Financial Aid Explained
Should I Apply for Financial Aid?
The 2026/2027 FAFSA (financial aid application) is now open! Your first question may be: Should I apply for financial aid? That depends. Many people think they may not qualify for aid, but the best way to determine this is to use one of the colleges’ Net Price Calculators. Almost all colleges use some sort of Net Price Calculator to allow families to estimate what their financial contribution will end up being. You can search any college name + the words “Net Price Calculator” and you’ll find that college’s page for it. I would recommend doing this with some of the pricier colleges on your list.
FAFSA
If you’re applying for financial aid, the FAFSA will be required. It will ask questions about your assets/debts, those of your student, and the list of colleges the student is applying to. You’ll want to have your previous year’s tax returns available when completing the application. If you determine that you may be eligible for some financial aid, it’s worth submitting the FAFSA.
CSS Profile
Some colleges, in addition to the FAFSA, will require the CSS profile form. This form will ask similar questions to the FAFSA, so you’ll need your tax returns handy when completing it. The CSS Profile is a College Board product, so you’ll use your student’s College Board (AP or SAT) login for this. This form is mostly used by private colleges with some notable exceptions (GA Tech being one of them). You can check the full list of participating schools here.
FAFSA & Hope/Zell Miller Scholarship (GA Residents only)
The FAFSA can also be used as your Hope/Zell Miller Scholarship application if you’re applying to Georgia schools as a Georgia resident. That being said, if you do not qualify for financial aid, you can simply apply for the Hope/Zell Miller scholarships through your student’s GA Futures account. This will need to be done before graduation and will be good for 10 years, whereas, the FAFSA must be resubmitted each year.
How Funds are Calculated
The FAFSA will calculate some math magic to figure out how much you can reasonably afford to spend each year on your student’s education. They’ll then send that figure to all of the colleges you’ve added to the form. The college will then consider that number in relation to their cost of attendance. So, for example, if the FAFSA has calculated your Student Aid Index to be $20,000 per year and the college’s cost of attendance is $50,000 per year. There’s a difference of $30,000 that still needs to be covered. Some colleges have a policy that will bridge that gap and “meet full need.” Others don’t/can’t bridge that gap but may give you a grant nonetheless.
Financial Aid Award Letters
Once you’ve submitted the FAFSA and all required financial aid forms, each school will package a student for financial aid. In the spring, you’ll receive a detailed letter of what they have been awarded. It will include:
Scholarships–these are merit based and usually awarded as a part of the admission review and do not need to be paid back.
Grants–these are need based and do not need to be paid back.
Loans–You’ll be given the option for Federal Direct loans, subsidized and unsubsidized, usually up to $5,500. This will need to be paid back. You do not have to take these unless you want them, and in which case you’d need to complete the Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling.
Timeline
October 1- FAFSA is open
December 1- If you’re applying Early Decision anywhere, you’ll likely have this as your deadline for Financial Aid applications. There’s not a strict deadline across the board for submitting financial aid applications, so you’ll want to check with all the colleges out there that you’re applying to so as to not miss any deadlines.
Spring– Early spring (January/February), colleges will start sending out award letters for earlier application deadlines. Late Spring (March) colleges will have final packages for regular decision applicants. All packages should be out by April 1.
May 1– Deadline for confirming your enrollment wherever you choose to attend!
