Some are well-meaning. Others are out to make a profit. Whatever their motives, some websites posting information about financial aid and FAFSA are inaccurate.  

For example, the deadline to file a FAFSA is in June each year for the financial aid year that began the year before. June 30, 2020 is the deadline to file a FAFSA for the financial aid school year 2019-2020. What this means is that a student could start college in August 2019 and decide to file their FAFSA at the end of the school year and (assuming they do not owe their college any money) receive a retroactive payment for any grants for which they were eligible (assuming there were grant funds still available).

You help pack the car and drop your entering freshman off at Cool U and drive off into the sunset relieved that you've done your job and the rest is up to your freshman and your checkbook, right? Not so fast Mom and Dad. You will likely be completing the annual FAFSA and institutional forms for the duration of your son or daughters time in college. Families often think they are done with financial aid once a student has enrolled for freshman year. They also often think the award for freshman year will repeat.

We are all on an adventure of the 100-year event type. That does not mean we have to be at a stand-still in our lives. Think of it as a pause during which those of us sheltering in place can take full advantage of something we have complained that we never have enough of.....TIME.

High school sophomores can take some of this time to start thinking what they are most gifted at and researching careers that require those gifts. High school juniors can use this time to maximize their scores on the upcoming at home AP tests.