2024-25 FAFSA – Journey To College – Realize your potential.

10 Things to Know About Your FAFSA Submission Summary

Posted on March 14, 2024March 15, 2024

The time has come for the federal government to start releasing FAFSA Submission Summaries to students who filed! Here is a list of the top 10 things you need to know about your FAFSA Submission Summary.

1. The FAFSA Submission Summary is the new name for your Student Aid Report (SAR). It contains a summary of what information you provided when you filed the FAFSA and will need to be reviewed for accuracy to ensure you get the correct amount of aid.
2. Your FAFSA Submission Summary will be available online. Once you receive the email notifying you that your Summary is ready, you’ll be able to find it at studentaid.gov. For a video tutorial on how to find your Summary, check out this video from uAspire.
3. Your FAFSA Submission Summary is going to include useful information you’ll need to make an informed decision about financial aid, including your estimated eligibility for the Pell Grant and federal student loans, your Student Aid Index (SAI), FAFSA form answers, school information, if you have been selected for verification, and next steps.
4. You may get error notifications in your FAFSA Submission Summary. Some of the most common notifications are:
  - Contributor Consent – You are not eligible for federal student aid because you did not provide consent and approval to retrieve and disclose your federal tax information. You can fix this during the review process.
    - It’s important to note that contributors CAN provide consent after your submission, but they CANNOT revoke it.
  - The Social Security Administration (SSA) didn’t confirm that you are a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen. You can fix this by submitting documentation of U.S. citizenship to the financial aid office.
  - The date of birth (DOB) that you reported on the FAFSA does not match SSA records. You can fix this by contacting the SSA to correct their records and then submit proof of your DOB to the financial aid office.
  - Your FAFSA form has been selected for verification. This is a process where your school can request copies of certain financial documents. You can fix this by following up with your school(s) to verify the information reported in your FAFSA.
5. Your FAFSA is not considered complete until you finish the review of your FAFSA Submission Summary.
6. You can make changes to your FAFSA by editing the information in the FAFSA Form Answers section of the summary.
7. You can add and remove schools from your FAFSA while reviewing your Summary. This is an incredibly important tool for anyone who has changed their mind about a potential school or applied to a few extra institutions since filing.
8. Your FAFSA Submission Summary has a ton of information about your potential schools, including graduation rate, retention rate, and average cost. Be sure to review this information so that you can find the best fit for your situation.
9. Your FAFSA Submission Summary will provide you with Next Steps. So, if you are missing any documentation or need to submit a correction, this section will walk you through what you need to do.
10. After you submit any changes that have been made, and the Department of Education has processed your Summary, you can download a copy for your own reference by revisiting your dashboard on studentaid.gov.

For more information about your FAFSA Submission Summary, check out this article from studentaid.gov.

2024-25 FAFSA is Now Available: Here’s What You Should Know

Posted on January 3, 2024January 3, 2024

As of Dec. 31, the much-anticipated new 2024-25 FAFSA is now available online for students and families to complete. Although the form has been released, it is important to note that that the U.S. Department of Education shared that the release is a “soft launch” and that the form may be unavailable periodically as they work through any potential issues.

So, what does this mean for students and families? This means that there may be glitches or interruptions during the soft launch period that families should consider. The U.S. Department of Education has indicated that the soft launch will allow the department to monitor site performance, conduct planned pauses for maintenance, and make updates to improve the user experience. In addition, they have advised that Federal Student Aid (FSA) will not transmit results to schools until later in January.

As a reminder, there are things you can do now to prepare for the updated FAFSA if you would prefer to wait to file until after the soft launch. You can review our November blog post for more details. Here are a few other helpful things to keep in mind should you choose to fill out the FAFSA during the soft launch period:

If a student completes their form during the soft launch, information will be stored for processing and they do not need to return to resubmit their application once the soft launch concludes.
FSA will initiate planned pauses for site maintenance. During these pauses, students who are already online will be able to complete their work, but other users may not be able to begin or resume work on their 2024-25 FAFSA form. If you are unable to fill out the form, you should come back later and try again.
Students may experience a waiting room feature to help control website volumes for those trying to fill out the form.
If a contributor is unable to access the site during maintenance, they should try again later and fill out their section as soon as the site becomes available again.
Once your 2024-25 FAFSA form is completed and submitted, students will receive a confirmation email that includes their submission date, their Student Aid Index, and their estimated Federal Pell Grant eligibility. Students will not receive an official FAFSA submission summary until their FAFSA is processed, beginning in late January.

Deadline Reminders

In Missouri, the deadline to file the FAFSA to be eligible for the Missouri Access Grant Program is April 1. Applications received before that date will receive an Access Missouri award, although the final award amount will not be determined until later in the year.

It is also important to note that some colleges and universities may have their own FAFSA deadlines for the financial aid they offer. Please check with each school you are interested in to make sure you are meeting important deadlines.

4 Ways to Prepare for the 2024-25 FAFSA

Posted on November 21, 2023

With the announcement that the 2024-25 FAFSA is delayed until December, many students and families are left wondering if there is anything they can do now to help prepare. The answer to this is yes! In fact, there are many steps you can take to help you prepare to file your FAFSA once it is released. Taking a little time to prepare now will help make sure you are able to file your FAFSA on time and be considered for all of the financial aid opportunities available.

The following information and resources are available to help you prepare in the next few weeks.

1. Determine Your Classification

Depending on your circumstances, you are classified as an independent or dependent student. It is important to know what type of student you are before you file your FAFSA. If you are an independent student, you will only need to provide personal information for yourself and, if married, your spouse. If you are considered a dependent student, you will need to provide information for yourself and your legal parent(s).

If you are not sure which type of student you are, review this helpful checklist.

2. Create an FSA ID

Anyone who needs to fill out the FAFSA (or portions of the FAFSA) will need to create an FSA ID if they do not already have one. If you are a dependent student, at least one of your parents will need to create an FSA ID as well. It will take up to 3 business days for your FSA ID to be processed and approved, so you will want to create your ID before you need to file your FAFSA. To create your FSA ID, please visit studentaid.gov. You will need your:

- Social Security number (or alternative identity verification)
- Full name as it appears on your birth certificate
- Date of Birth
- Contact Information (physical address, phone number, and email address)

More detailed information and helpful tips can be found on our FSA ID infographic. You may also consider attending a FAFSA Frenzy: FSA ID Event for free assistance with setting up your FSA ID.

3. Collect Important Information

The FAFSA will ask many questions that will require you to provide information about your taxes, wages, and certain assets. If you are a dependent students, you will also need this information for your parent(s). This FAFSA Checklist may be helpful to you as you consider what information you should have available when it is time to fill out the FAFSA.

4. Identify your Parent/Contributor

If you are a dependent student, you must include information about your parent(s) when you fill out your FAFSA application. We understand all families are unique – some parents may be divorced, remarried, or you may live with someone other than your parent. So, how do you know whose information you should report? The information offered in this flowchart may help you determine whose information you need. You may also consider reviewing this flowchart developed by Federal Student Aid.

For more general information and helpful resources, please visit the 2024-2025 FAFSA Information webpage. You may also review our FAFSA Frequently Asked Questions for detailed information about common questions related to the FAFSA and FSA ID. Finally if you are not already we encourage you to follow Journey to College on social media for helpful tips, reminders, and the latest updates.