ABC COMPANY



PSC-ED-FSA-TISD

Moderator: Christal Simms

October 17, 2017

3:00 pm CT

Operator: Welcome and thank you for standing by. At this time all participants will be on a listen-only mode for the duration of today's conference.

This call is being recorded. If you have any objections, you may disconnect at this time.

May I introduce your speaker today, Maisha Challenger. Please go ahead.

Maisha Challenger: Good afternoon everyone. Thank you all for joining our Webinar today.

Today our Webinar is the 2018/19 FAFSA Demo Line-by-Line Webinar. For all of you on the call, I'm sure we've got a mix of both parents and students, we want to give you some really great information as we go through the FAFSA application online. We want to do this demo because we want to help you all familiarize yourself a little bit with filling out the form, so that when it is your turn to fill out the form, you will definitely feel a little more comfortable with the process.

I know a lot of times people think filling out the FAFSA is a very daunting task, but after we go through today, it's going to be easy for you all, and hopefully won't take any time at all.

As we go throughout the Webinar, my colleagues are online answering - my colleagues will be available to answer your questions, so, feel free as I go through this Webinar to ask questions, and they will answer your questions via the Q-and-A box. So, make sure you use the Q-and-A box.

This presentation, you can also download at the top left-hand corner, under Files, if you want to get a copy of the presentation, you can download it there as well.

So let's get started. So, first and foremost, the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. That is how you access federal financial aid in the form of our three programs that we offer -- grants, work-study, and loans. The application is very important and that's what is required to be filled out. I always like to say that there's always different paths of aid and assistance for individuals who want to go to school.

The federal government offers money, the state offers money, the institution offers money, and there's also scholarships. And a lot of times the FAFSA form, is specifically for federal aid, but it also is required to receive some state aids, sometimes institutional aid, and scholarships. So it's really important that you fill out the FAFSA form to access many different sources of money to help you go to school.

So, how you access the FAFSA form. The Web site is . That's where you want to fill out the online application. And a lot of people don't know that the FAFSA application for the '18/'19 cycle is available now. So, for you high school seniors, now is the time to fill out that FAFSA form. If you're going to be a freshman next year, in 2018, you want to fill out that form.

Again, is the Web site that you go to. A lot of you remember that the FAFSA used to come out in January, but we've moved it up to October. So it's really important to know, maybe some of you didn't, that the FAFSA is available now.

So here's some things you need to know when you want to submit the FAFSA application. The FAFSA does launch every October 1st. The FAFSA must be submitted for every year you attend school. So, for your high school seniors, you're going to fill it out now, but while you are in school, you're going to fill out the applications every year. And then remember, earlier, I talked about state, institutional and different deadlines. Find out what your state and college deadlines are and submit by the earliest one. Again, each application has different deadline.

There's some really pertinent information that we need, and as we go through the form you'll see, that's required to complete your FAFSA. And tax information is one of the key components in filling out the form.

So, some of you may realize, as we talk about the '18/19 FAFSA cycle, there was tax information. And so in the past we used to use the prior year's information. So now, instead of using the previous year's information, we're using two years or using 2016s information.

So, let me say that again. For the 2018/19 FAFSA, you're not going to use 2017s tax information, because of us have not filed that yet. But we're going to use 2016s information. And the reason we changed that is because most of that information has already been filed and then that way you don't have to worry about what information you don't have. It's already been filed and you can use that information to submit your FAFSA application.

This graph shows you an example of the tax information we need for previous cycles and the current cycle. So, '18/19, we'll use 2016s tax information. But again, as we go through the demo, you'll see what information is necessary.

And then I mentioned that there's a couple of - there's a couple of key components for the FAFSA application that you all will need regarding your social security number, tax information, any cash savings or checking account or investments. There's certain key financial information that's needed, and when we go through the application you'll see what we're asking. We have some really great Help and Hints box that really show you specifically what it is that we're looking for specifically on this application.

And then, as you all are preparing to fill out your FAFSA application, there's some really great information that the Department of Education provides to help you prepare for going to college. We have a blog that gives you a lot of really great tips.

For example, as you can see here, there's myths about the FAFSA. For example, some people assume only students with good grades get financial aid. That's false. Or, my parents make too much money so I don't qualify for financial aid. There's no income cutoff. There's a lot of myths that make a lot of people skeptical about filling out the form, and we want people to know, don't be skeptical.

There's also on this blog information about a parents' guide in completing the FAFSA and eight steps to filling out the FAFSA form. So when you get a chance, if you can, you can click on these links and go to some helpful tips for you as you prepare to fill out the FAFSA.

So at this time, I want us to go through the 2018/19 FAFSA application so you all can see what type of questions you will be asked as you prepare for your students and yourself potentially to go to college. So let's get started.

Okay. So as you all can see, what we're going to do is go through the FAFSA process. And what we have here is what the first page of the FAFSA looks like. And so this is literally what you will see when it's time to start filling out your FAFSA.

And so what we're going to do is, again, remember, I said there are first-time users for individuals who are high school seniors, and then return users. So, most of you hopefully are high school seniors, we're going to start a brand-new FAFSA. So we're going to click "Start a new FAFSA."

So here is where you will start entering the student's information. And for sake - for purposes of the demo, we're going to just come up with an arbitrary name just so we can go through the process. So I'm going to use Melissa. And Melissa is a high school senior, really excited to go to school.

So we're going to give Melissa's first name, last name. We're just going to come up with, again an arbitrary, social security number. And then Melissa's date of birth. And so, Melissa was both on June 21, 1999. So, Melissa is 18 years old.

And so, remember, I mentioned over here these Help and Hints box. It tells you exactly what information is required as you're filling out the FAFSA form. So we're going to click Next.

So as you can see, you're still in the log-in process, it says, welcome, Melissa. And it's basically telling you, you should review the information and make sure it's accurate before you click Next, okay? So we're going to make sure all the information is right, and click Next.

So here is a new feature that we've added to the FAFSA form this year. There is now a disclaimer, and basically we want to make sure that you're using the information or the information is being used solely for the purpose of applying for the FAFSA application, so you can either decline or accept. And we definitely want to accept, but I'm going to show you, if click Decline, it says you must accept the conditions to continue using the FAFSA. So we're going to click Okay.

Okay. We're going to go back through, unfortunately, logged me out, but I'm just going to go back through, and put in the social security information one more time. And so the point of that previously was just to show you that you want to make sure you accept the conditions, otherwise you cannot continue on the FAFSA form. Okay? So we're going to click Next. And so we're going to click Accept.

So now we're at the page where it basically shows you, which school year are you applying for? And so we're applying - this is for the 2018/19 school year. So we want to make sure we click "Start at 2018-19 FAFSA." And so this is where there's safe key, it's just a password you would come up with to proceed on the FAFSA form. So I'm just going to use the word "test," and then retype the word test. And then I'm going to click Next.

So what this is, is now we're on the introduction page, and I just want to show you all that, on this page, it basically gives you some hints as to what you should look for when it's time to fill out the application. So, how long - how can I get help completing the FAFSA? How many steps does it take to complete? How long will it take to complete?

Maisha Challenger: And we're going to put a ZIP code. And then, having lived in the District of Columbia for at least five years. We're going to say yes. We're going to give her a phone number. And then we're going to give Melissa, we need an email address, and so it's going to be msmith@, msmith@.

And then, what is your marital status as of today? She's single. Do you have driver's license information that you want to provide? You don't have to, so we can say no. So we're going to click Next.

Now, notice, there's a couple of errors on this page. And so it says the student has incorrectly added their ZIP code, and so there's a number missing in the ZIP code. So I want to show you all this to let you know that, in case you don't put down accurate information, the FAFSA will catch if there are errors. It also says email addresses don't match.

So, sure enough, when we look, there's an H missing. So you want to make sure that you take your time when you're filling out the application and make sure that the information is accurate when it's asking certain information, demographic information. So I think we got it now. Going to click Next.

So here is where we talk about student eligibility. Are you a U.S. citizen? So there are three different options. You can say you are a U.S. citizen, eligible non-citizen, or no, I'm not a citizen or eligible non-citizen. Okay? For purposes today, we're going to say, yes, I am a U.S. citizen.

What is your high school completion - what will your high school completion status be? So here is where the student has a high school diploma. High diploma, GED or home schooling does qualify you to receive federal financial aid.

And then, what will be your college grade level? What will your college grade level be when you begin the 2018/19 school year? So we're going to say, never attended college, first year. But there are different options. Remember, I also mentioned to you, if you're unsure what the question is asking, this Help and Hints box over here really do a really great job of giving you the information that you need.

So, what degree or certificate will you be working on? So it'll be our first bachelor's degree.

Now this is a really important question. Are you interested in being considered for work-study? So, work-study, remember I mentioned earlier there's three federal programs -- there's grants, loans, and work-study. Work-study is where you work part-time to pay off some of your educational expenses. You can work on-campus or off-campus.

On the FAFSA form, we always want to say yes. Are you interested in being considered for work-study? The Financial Aid Office will let you know if you qualify. And work-study is based on financial need. So, are you interested, yes or no?

When you get to the school, the money is first come, first served. But again, if you - you don't necessarily have to do work-study, but we always encourage people to sign up because again that's money you can use to pay off your expenses. So, are you interested? Yes.

Will you have your first bachelor's degree before you begin the 2018/19 school year? No. Because you're still in high school.

Are you a foster youth or were you at any time in foster youth care? We're going to say yes just to show you an example of what happens at the end once you answer that question.

And then, highest school year completed by the first parent? We're going to say, High School, and then parent number two we're going to say College or Beyond. And click Next.

So here is where we now want the high school information of the individual applying for federal aid. So we're going to use - there's a local high school in Washington, D.C. called Gonzaga. And if you're not sure, again, a lot of times people are not sure of the spelling or - just put in what you think the spelling of the high school. And then once you - once we click the confirm button, you'll see that it will show you what your school is or the correct spelling of the school.

So, in what city is your high school located? We're going to say Washington. And then, what state? We're going to say, District of Columbia. And again, if you're not sure, you can click Confirm. And sure enough, as I mentioned, it'll give you a list of different high schools that look similar to what you have put. And so we're going to select Gonzaga College High School. So, once it says "You have selected this," we're going to click Next.

So now it says, Melissa, based on the information you have provided, we have determined that you may qualify for federal student aid. So here is where it's saying you now are able to add the number of colleges you want to put in. So, for FAFSA purposes, you can put up to 10 colleges on your FAFSA at one time. Okay?

And we always encourage you to put down more than one school because different schools - each school is going to offer you a different amount of financial aid, so you always want to just put down different schools, because one school may offer you 10,000, one school may offer you 20,000, one school may offer you 2000. And that's where you and your parents can decide what really works best for you. But again, the more schools you put, the more options you see have as far as aid the school will provide to you.

So let's list a couple of schools here. So, one school, since we're in the D.C. area, we'll put -- and you don't need to necessarily have the city, but the state is definitely necessary -- so we're going to put Georgetown as one school. And again, if you're not sure of the name or you got a partial of a name, you can put that in. And we're going to click Search. And sure enough, what comes up is Georgetown.

Now, it's really important to understand when you do the search, you see how the first option that comes up is the Law Center. Georgetown University has a law school. They also have a School of Medicine. You want to make sure that you're clicking on the right school, which is the Undergraduate School, which is just Georgetown University. So we're going to click on Georgetown University and add it.

Let's add two more schools. Another school we want to add is Howard University, and that's in the District of Columbia. So we're just going to put Howard, and we're going to search, and sure enough Howard University comes up, just by itself. And we're going to add that.

And then we're going to add one more school. Let's add a school in Maryland. Let's add the University of Maryland. So we're going to add Maryland, University of Maryland. We're going to click Search.

Now, the great thing about University of Maryland is it has a lot of different campuses, so you want to make sure you're clicking on the right campus. There's a federal student - there's a federal school code for each school. If you don't know it, that's why the search box is really helpful. You can just type in the name of the school. So, for purposes of today, we're going to pick the College Park Campus. We're going to click Add. Okay?

So now we've got a couple of different schools that we want to see how much financial aid we're going to get. And let me also say this because a lot of times people are curious if they should only set the schools they've been admitted to. And that's absolutely not the case. You can put down as many schools as you want on the FAFSA application regardless of whether or not you've been admitted to the school. Because again, admissions is totally different than the financial aid process. So, even if you haven't been admitted, you can still put them on the school because you may be - you can still put them on the FAFSA application because you may be waiting to see whether or not you're going to be accepted, so, put down as many schools regardless of whether you've been admitted or not. Okay?

So, down at the bottom, as you can see, we can click Next. I also want to make a point to put, it's always good to save your information. A lot of times people wait till the end. But if you want to sporadically do the FAFSA application, click Save, we encourage that as well. And we're going to click Next.

Now, it's also going to ask you, now that we've got three schools listed, what's your housing plan going to be? Do you want to live on campus? Because that's going to determine how much aid you get. With the parent. Or off-campus. So in this instance, we're going to do on-campus housing for all three schools. Okay? And so, once we click on-campus, we're going to click Next.

So now what we have is dependency determination. So, for FAFSA purposes, you're either considered independent or dependent on the FAFSA. And these questions will determine what your dependency status is. And so there are various questions that you are asked.

Were you born before January 1, 1995? The answer is no. Remember, Melissa is 18 years old. As of today, are you married? No. Will you be working on a master's or doctor's program? No. Will you have - do you have children that - do you have children who receive more than half of their support? No. So let me click No for that one.

And then it'll ask you another set of questions. Now, remember I mentioned those Help and Hints box here. These will really give you a description of what they're asking. So let's go through a couple more questions. You have dependents other than your child or spouse to live with you and receive more than half of their support. That's a no.

Are you currently serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces? I'm going to click No.

So now we've got a couple of more questions. Are you a veteran in the U.S. Armed Forces? We're going to say no.

At any time since you turned age 13, were both of your parents deceased? Were you in foster care? Or were you a dependent ward of the court? We're going to say No.

Now, as determined by the court in your state of legal residence, are you or were you an emancipated minor? I want to click no but I'm going to click yes to show you off. So here, if you look in the Help and Hints box, because some people are like, what's an emancipated minor? Select no if you're still - if you are still a minor and the court decision is no longer in effect or the court decision was not in effect at the time you became an adult. It says select yes if you can provide a copy of the court's decision that, as of today, you're an emancipated minor. Also select yes if you can provide a copy of the court's decision that you were an emancipated minor immediately before you reach the age of being an adult in your state.

And so, a lot of times, in some of these instances, remember, this is going to make you independent or dependent. I want to show you, if I click yes, notice that the FAFSA application says you are considered an independent student. And it says, this means you are not required to answer questions about your parents.

So in any of these questions, if one of these categories defines you, then you are considered independent, hence, a lot of times the school requires supporting documentation. Remember, in this instance, an emancipated minor is a court-ordered document. Okay? So I just wanted to show you all this to let you know that in some instances, if you click yes, you are considered independent, the application will register that. And then you proceed without parental information but still answer financial questions about yourself.

So we're going to go through and still say no, okay?

Does someone other than your parent or step-parent have legal guardianship? We're going to say no. I want to read the definition because a lot of times we get questions about what legal guardianship means. For FAFSA purposes, it says, select yes if you can provide a copy of the court's decision that you - that as of today, you are in legal guardianship. Also select yes if you can provide a copy of a court's decision that you're in legal guardianship - you were in legal guardianship before you reach the age of being an adult in your state. The court must be located in your state. So again, these are situations where the court is mandatory in order to be deemed legal guardianship or an emancipated minor.

Also, homeless, being homeless or you're self-supporting. We're going to say no. But again if you're not sure what homeless means, here we go. Homeless means lacking fixed regular and adequate housing. You may be homeless if you're living in shelters, parks, motels, hotels, public spaces. There's a list of categories here. If that doesn't apply to you, then you're going to click No. If it does, like I said, there's other questions they will ask you now about being homeless.

So, here's another question. At any time on or after July 2017, did your high school or school district liaison determine that you're an unaccompanied youth? So again, these are questions that the FAFSA will ask you, if you decide that you are homeless, okay? So there are specific questions that we ask, and we ask you to read them and use the Help and Hints box to answer those questions. But for the demo today, we're going to click No.

So it says, based on your answers to the dependency status questions, you are considered a dependent student, which means you must provide parental information. So, remember, we mentioned independent status means you are not required to provide parental information, but dependent status means that you are required to provide parental information.

So you have two options. You can provide parental information or you may be unable to provide parental information. So I want to show you all because this can happen. So we know that there are instances where people feel like, oh, my parents may want to just - my parents may not want to provide information just because, or there's something called, if you have a special circumstance and you're unable to provide parental information.

So let's go through if you're unable to provide parental information, and what that means for FAFSA purposes.

So, for the FAFSA, let's go back up, it says, you told us you think you have a special circumstance. Federal - here are some examples of what a special circumstance may be. Again, this is for FAFSA purposes. So, your parents are incarcerated, you've left home due to an abusive family environment, you don't know where your parents are, you're unable to contact them. Okay? Those are examples of special circumstances.

But as it says underneath, not all circumstances or situations are considered a special circumstance. The following are not considered a special circumstance. Your parents just don't want to provide the information. Your parents refuse to contribute to your college expenses. Or they don't claim you, you don't live with your parents, okay?

So, for purposes, just to show you all, let's say you do not have a special circumstance and you're unable to provide parental information. For FAFSA purposes, you only qualify for unsubsidized loans. So remember, we talked about there's grants, there's direct loans, there's work-study. The only thing you qualify for are unsubsidized loans, and it takes you out of the pot of money that may be available to you.

So again, now that we thought about it, we're like, no, we want to provide parental information. Because we want to make sure we have access to all the aid that's potentially available.

So now we will provide parental information. So as of today we are now in the parent demographic information. I don't know if you can tell, on the left-hand side, for parent information, you kind of got like a purple hue, okay?

And so it says, as of today, what is the marital status of your parents? So I want to show you the various different options that you have when filling out the FAFSA as it relates to your parents being married. So you've got never married, where it says, which parent information will you provide, either the mother or the father's. Unmarried but both parents are living together, where it's asking for parent's information from one - for both parents.

Married or remarried. So a lot of times we get questions where people ask, well, what if my mom and dad separated, or, my mom and dad are not together but my mom remarried or my dad remarried. If you're living - if you're living with mom - if you're living with mom and mom is remarried, and mom is paying support to you, the most support to you, that's who - you need to put mom and stepdad's information. So if it's married or remarried, you need parental information from both parents.

But let me give you this scenario of divorce or separated. Let's say mom and dad are divorced and mom is just single. So, mom is providing support to you. This is where you only need one parent, if the parents are divorced or separated. Okay?

And then the last category is widows, where it says, when did you parent become widowed? Whose information will you provide?

So, today, Melissa's parents are divorced and separated - are divorced, not both. They're divorced. And so they were divorced - they were divorced, I'm sorry, we had a little bit of a technical glitch, we're going to go back to the screen. They were divorced in let's say last year. So we've got 06-2016.

Which parent's information will be provided? And so we're going to say - we're going to put Melissa's mother's information. Okay? And so we're going to again just come up with the social security number, and Melissa's mother's last name is Green. Her mother's first name is Maria. And then we're going to give her mother's date of birth.

And remember, like I mentioned, these Help and Hints box do a really good job of helping you when it's time to fill out the FAFSA if you're not sure about the questions. So we're going to give, again, an email address. We're going to do ngreen@. And then again, ngreen@.

Has your mother lived in the District of Columbia for at least five years? We're going to say yes.

So now we've got to look at household size. And again, the FAFSA application asks for a lot of different information because all that information is calculated into an EFC, Expected Family Contribution. It's an index number. That number is what the school uses. So a lot of these questions create your EFC.

And so, household size. So if not sure who's considered your household member, remember I said the Help and Hints box really do a great job. Here's how you determine your household size. It's yourself, your parents. You can look down the list of information. But let's click on household size here.

So if it's just Melissa and her mother, Maria, if you go down and ask to calculate, it says, there are two people in the household. And then, how many people in your mother's household will be college students, between July and June of 2019? Don't include your parents. It will be just Melissa. Now we're going to click Next.

So, remember I mentioned earlier that your tax information is really critical in determining how much financial aid or assistance you may get from a particular college. It's one factor but one of the most important factors. Here is where it's asking for 2016, now remember, we said, for the '18/19 FAFSA, we're using tax information from 2016. And it says that right here.

Has your mother completed her IRS income tax return or another tax return? Here is where there are three options you have. Not going to file, will file, or already completed. So for the demo purposes, I want to show you all what happens if you click Already Completed. So it asks you, if you hit, click Already Completed, what is her filing status according to her tax return? So we're going to click "She's head of household."

And then it says, did your mother file a foreign tax return for 2016? You're going to click No. Some of you have heard that there's something called the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. And that's where you can extract your tax information directly into your FAFSA form. This is what will come up if you want to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. We recommend that you use it. It is available for the 2018/19 FAFSA. And so, because this is a demo, you cannot link to the IRS. But let me show you what happens once you click - if you were to click "Link to the IRS." We're going to click Next.

This is the message that you get. It's going to say, "Applying is faster and easier with the IRS DRT." You don't have to use it, but again, we do recommend that you use it. You can always put your numbers in manually. So again, we can't link because this is a demo site, so we're going to click "No, thanks," and keep going. Okay?

So now we're going to manually put in our parent financial information. And again, let's look at those Help and Hints box to understand what information is being asked, okay?

So we've got, what type of income tax return did your mother file for 2016? And again, it's different forms. You've got a 1040, you've got a 1040-A or 1040-EZ. We're just going to say, a 1040.

And then, it asks what your mother's adjusted gross income. So again, the great thing about the FAFSA is, if you want to look at your tax returns and not use the tool, it gives you the line number for the information that we need as far as the numbers. So you can just go to your 1040 form and go to Line 37 and look at what your mother's adjusted gross income is. And so, for purposes of today, we're going to say that her AGI is $50,000, okay?

The next question is, how much did your mother earn from working -- wages, salary, tips in 2016? And again it gives you the lines to add up, 7, 12 and 18, on the different forms. And so, what we'll say is, we'll say her wages - let's say her wages were $48,000, okay?

And then it says, as of the day, is your mother a dislocated worker? A lot of people are not sure what that means. Let's go over to the Help and Hints box. It says, a person may be considered a dislocated worker if he or she is receiving unemployment benefits due to being paid - due to being laid off, I'm sorry, or losing a job.

So again, if that's not you, has been laid off, there's a lot of different options down here of what a dislocated worker is. If that's not you and it doesn't apply to you, we're going to say, no. And then click Next.

Okay. And again, since we're putting the information in manually, here we are looking for - here we're looking for the amount that's found on Line 56 minus 46. So this is the income tax information. And again, for demo purposes, we're going to say her income tax amount was $1000.

And then, enter your mother's exemptions. So we're going to put one, for Melissa, okay? And then again, if you're not sure, it tells you here which lines to look at to give you that information.

So here is where the FAFSA form asks for additional information from the parent. Here is the additional information. So, a lot of times people ask questions about what other financial information is being asked. If they're child support paid, and here's the definition for FAFSA purposes, child support, your mother paid because divorce - because of divorce and separation, or as a result of a legal requirement. Does not include support for children in your mother's household. There's where you would put the number.

We also get a question a lot of times about students, what type of earnings you use for college grant and scholarship aid reported to the IRS. And here we say student college grant and scholarship aid reported to the IRS in your mother's income.

So again, read these questions and answer them as accurately as possible. If this is not applicable to you, then the answer - then you would not put anything down. However, if it does apply to you, we ask you to put down that amount.

And again, as you can see, there's many different things that we checked. And so, whatever is applicable to you, you can definitely check off here for additional financial information.

In this instance we're going to say there's no scholarship money that has been put aside. There's no child support paid. And then again, more information about 2016. Remember, we said 2016 un-tax income. So if there's any child support received, if there's any tax-exempt interest or income. You can definitely look at all of these questions -- housing, food or other living allowances paid for military, clergy or other. Again, there's many different circumstances that people have as far as their finances are concerned. So, just read the questions and see if they apply to you or not. Okay?

So in this instance, we are going to unclick the Un-Tax Income, and just keep everything as is. And at the very bottom, it then asks questions about Maria's total balance or current balance of cash, savings and checking account. So, what's in her savings account? What's in her checking account? Again, look at the Help and Hints box.

So, Maria has got some cash. We'll say she's got about $500 in her checking account. And then another question we get is, as of today, what is the net worth of your mother's investments, including real estate, not your mother's home. A lot of times people want to include in this amount your mortgage, and that's not what we're asking. So if you go over to the Help and Hints box, it's asking specifically about your parent's current investments. It's the amount left over after deducting the debt from the value of each investment.

And again, it gives you examples, if you keep scrolling down to the Help and Hints, what information we want. It also says, investments include real estate. Does not include your home, as it says right here, which your parents live, trust fund. And it also says, investments do not include the home in which your parents live, the value of your insurance, retirement plans, 401(k) plans.

So here is where people are not sure. You can see what it means, what it wants you to include, and what it doesn't want you to include. Okay?

So we're going to say zero here. And then, what is the net worth of your mother's current businesses and/or investment (funds) if she has any? Again, refer to the Help and Hints to figure out what that means. But we're going to put zero. Okay?

So, after we put in all this information, we're going to click Next. So now we want to see if Melissa has work. So again, the same questions that were asked to her mother regarding tax information are going to be asked to Melissa. And so again we've got already completed, will file, or not going to file. Again, if Melissa has already completed her taxes, the same questions are going to be asked, and then she can link to the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, coursing and fill the information out manually.

Melissa did not work. So we're going to say, not going to file. Okay? And then we're going to click Next.

So in this instance, they're going to ask, how much does she earn from working? Any wages, salaries or tips? And so we're going to say zero in this instance. And then we're going to click Next.

So again there's some other student financial information that you might want to include. So, any - it says, check all that apply and provide the amount. So again, some of the same questions. There may be child support received, there may be housing or food, there may be some benefits. There may be some child support paid. You never know. And so again, we provide all these questions and answer them as accurately as possible as it relates to your particular circumstance.

So, Melissa has got about $50 in the bank. We'll give her that, for her cash saving and checking account. And then, any investments. Melissa doesn't have any investments, so we're going to put zero. And then, does she have any current - does she have any current businesses or investment funds? We're going to put zero.

Okay? So we're going to click Next.

So, as I mentioned earlier at the top, we have gone through all the various different categories or different sections of the FAFSA, and now we are ready to sign and submit.

So it's really important to share with you all, whenever you start this process, are you a preparer? A lot of people are like, well, I'm preparing the FAFSA form. But let's go over to the Help and Hints. A preparer is anyone who charges a fee for helping you fill out the FAFSA. And no one should ever be charging you a fee. You have counselors out there, you have - we have the 1800 number, a 1800-4FEDAID number. It's 1800-433-3243 that you can use, if you have questions, when you're filling out the FAFSA, there's a live chat. So you should never be paying any money out of your pocket. There's wonderful free assistance out there to help you fill out the FAFSA.

So, are you a preparer? The answer is no.

And so here is where we're asking for a signature. Notice we've got the social security number. We have the student's last name. We have the student's date of birth. We have all that information here.

So if you scroll down, we also have the parent signature for information about the mom, her date of birth, and things of that nature.

So I also want to show you, and I neglected to mention, earlier when we first started the application, there was a place where you could create your FSA ID. So, see how it says here, Create an FSA ID? Your FSA ID is your username and password. You must have an FSA ID, both the student needs one and the parent, in order to complete the FAFSA application.

You can complete an FSA ID before the application. You can go to and put in FSA ID. Or you can actually create the FSA ID while you're completing the FAFSA application, in the beginning of the application you can create one. And literally we're at the end and it's also letting you know you can create one. As I said, it is definitely something you have to have in order to complete the FAFSA form.

So, because again this is a demo, I want to show you all how we need to submit the form with - so you can see what it looks like once you've completed. So, notice it says, we recommend you sign the form electronically. But again, since it is a demo, we're going to submit without signature, so you have to do that for, and again this is just for demo purposes, you're going to submit using your FSA ID, your username and password, to submit to complete your FAFSA.

And so I'm going to click Agree. So I agree to the terms. The student has to agree to the terms. And the parent has to agree to the terms. And so we're going to hit other options to sign and submit. We're going to submit without signature, just for demo purposes. And at the very bottom you're going to click "Submit my FAFSA now." And guess what, guys, we are done. That did not take that long at all.

So this is what - this is just sample, again, a sample of what your confirmation page is going to look like, okay? And so on the confirmation page it says, your FAFSA has been successfully submitted. So now your FAFSA has been submitted.

So I love the next thing we say is, in certain instances, for you parents out there, there may be a sibling that is also going to school and you want to use the information you just put on this form for that sibling. You can transfer your parent's information into a new FAFSA right after you completed this FAFSA. So it's really great that you can use the parental information right after if you're going to start a new FAFSA right away. If you're not going to start one right away, let's say tomorrow you want to complete the FAFSA, the information won't be saved. But it's a really great tool to have in case you want to start that next FAFSA for the other child in order to complete the application.

So then, what happens next? Notice it says, in 7 to 10 business days we will email you with a Student Aid Report, notifying you, Student Aid Report or a SAR, notifying you that your FAFSA was processed. Okay? Once that information is processed, the schools will have that information. The FAFSA information will be made available to the schools and they will use it to determine the aid you may be eligible to receive. Remember, I mentioned that the schools base on the information you put, which is why it's very important that you put down accurate information on your FAFSA. The schools will look at all that information that you provided, create an index number, that EFC, for you, and then decide how much aid you're going to receive.

So I want to scroll down a little bit so you can also see what we also provide on the confirmation page. A lot of times people want to know about the school as far as statistics and various different data. And so what we provide for you is a graduation rate for the school, a retention rate for the school, and a transfer rate for the school.

And so, for Georgetown, you can see their graduation rate is 94%, for Howard 61%, and for University of Maryland College Park it's 86%. A lot of times people should pay attention to some of these numbers because it's a good indicator as far as, as I said, information that you may want to know about the school.

Let's scroll down, because remember, I mentioned the EFC. So remember, this is a demo. These are not real numbers. But for the demo, you're going to get - what will happen is, once you - that EFC will be on your SAR, it will be an index number. For demo purposes, you're going to get (six nines), that's just how it works.

But here's also where it gives you a Pell Grant estimate, it'll give you a direct Stafford estimate. Again this is - these are just estimate and arbitrary numbers we came up with for the sake of the demo, so that you can see what information you will get potentially on that confirmation page. And then the SAR will also provide you with information as well. It'll take seven to 10 business days. They'll mail you your SAR. If you give your email address, it's a little bit fast, it's about five to seven days.

So again, you need to look out for that SAR. I know a lot of times on the FAFSA application, for you parents and you students, make sure you check your email address, because a lot of times, sometimes the students don't check or the parents are - need to remind the students to check, because a lot of times that information is actually there but they just don't realize that it's there.

Now, remember earlier, I did check a box about foster care. So, here it says, you reported that you are or were in foster care. You may be eligible for assistance through federal programs for foster youths. So again, this is telling you to contact your state EPV coordinator.

So for individuals that are in foster care, there's other aid out there for you, depending on the state that you reside in. And so we want people to pay attention to that and know that.

I neglected to mention to you all that, when we mentioned the transferring the IRS information, this year, when the information is transferred over, it'll just say "Transferred from the IRS." You won't be able to access and see the numbers for your 2016 tax return info, but we will say that the information has been transferred electronically. And that's actually what - that's actually what verbiage you will see. So, only if you use the tool. Again, you can manually put in the information as well.

So, see, this wasn't that hard, right? It was fairly simple. It didn't take that long to go through. Again, answer the questions as they pertain to you. There's additional information, financial information you want to provide. You can definitely do that. But it's a fairly simple process. I'm hoping that we've dispelled some myths out there that people have that the form is too hard. I wanted to go through the demo because I think that it gives you a really basic fundamental overview of the questions you're going to be asked. So I'm sure some of you, I'm hoping, as a result of this, will decide, I'm ready to fill out the FAFSA now because it is that simple.

So I wanted to just go through that demo with you. Let's go back to our presentation.

And it looks like my colleagues have been answering some really great questions while we were online. And so I'm hoping that, based on some of the demo, some of your questions have definitely been answered.

I also want to share with you all that we have a series of Webinars that we provide to students and parents to help them with the financial aid process, because we do understand that there's lots of different steps and it can seem a little cumbersome, it can seem a little overwhelming, but we don't want you to feel that way. We're hoping that these Webinars will give you kind of some basic fundamental information to help you do the process.

So we just did the 2018/19 FAFSA demo. This coming Thursday, October 19th, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., we're doing another Webinar on how to create your FSA ID, a step-by-step live demo.

So I kind of went over that - I kind of mentioned it today because I wanted us to go through the demo, but there is a process and it's also fairly simple to create your FSA ID, your username and password. And so my colleague, (Claire Buchner), will be providing that presentation on Thursday, October 19th, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. So we encourage you all to register.

There is a link at the bottom of this page. You can click on that link. Again you can also download the PDF, under the Files section, to register. But you must register. That'll be an amazing Webinar that you all should listen to.

There is also another Webinar on eligibility for federal student aid. That will be on October 24th. And that'll be for parents and students. So, who's eligible for federal student aid? We talked a little bit about independent and dependent status. That will give you a step-by-step through who's eligible, who's my parent, who's information should I put on the FAFSA form. A lot of times people have so many different questions. That will be an amazing Webinar. That will be Tuesday, October 24th. And that will be by - led by my colleague (Joanne Himet), from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

The next Webinar is, after the FAFSA form, what happens next? So we just went through the FAFSA. We told you who qualifies or who's eligible for federal student aid. So, now what? A lot of times people are not sure what to do once they filled out the application? How do they remain proactive?

A lot of times people haven't heard from their schools. So if a month or two or three weeks have gone by and you haven't received a financial aid award package or a letter from the school, what do I do? What happens next?

On Wednesday, November 8th, there will be a Webinar from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., led by Mr. James Copeland. And that will be a really great Webinar because a lot of times people are not sure what to do next. Again there's different phases of the financial aid journey and we want you all to have as much information as possible about each phase.

And then finally, on Thursday, November 16th, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Eastern Standard Time, Eastern Time, get your questions answered about financial aid and the FAFSA form. So this is just really an open forum for you all to just ask us your own personal questions that are specific to you about the FAFSA process.

A lot of times we do Webinars to a specific topic, but that Webinar will be literally just to listen and answer your questions. As you've all been asking questions today through the Q-and-A box, you can definitely - we'll be doing the same format that day. We probably will read out loud some of the questions, but we'll be answering some of the questions as well.

Our team, there'll be three or four of us here and able to answer your questions. Again, you must register for all of these Webinars. And the link is down below, so, make sure you do that as well.

So, after today's presentation, please give us about one more minute of your time. There's a brief survey that we'd like you all to fill out based on the information that you have been provided today, and also what you'll do with the information that we've given you. We're hoping this has allowed you all to feel a little more comfortable about the financial aid and the FAFSA process. I'm hoping that you all are feeling a little more at ease about everything.

So, definitely, if you don't mind, once our presentation concludes, please stay on for about another minute or two and answer some very - to answer a couple of questions about the presentation.

So at this time, I want to answer some questions. Oh, wow. I see you all have been asking a lot of different questions. I love it. So let me see if I can - let me see if there's some questions that I can answer for you all.

I saw one question about, what if there's an 11th school on the FAFSA application? That's a great question. So, people wonder, what if there's an 11th school?

So, all you have to do is, once the FAFSA has been processed with the 10, you can go back in and make a correction. You can go back in and add an 11th school. It will not erase the preexisting 10 schools. So if there's an 11th or 12th school that you want to add, you can just go back into your form, switch out one school for another, and it won't erase the initial school's information.

So, great question.

Let's see if there's any other questions that you all have for me. Oh, wow, you guys a lot of really great questions. I just want to thank my colleagues for answering a lot of questions that you guys have all had.

So I think there are some things I want to leave you all with. Remember that the FAFSA is, the Web site is . You want to fill out the FAFSA online. It doesn't take that long. And this process is fairly easy. And we're hoping that, again, there is a 1800 number, let me mention the 1800 number again.

1800-4FEDAID. It's 1800-433-3243. Monday through Friday. Actually now there's probably some Saturday and Sunday hours, English and Spanish, to answer your questions.

So, I don't see any more questions, so I think at this time we're going to sign off. This Webinar will be available to you all on our Web site. And so we will make sure, check on that Web site in about a week or two, and we'll make sure we upload this information for you.

So, thank you all for joining us today. And have a great day.

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