The Loan Application Timeline
When applying for financial aid, students need to keep track of dates and deadlines. That’s why this timeline and printable checklist are vital to students’ success.
Many colleges offer open enrollment for adult learners. Other schools have specific enrollment and financial aid deadlines based on semesters, and these dates can also differ depending on students’ states of residence or grade level.
Students who are returning to school for the fall semester should follow the loan application timeline below. Students who wish to rejoin school in the spring semester or on a trimester schedule should contact their school directly for a calendar of deadlines.
October
Students should register for a CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE® if their chosen schools require it.
November
If they haven’t already, students need to request financial aid packets from any colleges they are interested in.
FAFSA alert: It’s time for students to download a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to officially begin the financial aid application process.
January—February
As soon as possible between January 1 and February 15, students need to complete the FAFSA and the financial aid applications from the colleges to which they are applying.
If students have not completed their income tax calculations for the year, they can use estimated income figures. However, it’s in the students’ best interests to complete their taxes early so they can use the most accurate numbers.
Students should begin requesting scholarship applications from colleges and other organizations. It’s important that students make a list of when each application is due!
The Student Aid Report (SAR) should arrive in the mail within 4 weeks after the FAFSA has been submitted. Students should look it over carefully, correct anything that is inaccurate, and return it to the FAFSA processor by following the directions listed on the SAR.
March
Students need to complete any scholarship applications—many have deadlines in March, but it’s important to return each application before its individual due date.
Students should check in with the financial aid offices of colleges they have applied to, making sure that all of the information they submitted has been received, and that the schools have everything necessary to process the students’ applications.
April
Schools send financial aid offers to accepted students within a few weeks after sending out acceptance letters. Students need to carefully compare financial aid packages for the following criteria:
- – Which school provides the greatest amount of grant or scholarship money, if any? This money does not need to be repaid, and is highly desirable.
- – If schools offer loan aid, can students afford to repay that amount of aid? Students should ask community outreach staff for help in calculating how much their monthly loan payments would be after college if their aid award remained the same for the entire length of their education program. Students should then compare that amount to how much they expect to make after school based on their planned career choice.
- – Among loan awards offered to the students, which schools provide more Perkins and Stafford subsidized loans? These loans have more advantageous terms for borrowers.
- – Which schools offer programs that would allow students to achieve a high post-school income? This is important to whether or not students will be able to comfortably make their monthly loan payments after they graduate.
- – Which schools have the lowest cost of attendance? This is one of the greatest factors that determine students’ debt burden after school.
May
Students must decide which colleges, and aid packages, to choose.
Students must decide if they should accept some parts of a financial aid offer without taking others. For example, a student may choose to accept the grants and work study a school offers but turn down a portion of the loans.
Note: If students have not yet received financial aid offers from all of the colleges they applied to, they should not make their final choices. These students should check to be certain the remaining financial aid offers will be coming soon, and request extensions from the other schools if needed.
It’s important that students remember to fill out all forms for loans they are borrowing.
