Latino Lubbock Magazine Volume 16, Issue 2, February/febrero 2022

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Education/ Educación

What is the FAFSA and How Do I apply?

BY CHRISTY MARTINEZ-GARCIA FOR LATINO LUBBOCK MAGAZINE

lan how to pay for college P before you start. Ask school counselors and the college financial MUSIC LESSON FROM THE MASTERS: Mariachi Los Matadores were thrilled to have both music maestros Jesus Chuy Guzman and Carlos Gutierrez working with the students! (Photo courtesy of Dr. Lauryn Salazar/TTU Music)

Get vaccinated! ¡Vacunarse!

IN FEBRUARY · Complete the FAFSA, if possible. (You'll need your family's/ guardian's tax records.) · Keep track of your college applications; be sure all schools have received all your materials. · Stay focused on grades.

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aid office about state, college, and nonprofit grants and scholarships you can apply for. Be sure to meet application deadlines. Start saving before you get to college. Consider prepaid tuition and education savings (529) plans. Next, complete the Free Application for Federal Student A i d ( FA F S A ® ) form allows you to be considered for federal that student aid. In addition, states and colleges use FAFSA information to award their own grants, scholarships, and loans. But, since aid is limited, you have to meet the deadlines and apply as soon as possible! Submit FAFSA for each school year to qualify for grants, scholarships, federal work-study and federal student loans. Deadlines vary for federal, state and institutional aid. For the 2022–23 Academic Year, the FAFSA form must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Central time (CT) on June 30, 2022. Any corrections or updates must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. CT on Sept. 10, 2022. The federal government gives students a deadline of June 30 after the school year in which they need aid — for instance, June 30, 2022, for the 2021-22 school year or June 30, 2022, for the 2022-23 school year — to file the FAFSA. But you have to submit the form much earlier to meet financial aid deadlines for your state and college and to get your aid dollars in time for the start of the school year. States and individual colleges set their own FAFSA deadlines that are typically much earlier than the federal one. You have to file your application by these deadlines to qualify for state and institutional grants and scholarships. If you’re attending an out-of-state school, you may not qualify for state aid — check with the state to see if you do. Find your state financial aid deadline on the Federal Student

Aid website. The federal deadline is your last chance to submit the FAFSA each year. If you need financial aid for the 2021-22 school year, you can submit the form until June 30, 2022. Work-study dollars and most state and institutional aid will run out the fastest for 202122, but there will still be time to qualify for federal grants and student loans. Even if you wait until June 30, you can receive these grants and loans retroactively to cover what you’ve already paid for the spring and fall semester. Or, depending on your school, you may be able to apply the funds to pay for 2022 summer school. Track colleges’ financial aid deadlines. Priority deadlines at individual schools often fall the earliest, so those deadlines are the most important to track. Those dates are also the best chance to get the most aid. Look up the deadlines for all of the schools you’re applying to and write them down in one place — try using your phone’s calendar, a spreadsheet or a notebook dedicated to your college search. Submit any other financial aid applications. Many schools require additional or alternative financial aid applications, such as the CSS Profile, to qualify for state or institutional aid. You’ll need to submit all the required paperwork before the deadline to be considered for aid. Above all, remember Oct. 1. It’s not a deadline, but if you submit your FAFSA soon after that day, you’ll cover all your bases. So don't procrastinate, and don't rely on others to do your work. After all, the early bird truly gets the worm! Wait for your financial aid award letter, which details how much free aid you qualify for and how much in federal loans you can borrow. For more information visit www. fafsa.gov and of course speak with your school counselor as soon as possible. Good luck from Latino Lubbock Magazine! Don't wait!

Education & Scholarship Updates SCHOLARSHIP INFO ONLINE Fastweb.com - This website claims to be the most complete source of local, national, and college-specific scholarships on the net. It lists thousands of scholarships. When you sign up, you can get email updates when new scholarships become available. Good and free resource. COLLEGE BOARD Fund Finder is an online tool to help you locate scholarships, internships, grants, and loans that match your education level, talents, and background. Apply online at: bigfuture.collegeboard.org/scholarship-search COLLEGENET A convenient, speedy site which searches scholarships from categories such as ACT and SAT scores, GPA, etc. Apply online at: www.collegenet. com DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS SCHOLARSHIP CONTEST, in partnership with Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB), recognizes the achievements of high school seniors who have taken a leadership role to prevent litter in their school and/ or community. Any Texas high school senior planning to pursue a two- or four-year degree in the state of Texas for the Fall 2022 semester may apply at www.dontmesswithtexas.org/education-overview/ scholarships until March 31, 2022. GOYA FOODS CULINARY ARTS AND FOOD SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIPS is available on a competitive basis to students entering an accredited two-year or four-year institution. Scholarships are in the amount of $5,000 awarded per academic year starting in Fall 2022 and are renewable for up to three additional years. Four students will receive a total of $20,000 each. For more information and to apply, please visit: goya.com Deadline: March 21, 2022. LEARNING EXPRESS LIBRARY is a learning hub for all ages. Whether you would like to prep for college entrance exams, improve your computer skills, get ahead at work or find out what career you are best suited for, this is the place for you. Learning Express also provides help for High School students, including math and science, English language arts, social studies, and prep for the STAAR and TSI tests. To access from home, you will need your LBK public library card number. NATIONAL STUDENT NURSES' ASSOCIATION, Inc. (NSNA) Breakthrough To Nursing Scholarships For Ethnic Apply online at www.nsna.org MARGARET MAHER SCHOLARSHIP award varies from $2,000 to $8,000 per year. For requirements visit www.margaretmaherscholarship.org/requirements

Latino Lubbock Magazine Proudly Advocates for Education/La revista latina Lubbock aboga por la educación


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