FAFSA Deadline Nears: Here’s What That Means For Lake Norman

CORNELIUS, NC — The June 30 deadline for students to apply for 2018-19 federal financial aid is rapidly approaching. But students across the country who’ve put off filing for this long aren’t only bumping up against the federal deadline, they’re probably already too late to get help with school expenses from states and colleges.

Each year, June 30 is the last day students can submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly known as FAFSA. That date can be misleading though.

June 30, 2019, is the FAFSA filing deadline for students who were seniors in high school on Oct. 1, 2017, meaning they started taking college courses last fall and just finished up their freshman year. The federal deadline for graduating seniors who are heading to college this fall is technically June 30, 2020.

But in many cases, those students have already missed their state or college’s deadline. And university financial aid workers told Patch this week that it’s high school juniors who will be seniors this fall who are on notice if they don’t want to leave money on the table.

Confused yet? Don’t worry, we’ll sort it out for you.

Specific college deadlines notwithstanding, students throughout North Carolina who started taking college courses last fall had to submit their FAFSA forms by the state deadline:

• As soon as possible after Oct. 1, 2017.
• Awards are made until funds are depleted.

Here’s the state deadline for graduating seniors for the upcoming term:

• As soon as possible after Oct. 1, 2018.
• Awards are made until funds are depleted.

For an idea of how many people have filed near Davidson, Cornelius and Huntersville, here’s a look at the number of completed FAFSA forms for local high schools, according to federal data reviewed by Patch.

William Amos Hough High School

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 364
• Completed: 351
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 354
• Completed: 336

Hopewell High School

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 148
• Completed: 134
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 191
• Completed: 177

North Mecklenburg High School

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 227
• Completed: 208
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 228
• Completed: 212

Lake Norman Charter High School

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)

• Submitted: 253
• Completed: 245
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 236
• Completed: 231

Community School of Davidson

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 84
• Completed: 83
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 77
• Completed: 75

Pine Lake Preparatory

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 108
• Completed: 104
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 113
• Completed: 113

Davidson Day School

• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2018, for 2018-19 cycle (college freshman)
• Submitted: 24
• Completed: 24
• FAFSA forms through March 31, 2019, for 2019-20 cycle (high school seniors)
• Submitted: 13
• Completed: 13

Experts recommend filing as early as possible because some federal aid programs have limited funding and they’re essentially awarded by institutions on a first-come, first-served basis. When that award money runs out, it doesn’t matter whether a student’s FAFSA was technically filed on time. If they’re last in line, they won’t receive certain types of financial assistance.

“Those typically go to early FAFSA filers if they qualify,” Steve Winey, associate director of financial aid at Cedarville University in Ohio, told Patch this week about limited types of aid. “When you’re a late FAFSA filer, you’re probably not going to get that.”

For college-bound high schoolers will be seniors this fall — or anyone else heading to college for the first time in the fall of 2020 — that means filing as close to Oct. 1, 2019, as possible.

The FAFSA, in simplest terms, is a form filled out by millions of young people. It is used by colleges and universities to determine eligibility for federal, state and institutional financial aid programs, including grants (money that doesn’t have to be paid back) and federal loans (money that does have to be paid back). Every student fills out the same form, regardless of whether they grew up in a low-income household or on a billionaire’s estate.

But not everyone receives the same Expected Family Contribution, or EFC, score. That score is used initially to determine eligibility. If students meet the aid program’s eligibility requirements, their EFC number will also be used to determine how much grant money they are awarded. Federal need-based aid programs that require a FAFSA form include the Pell Grant (the largest federal grant program available to undergrads), Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant or SEOG,, and Federal Work Study. Additionally, states and colleges and universities also have their own need-based grant programs.

The Pell Grant is guaranteed for needy students who meet certain eligibility requirements. For example, they can’t be seeking a second degree or a master’s degree. SEOG and work study money is limited. Programs with limited funds are doled out on a first-come, first-served basis and by colleges and, thus, are not guaranteed, even to the neediest students, said Winey and her colleague Stephanie Cronin, assistant director of financial aid at Cedarville.

Once students are approved for financial aid, the federal and state governments send award money directly to the college or university to be applied to the student’s account to help pay their school bill, or other parts of their cost of attendance, which includes tuition, fees, room and board, books and travel expenses. It also includes reasonable living expenses, such as a trip to Walmart for incidental expenses like clothes, school supplies and other similar items.

The amount of federal aid a student receives varies depending on the student’s cost of attendance, and that cost can be massive depending on the college and its location. Community colleges and technical schools typically cost much less than a public or private university, and the award those students receive reflects that.

For example, a full-time college student can receive anywhere from $657 all the way to $6,195 for the 2019-20 school year. The U.S. Department of Education has a range table that tells schools how much Pell Grant money to dole out, based on the student’s EFC score and cost of attendance. Part-time students, it should be noted, can receive less Pell Grant money.

“For students who qualify for it, Pell Grant is a sliding scale and it’s based on need,” said Cronin. “The higher the need, the more amount of Pell Grant is awarded. The lower the need, the less Pell Grant they get.”

For many students, grant and scholarship money won’t be able to cover the full cost of attendance. This means they’ll either have to pay the remainder out of personal or family resources, take out a loan, or some combination of both. The EFC score determines what type of loan a student qualifies for.

College debt is a reality for many students, but there are good ways and “inefficient” ways to manage that debt, Cronin said. Direct subsidized and unsubsidized loans are generally the best loans students can use for college, she added.

Subsidized loans are need-based and as far as using debt to cover remaining school costs, Cronin suggested students consider those first before resorting to something like the Parent Plus Loan or private education loan. The interest rate is lower and it doesn’t require a co-signer. Moreover, they come with some protections, such as a six-month deferment period that students typically use right after graduation to avoid immediately having to pay back the loans. There’s also no additional application for the loan; the FAFSA serves as the loan application.

“They just have to have a valid FAFSA to be reviewed for it and use it,” said Cronin. “It’s basically an unsecured loan to be used for educational related expenses.”

There is a cap on direct student loans, however. Freshmen can take out $5,500 in federal student loans, while sophomores can take out up to $6,500. Juniors and seniors can take out up to $7,500.

Cronin and Winey lamented that many incoming students don’t fill out the FAFSA form. Some forget, and others assume their parents earn too much income to qualify for aid. Winey stressed that many schools — including Cedarville University — use different thresholds for institutional need-based grants. Just because a student doesn’t qualify for federal grant money doesn’t mean they won’t qualify for an institution’s grant money, or a local organization’s scholarship money — both of which often require FAFSA information to qualify.

“The fact is they may be leaving money on the table if they don’t fill it out and figure out what they would qualify for from the federal government, the state government, as well as the institution,” said Cronin.

And of those who do fill it out, many fill it out incorrectly. It’s not unheard of for people to fill out the forms incorrectly and lose money because of it. This includes forgetting to put an electronic signature on the FAFSA form or entering the wrong date of birth or Social Security number. For males, a FAFSA error can be failure to register with the Selective Service, a federal requirement within 30 days of their 18th birthday.

“Just people being in a rush and they want to get it done, they’re not careful,” said Winey.

So while filing as early as possible is best, take note students and parents: Dot the Is and cross the Ts.

Reported and written by Patch national staffer Dan Hampton.