thanks!

Erika and the Guru Team 

Yesterday I let my four-year-old daughter use the bathroom by herself. In Target. 
 
I know some of you (perhaps including my husband) just gasped in audible shock and horror, and others might be Googling the number for CPS on their phone while they continue reading. It was stressful for me, too. I stood right outside the women’s restroom sign with our red plastic cart and her toddler brother (who was already eating the cheese sticks we’d just purchased two seconds prior), and I let her go for it. By herself. Without me. 
 
When I peeked in at her (okay, I caved), she was wiping her hands dry, a mountainous pile of surely no less than 15 brown paper towels mounding on top of the trashcan beneath her. She smiled, and said, “Mommy, you don’t need to check on me. I am doing just fiiiiiine.” 
 
And she was. 
 
Independence is important. And it’s a skill that’s built over the entirety of one’s young life through early adulthood. The earlier we build our belief in our own ability to do things (known in the psychology world as self-efficacy), the more successful we become. Or at least so says the research laid out in the book I’m presently reading called The Self-Driven Child, by William Stixrud and Ned Johnson. 
 
The book details an issue all too familiar to college admissions professionals and undergraduate freshman professors. A couple pages in, there’s this: “From 1960 until 2002, high school and college students have steadily reported lower and lower levels of internal locus of control (the belief that they can control their own destiny) and higher levels of external locus of control (the belief that their destiny is determined by external forces). This change has been associated with an increased vulnerability to anxiety and depression. In fact, adolescents and young adults today are five to eight times more likely to experience the symptoms of an anxiety disorder than young people were at earlier times, including during the Great Depression, World War II, and the cold war. Are things really harder now than they were during the Depression? Or are we doing something that is dampening their natural coping mechanisms?" 
 
But, it’s harder to get into college these days, right? 
 
Nope. Seventy percent of colleges admit seventy percent or more of their 
applicants. These colleges are good colleges that admit students who go on to to be wildly successful. More correlated with your future success in life than the “networking potential” of your alma mater, or the average income upon graduation, or the engineering ranking in US News and World Report are the skills of the individual student, independence and efficacy being some of the most important. 
 
There’s a terrible cycle at work here. We are fed the belief that becoming successful in life is harder than ever. We want our kids to be successful, so we sometimes operate with an “at all costs” mindset to provide them every opportunity. In reality, what we are doing is leeching control away from them. Yes, mom and dad would do the project better, but it robs the child of the pride of ownership. Yes, if we hold their hand up the ladder on the playground they won’t get hurt. But they also won’t learn as quickly their own physical limits. Yes, if you keep your high schooler’s schedule for them they won’t miss appointments and will be on time (important things!), but they also won’t learn (sometimes the hard way) how to get themselves there and the consequences of not doing so. 
 
Inevitably, at some point, our kids are going to be in full control of their lives. So many young adults are not at the level of independence they need to be by the time they are flung into a residence hall the next state over, and this worsens not only their beginning college experience but their likelihood for college completion ,and even, according to the research by Stixrud and Johnson, their lifetime potential for success. 
 
I believe that scary (for me) trips into the Target bathroom lead to her reading books solo, doing poster board projects and science fairs using the germinations born of her own ideas, feeling confident in keeping a schedule all her own, building healthy mentoring relationships outside of those with us as her parents, and finally on to a lifetime of really cool things because she will have learned she can (or she can at least try and see what happens). 
 
So let them go solo. Let them write their own essay. Let them be responsible for doing their laundry and making that appointment with the dentist. As parents, we have to continuously evaluate how much we are letting and encouraging our kids to take control of their lives. They will be better for it (and so, in the long run, will you when they are amazing and fulfilled adults.) 

Giving dynamic and inspiring presentations is one of our most favorite pastimes here at Guru. We have the wonderful privilege of giving a presentation tonight to an LISD high school for the lower grades, and we know there are lots of parents who won't be there tonight who would love this information, too! The information below is the handout that goes with this presentation. Happy learning and thinking! 

9th Grade: 
1. Support your student in choosing challenging but appropriate classes. 

• A student’s performance in his/her core classes (English, math, history, science, foreign language) every year is the most important data point in a college admissions decision.
• Draft a four-year course plan to chart out his/her classes. Consider looking at the classes required by some colleges to help you plan.Encourage your student to try out lots of clubs and activities. Try everything! Be sure to include some volunteering experiences.

2. Begin a resume draft.

• College resumes are different than job resumes.
• You can find a template your student can copy and use here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TWICCAn7FFAIyeV8iEtk9gHFBrSedJ65gp-A4EFGHbc/edit?usp=sharing

10th Grade:
1. Settle in to 2-3 activities. Encourage quality and being really invested in a  few clubs/activities instead of having a minor role in many activities.

• Aim for a community service activity. Encourage volunteering with the same organization on a regular basis.
• Get involved with at least one activity through the school. Colleges value evidence of students’ abilities to contribute to their academic communities.

2. Start exploring aptitudes and interests

• Try the Myers Briggs test at www.16personalities.com (free!)
• Consider aptitude testing at www.youscience.com ($29)
• Use the UT Wayfinder tool at https://wayfinder.utexas.edu (free!)

3. Update the resume
4. Take the PSAT in October. Use is as a benchmark, and don’t stress too much about the results. Colleges do not see the PSAT scores – they are just a tool to help your student begin to familiarize himself/herself with standardized testing and understand strengths and weaknesses in content knowledge.
5. Consider an academic summer program.

• Look for free ones – there are so many!
  • Engineering: UT MITE (http://www.engr.utexas.edu/eoe/recruitment/mite)
  • Engineering (girls): Create@UT (http://www.engr.utexas.edu/wep/k12/createatut)
  • Leadership: Caminos al Future at George Washington University (https://summer.gwu.edu/caminos)
  • Math: Texas A&M SMaRT Camp (https://www.math.tamu.edu/outreach/SMaRT/)
  • Business: University of Houston Explore Business (https://www.bauer.uh.edu/undergraduate/prospective-students/high-school/summer-camps.php)
  • Computer Science: Code Longhorn at UT (https://apps.cs.utexas.edu/camp/code-longhorn)
  • Pre-Med: Camp Med Academy (http://txaheceast.org/dfw/about/campmed/) 

One of the things I love most about what I do with students is that we learn so many things together. Yes, we learn about building a smart college list, and how to put together an excellent resume, and what types of essays make a committee applaud. But we also learn so great life skills: how to address an envelope and where the stamp goes (this one kills me – technology has really changed communication!), how to understand debt in the context of projected future earnings, and how to write a professional email to an admissions officer, dean of an honors college, or professor.
 
There are quite a few reasons why you might find the need to email your admissions officer. These include:

1. Requesting a meeting when you are on campus visiting during a weekday
2. Asking a question about the college’s programs or application process
3. Checking on your application status after you’ve submitted your app
4. Letting them know you saw a bug on your morning walk (Just kidding. Don’t do this. AOs are busy people. Don’t annoy them with a pointless email or a question you could easily find for yourself).

 
There is a good chance you will find yourself needing to email several admissions officers or college faculty in the course of your college planning process, but many students are stumped with how to do this. We’ve put together a little guide to help (life skills are where it’s at!).
 
First, let’s get one thing out of the way: The email has to come from the student, sound like a student wrote it, and be responded to by the student. Mom and Dad, definitely help and guide, but students have to own their process and be in charge of their communication. Colleges expect this and might flag an applicant’s file if there is too much evidence the student is not college-ready or independent enough yet to handle the college environment.
 
Here’s an outline of how to do this:

1. The subject line: Keep it simple and to the point.
   1. Examples

                  i.On Campus Interview Request
                  ii.Meeting request during campus visit
                  iii.Checking on application status – CAID 975674
                  iv.Inquiry: Ability to double major in CS and Electrical Engineering

1. The addressee: Check the title you are using to address your recipient. For women, use Ms. instead of Mrs. or Miss unless you have met their spouse last week for a quick golf game and are certain she is still married. If you are emailing a dean of professor, there is a good chance they have a Ph.D. Use Dr. in this case. If the professor has a masters degree (you can find all this in their faculty bio and/or CV online on the faculty page for the department in question) use the title “Professor”. Bonus tip: spell their name right (this happens A LOT. Take your time and be thorough)
2. Writing the email: Start by introducing yourself. Include your full legal name  (you don’t have to include your middle name, especially if it’s Thelma and you are still salty for having to write that out on the forms for all your college apps), your high school and home city, your year in school (freshmen, sophomore, junior, senior), and your date of birth (this part is helpful for admissions to match to your file). You might also include your application ID if you have already applied and have one.
3. Ask your question: Jump straight in to your point. Keep it to one brief paragraph. If it requires more than that, you should be setting up a phone appointment/calling in the question.
4. End with gratitude: Say “Thank you” or “Thank your for your consideration” or “With gratitude” – something to show you appreciate their help with your process and are a lovely, polite, amicable human being (which you are!)
5. Wait for a response (give it three business days), and respond (if needed) when the email comes in: This means you need to check your email once a day! It’s a good habit to develop. Maybe do this right when you get home from school each day.

 
Here are a couple real example emails students have sent recently.
 
Dear Mr. Pederson,

My name is Firstname Lastname and I will be touring SMU this Friday. I'm emailing you to ask if there is a class I could sit in on, preferably an intro to journalism class or any class involved in the Fashion Media major. Going into SMU the Fashion Media major is what I would like to pursue and I would like to see a preview on how the classes interact and the involvement of the students. Thank you for your consideration! 

Firstname Lastname
 
                                                      _________________________
  
Hello Mr. Jackson,
 
My name is Firstname Lastname from Flower Mound High School here in North Texas. I wanted to give you my thanks for hand-writing that postcard in regards to my acceptance to KU! That alongside the notification of the KU Distinctions Scholarship really meant a lot to me.
 
I went to the NorTex College Fair in Denton that The University of North Texas hosted, and I had the opportunity of meeting Allyson Peters! She was extremely helpful and gave me a lot of useful information.
 
I wanted to point out something I discussed with her: The KU Excellence Scholarship. I had mentioned that I have taken the ACT exam three separate times, and that my highest score was a 26, which qualifies me for the Distinction scholarship. Would it be wise to take the ACT exam a fourth time to try and score a 28? The lady at the college fair mentioned that I could email you if I scored a 27, and while my tests superscore up to a 27, I'm aware that you guys don't superscore. Getting the Distinction scholarship is such an honor, but knowing that I'm still on the college search, should I take it one final time to see if I can raise it up higher than my past three exams?
  
Thanks so much!
-Firstname Lastname
 
These both sound very much like high school students because they were written by high school students. We as adults might look at a phrasing here or there and want to correct it, but resist that urge. These are great – they are authentic, they reflect the student’s actual questions, and they communicate very professionally in the way that a 17 year old would communicate professionally.
 
Guide your students to learn to write great emails and communicate well on behalf of themselves. Empower them by giving them examples and offering to review their work and give them feedback. And encourage them to reach out to build rapport to do the best job they can in their college planning process.
 
Questions? Email me at erika@guruacademicadvising.com

Hello senior students and parents! 

By now, you have likely heard about the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA will open on October 1st, so this is a one month heads up so you can be prepared and ready to file when it opens. I'm going to use this email as an explanation of what the FAFSA is, when to file it, what to have ready, etc. 

What it is: "FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This form is used to determine the amount of money a family is expected to contribute to the price of attending a postsecondary institution. The results of the FAFSA are used in determining student grants, work study, and loan amounts."

Why it's important: Filing the FAFSA is important, regardless of whether or not you think you will qualify for financial aid. It's well worth your time to do so (plus it's easy, so no excuses). After you file the FAFSA (and have been accepted to a college), you will receive your formal financial aid offer. It's only then you will know how much your education is going to cost for that particular school (this is a reason you should consider waiting to accept an admissions offer until after you receive all financial aid offers if finances are an important part of the equation). The FAFSA also serves as the paperwork necessary to qualify for federal loans (all students, regardless of income, qualify for $5,500 in federal loans. This is a student loan in the student's name). The interest rate you will get is way better than the bank for these federal loans. 

What can I do right now? There is no longer a PIN for the FAFSA; it has been replaced by what is called the FSA ID. The FSA ID is how you submit the FAFSA electronically. It serves as your certified digital signature. You can sign up for this now (and I recommend you do so). Both you and your student will need an FSA ID to complete the FAFSA. Only one parents needs an FSA ID. You can get that set up right now through this link:  https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm 

When can I file the FAFSA? Starting October 1st, you will be able to use that FSA ID to complete the FAFSA. October 1 is the earliest you can complete the form (this is a much earlier deadline -- it used to be January 1. Parents who have filed before, take note!). I recommend doing it as soon after October 1st as possible. You do not need to have filed this year's​​​​ taxes to complete the FAFSA. Instead, you'll be using tax information from the most recently filed tax year (this is also a relatively new change to the FAFSA, called Prior-Prior-Year. You can read more about that here). The important thing is filing early. 

Where do I go to file the FAFSA? This is the link you can use to file the FAFSA starting in October: https://fafsa.ed.gov 

What do I need to have ready? 

• Your Social Security Number
• Your most recent federal income tax returns, W-2s, and other records of money earned. (Note: You may be able to transfer your federal tax return information into your FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. If you have filed your taxes electronically you can use the IRS DRT, and you should because it minimizes the risk of your FAFSA being selected for verification, which happens to about one-third of filers and delays the sending of your financial aid offer)
• Bank statements and records of investments (if applicable)
• Records of untaxed income (if applicable)
• An FSA ID to sign electronically.

If you have any questions about how to file the FAFSA, there are numerous free resources out there. Here is a link to a super in depth guide put out by a company called Edvisors, which specializes in college financial aid consulting. It's a terrific guide. 

For nuanced or unique questions, I would consult the website finaid.org. 

One more thing to be aware of with financial aid forms is that there are several colleges, especially private colleges, that require additional forms like the CSS profile or a university specific financial aid form. To check to see if any of your colleges require the CSS Profile (in addition to the FAFSA), you can check this link: https://profileonline.collegeboard.org/prf/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet.srv 

For every school to which you have applied, you should consult the school's financial aid webpage. Check the deadlines and requirements for each college. 

I hope your fall is off to a great start. I am thankful for so many things, and working with awesome students and families is one of the most important in my life. I truly love what I do and I am honored and thankful to you for allowing me the opportunity. 

Let us know if you have questions. We are always happy to be helpful.