ISSUED: 16 October 2018
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Shepherd University’s Office of Financial Aid is hosting a workshop to help students and their parents fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on Saturday, November 3, from 1-4 p.m. in Erma Ora Byrd Hall. The workshop is free and open to anyone planning to attend college in the 2019-2020 academic year who would like help completing the FAFSA.
During the workshop, financial aid staff will offer one-on-one support and walk students and families step-by-step through the process of completing the FAFSA. The financial aid staff are professionals who will not share or misuse personal information, which will be submitted through a network secured by the federal government. Attending the workshop ensures that the FAFSA will be done on time and that students will qualify for the most financial aid available to them.
Those attending the FAFSA workshop should bring:
- student’s driver’s license (if student has one)
- student’s Social Security number
- parents’ Social Security numbers (for dependent students only)
- student’s 2017 tax records and return (if 2017 tax records are not available, bring 2016)
- parents’ 2017 tax records and return (for dependent students only)
- spouse’s 2017 tax records and return (for married students only)
- untaxed income records, including child support, workers’ compensation, untaxed portions of pensions, and any other untaxed income received
- information about student/parent investments and bank account balances
- alien registration or permanent resident card (if not a U.S. citizen)
While the FAFSA isn’t due until March 1, 2019, every family is encouraged to complete the form as early as possible. Submitting the FAFSA early means an award letter may be processed earlier, giving families more time to make financial decisions. There may also be additional information needed before producing award packages, and filing the FAFSA early can reduce a delay in that process. Some financial aid programs take the FAFSA completion date into consideration when awarding funds, and FAFSA will record the earliest submission date and use that, even if updates or changes need to be made later.
Shepherd will offer a second free FAFSA workshop on Saturday February 23, 2019. For more information, contact the Office of Financial Aid at 304-876-5470.
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