Congratulations on your acceptance to Messiah College!

 

Requirements

 

The requirements for applying for financial assistance are to submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to the United States Department of Education and complete any other forms provided to you by the Financial Aid office that pertain to your situation.

 

A packet of forms necessary to apply for almost all types of financial aid is sent to each student during the fall preceding the first year of the award year. For example, the forms to apply for aid for the 2009-2010 academic year are sent out during the fall of 2008 or at the time of acceptance for new students. The only applications not contained in this packet are the Federal Direct PLUS Loan applications and applications for non-institutional scholarships (which in most cases must be obtained from the individual or organization sponsoring the scholarship).

 

The packet contains instructions for completing the applications in the form of a publication called “Financial Aid Instructions.” In addition to this, the various Federal and state forms each contain extensive instructions of their own. The United States Department of Education also has a toll-free telephone number that you can call for information and instructions on applying for federal student aid. This phone number is: 1-800-433-3243.

 

The FAFSA is used to apply for the Federal Pell Grant and to determine eligibility for:

• Federal Work-Study
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (no separate application necessary)
• Federal Perkins Loan
• Federal Stafford Loans
• State Grants (some states require separate application)
• Messiah College grants and scholarships based on financial need (no separate application necessary)

 

Complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1 so that it will be received in our office by our April 1 priority deadline. We recommend mailing or completing the FAFSA on the Web (www.fafsa.ed.gov) by March 1 in order to meet this deadline. For most students, the results of the FAFSA, which are sent to us electronically, are all that is required to meet the priority deadline.

 

When you file your Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the Federal processor might select you for verification. If so, you will need to complete the Messiah College Verification Worksheet and submit it to the Messiah College Financial Aid Office. The Financial Aid Instructions contain more information about verification under the section entitled Verification Forms.