Paying for college fees and other expenses can be challenging for a student. Most take a loan or start working part-time to complete their education. When you are about to begin your college, you would prefer to get an amount to pay the rent, food, tuition fee, and other expenditures.
What is an Independent Student?
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is for eligible students who can enrol in work-study programs to receive grants and scholarships. The FAFSA is one crucial and helpful step that the Government could take to support students’ financial well-being.
The latest report provides sensitive information that more than 28 million students participated in FAFSA 2024-25. The students acknowledge that they have received the maximum benefit after filling out the form. If you are new, get assistance from the service provider or a friend.
In this article, you will find the critical information on who is an independent student FAFSA eligibility criteria, and how to apply for this aid.
Independent Student Overview
| Article On | Independent Student |
| Category | Finance News |
| Program Name | Free Application for Federal Student Aid |
| Concerned Authority | U.S. Department of Education |
| Beneficiary | Students |
| Benefits provided by | Educational Institution (School/College) |
| Official Website | studentaid.gov |
Who is an Independent Student?
An independent student is someone who meets the criteria set by the U.S. Department of Education. A student who is legally and financially independent may receive substantial student aid. The dependent students, on the other hand, are the people who stay with their parents and utilise their parents’ assets for studies. The amount of FAFSA is, however, provided based on the student aid index, which is an important parameter to calculate the eligibility for this financial aid.
There is a rule that the parents have to pay the college fees until a student is capable. They can contribute when they are 24 years old, married, a veteran, or a parent themselves. Until then, they are classified as dependent. The program is designed specially to ensure financial aid for students who lack financial aid. Further in this article, you will be going to read about eligibility and who can receive the FAFSA benefits.
FAFSA Eligibility
The school/e\college might require additional information to provide student aid. Moreover, checking your eligibility from the criteria shared below could be helpful:
- Age: The student must turn 24 years old on 1 January 2025 to apply for the 2025-26 FAFSA
- Marital Status: The applicant is married.
- Educational Qualification: You are a graduate or a professional student of a master’s or doctoral program
- Responsibilities: Students who are married and are staying with children who are dependents.
- Work Experience: An applicant is a Veteran or active on duty in the US armed forces, is in training, or is a part of the military.
- Legal Guardianship: The court has shared an order in which you have a relative as your guardian.
This student aid is also available for applicants who do not have a family background or are at risk of homelessness.
Why is FAFSA Delayed?
The students who had filled out the FAFSA form last year have shared a complaint for some concerns. The amount is received within a day to the applicants under the FSA guidelines. The Biden administration has affected the best practices of FAFSA. Thus, for Biden’s rollout, the Department of Education will not be providing compensation to the applicants.
The Government has also observed fraudulent activity during the administration of Biden. This discrepancy has affected the lives of millions of American families. The unapproved loan has created a barrier for the students. Regarding which they were unable to complete their education and experienced a larger debt amount.
How to Apply for FAFSA?
A FAFSA form is filled out by applicants who want to get financial aid. The respective colleges and educational institutions under FAFSA check out the data of the student and then provide the desired amount.
There is a norm that the student has to fill out this kind of form every year to continue receiving the financial aid. Also, the financial information will consistently be updated in the portal for the relevant fees of the students, and accordingly, the amount will be provided to the eligible students.
- Log in to student aid from any web browser.
- On that main web page, the users will find an option for the FAFSA form.
- Essential information on receiving student aid must be entered properly.
- After applying, the applicants need to wait for a specific duration for the application to be processed.
- They can browse the portal again to gain insights.
Note that the students who are staying away from their families can skip the section of family details and rest all the details have to be filled correctly.
Conditions to the FAFSA Status Pending
The confusion of the application status can be resolved by understanding the following:
| Particulars | Description |
| Draft | Some sections of the form are still pending. Once they are completed and submitted, the form will go to the review section. |
| In Progress | Every possible verification aspect is done, but the form has not been submitted to the concerned authorities. |
| In Review | This status means that the form has not reached the next steps.. |
| Action Required | Missing consent and approval, or the signature. |
| Processed | The application is currently processing further amendments are not required. |
| Closed | The applicant has missed a deadline, and they had not submitted the form earlier. |
If you have correctly submitted the form, then check the status by following the steps shared below:
- First, browse the leading portal
- Now, you have to tap on the ‘My Activity’ section
- Submit by entering a valid ID
- The status will be released within 30-40 minutes
Still, if you face any concerns, contact the concerned authorities. You can write an email or call the official during working hours.
Things to Do After Submitting the FAFSA Form
Here is a summary of the activities that the applicants need to perform:
- Check & Review FAFSA Confirmation Page: The applicants will receive a confirmation in terms of a consent form, in which the signature is required. If there is a contributor to your FAFSA form, then make sure to add the details. Consent and approval have to be shared by the contributor so that their Federal tax information is directly added into the form via the respective tax department. The next steps will also be provided on the same page as guidance for the applicant. Browse your official account within three days of receiving a confirmation. The review page will comprise eligibility criteria, FAFSA form answers, school information, and the next steps.
- Make Important Corrections (if required): There might be a typo error or missed details in the form. Thus, the applicants have to make the mandatory corrections if required. Add the relevant schools (upto twenty of them), make changes to the financial column. For completing this process, the applicants have to open the portal and navigate to My Activity >> Make Corrections section. Kindly note that the students or contributors can make corrections only from their individual accounts. Skip this step if your form is successfully submitted.
- Complete State Aid Application: The applicants will also receive student aid from the State. Thus, if you stay in a state that is eligible for the aid, then do not forget to complete the State aid application. You might need to browse the state’s higher education agency website for this step. Log in and complete the application at your earliest to move to the next step.
- Compare Schools and Expenses: Applicants must conduct an effective research before comparing the educational institutions. Also, make a note of the possible expenses to progressively take admission.
- Apply for Scholarships: There is a possibility that the student aid of fewer colleges might not cover your financial requirements. Thus, check the eligibility of the available scholarships and accordingly apply for them. Be aware of the scams and carefully search for the scholarships.
- Evaluate Aid Offers: Compare the award letters received from the various educational institutions before taking admission. Check out the benefits that you need to complete your academic career.
Hopefully, the information shared in this article is feasible for you. Check out more sections from the portal to stay updated on FAFSA news.
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Ember Orion is a journalism student who loves to write about social security and government schemes. Ember’s dream is to become a top-level anchor in the USA.