Everything begins with the FAFSA — the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
You will get used to talking about the FAFSA, because you file one for every academic year. With one application, you are applying for several different types of federal aid.
Set up a FSA ID
A FSA ID is needed to submit your FAFSA, access federal websites and sign your loan promissory note. It also serves as your legal signature and is tied to your Social Security number. If you’re a dependent student, at least one parent needs a FSA ID in order to sign the FAFSA and apply for a parent PLUS loan. You’ll only create your FSA ID once, but will use it often as a student.
Applying Online
The online FAFSA application takes less than an hour if you have all your documents. The FAFSA is necessary to be considered for grants, loans, work-study, and some need-based scholarships. Keep in mind that there are typically two FAFSA applications open at one time or current and upcoming academic years. Please be sure to fill out the right one for the academic year you are applying for. Our academic year runs from fall to summer.
You will be required to provide consent and approval to retrieve and disclose federal tax information to the FAFSA. Not providing this consent may result in your financial aid eligibility not being calculated, which could impact your ability to receive aid.
*Don’t forget to pay close attention to important dates and deadlines.
Important Changes to the FAFSA
Beginning in 2024-2025, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) was simplified due to federal legislation. We would like to remind the campus community of these important changes. Please refer to StudentAid.gov for more informations.
- Students will no longer be able to complete the FAFSA on behalf of their parent(s) or spouse. Students will invite “contributors” by email and parents or spouses will provide their own information via that invitation.
- Parents or spouses without Social Security Numbers will be able to create an FSA ID to electronically sign the FAFSA. This new process will confirm identity through the credit bureau – TransUnion. If a parent or spouse doesn’t sign the FAFSA electronically, the signature page must be mailed directly to Federal Student Aid. Schools will no longer be able to process paper signature pages directly.
- FAFSA simplification results in fewer questions for students to answer on the application and a simplified calculation that will increase the number of Pell eligible students. We strongly encourage all students to apply, especially if you previously filed a FAFSA but are considering not filing again because you didn’t initially qualify for any grants.
- The application is updating the language from Expected Family Contribution (EFC) to Student Aid Index (SAI). Students with the highest need may see a negative number for their SAI.
- The FAFSA will provide the option for students to indicate they have unusual circumstances and request additional guidance from the financial aid office.
- The FAFSA will no longer ask students about their housing plans for the academic year; however, Boise State will collect this information separately to ensure students are provided an accurate financial aid offer.
- The FAFSA will no longer exclude the reporting of assets for small businesses and family farms (on which the family lives). Boise State will be monitoring the impact of this change on students.
What You Can Do Now
- Make sure to create your StudentAid.gov account—and remember your username and password so you can access and submit the FAFSA form when it’s available.
- Find out if your parent(s) or spouse will need to be contributors (contribute their info on your FAFSA form).
- If your parent(s) or spouse will need to contribute to your form, make sure each contributor creates their own StudentAid.gov account. Even if a contributor doesn’t have a Social Security number, they will be able to create an account.
- Watch the Federal Student Aid “Preparing for the FAFSA Form” playlist to understand what information and documents you’ll need to fill out the FAFSA form.
FAFSA Application Frequently Asked Questions
Filling Out and Updating Your FAFSA
If I filled out the FAFSA when I applied in the fall, do I need to fill out a new FAFSA form?
The FAFSA is filed once per year and will apply to all semesters (Fall, Spring, and Summer).
Do I have to complete a FAFSA every semester, or is it only once a year?
The FAFSA is filed once per year and will apply to all semesters (Fall, Spring, and Summer).
Parents and Contributors Filling Out the FAFSA
If the parents are married, with the student as their biological child, does it matter which parent sets up the FAFSA?
If the married parents filed a joint tax return in 2022, one parent can add the parent data to the FAFSA and sign with the FSA ID. The second parent’s information (name, date of birth, and social security number) will also be provided on the form but only one parent signature should be required.
If we have more than one child in college, will we need to create a new/second FAFSA parent account?
Only one FSA ID can be created per individual. Parents will use the same FSA ID to complete the FAFSA for multiple dependents attending any university.
Other Application Questions
When it says a student may apply for a $5,500 loan through the FAFSA, is that total per year?
The annual loan limit for a first-year student is $5,500. This is typically split between the Fall and Spring semester. Please contact the financial aid office if you’d like to split your annual loan amount between Fall, Spring and Summer.
How do I follow up with Federal Student Aid (FSA) to make sure they have all of our info for a completed FAFSA application?
The FAFSA Submission Summary will not be available to students until after the FAFSA data is released to colleges and universities in the first half of March.
How can I download a copy of my complete FAFSA? I don’t see it on my dashboard.
The FAFSA Submission Summary will not be available to students until after the FAFSA data is released to colleges and universities in the first half of March.
How can I verify Boise State has received my FAFSA?
Boise State will not receive FAFSA data from the Department of Education until the first half of March. Once we are able to upload information into our system, we will note individual student accounts that the FAFSA data has been received.
Errors on the FAFSA
I completed my FAFSA form, but had an error in the SAI number calculation. How should I proceed in finding applicable scholarships, and is there a way to get the SAI number elsewhere?
Federal Student Aid has a Federal Student Aid estimator available at https://studentaid.gov/aid-estimator/.
I typed in some incorrect financial information on my FAFSA form. Do we need to wait for it to be approved before making edits?
If you’re unable to log into the FAFSA form to make corrections, you’ll need to wait until FAFSA data is released to colleges and universities in the first half of March to make any corrections.
FAFSA Deadlines and Processing
If my FAFSA has already taken 3 weeks to process and I still don’t have it back, is there any way to work with the scholarship office?
The Boise State University Scholarships office is remaining flexible with the awarding of need-based scholarships due to the delays in receiving FAFSA data from Federal Student Aid. The Department of Education has anticipated releasing FAFSA data to schools in the first half of March.
If I haven’t heard back by February 15th after completing the FAFSA, can I still apply for scholarships?
Yes, Boise State has a variety of scholarships that include merit and financial need-based criteria. Scholarships that require financial need will have flexible deadlines as we await the release of FAFSA data for all students.
Will the deadline for scholarships be adjusted due to the delay in FAFSA processing?
Boise State’s deadline for need-based scholarships will remain flexible. Students are encouraged to complete the admissions application and submit transcripts by the posted deadlines. We will remain flexible when considering eligibility for scholarships that require FAFSA data to determine financial need.
Since the FAFSA says that schools will now be getting student info from them in mid-March, how does this impact the February 15th scholarship deadlines?
Boise State’s deadline for need-based scholarships will remain flexible. Students are encouraged to complete the admissions application and submit transcripts by the posted deadlines. We will remain flexible when considering eligibility for scholarships that require FAFSA data to determine financial need.
