2. Here are some phone numbers for help with the FAFSA:

800-433-3243 for general information about the process
319-337-5665 for student specific information (Is your form in or has the SAR been sent yet?)
800-801-0576 for help with computer related questions if you file online

617-536-0200 This number is for the Higher Education Information Center at the Boston Public Library. It is an excellent resource for all types of aid questions...scholarships as well as need based aid.

3. Read all instructions carefully with any aid form. These forms cannot be filled out without using the instruction sheets. Remember to give information about parent AND student income. (Also remember that the YOU/YOUR pronoun refers to the student, not the parent.)

4. The FAFSA does not ask for some of the detailed information that most private colleges need. If a college to which you are applying requires the Profile as well, it will be listed with a code number in the Profile registration form. If you have not registered for Profile by now, you are already a little behind. You must register by January 1st in order to get the Profile forms in time.

5. In addition, many colleges have institutional forms that must be filled out. Either those forms came with the application or the college will ask for additional information later this winter. (You need to meet each college’s deadline.)

6. When you complete each form (FAFSA and Profile), make a copy of each for your own files before you mail it.

7. For FAFSA, do not include any additional material; it will be shredded. Do not mail it Federal Express or Special Delivery. That will slow down the process.

8. The forms must be in the mail no later than February 15th. REPEAT: LAST MAILING DATE IS FEB. 15TH! (Forms mailed after that date might not get to the colleges in time for them to award aid by early April...or at all.) You are better off estimating taxes and sending the form in on time. DO NOT BE LATE. If even one college has a February 1st deadline, file the form by that date.

9. You will receive an SAR (Student Aid Report) from the processing center 3-5 weeks after you mail the FAFSA. Look for it; it is your acknowledgment. (It will come in an envelope from the government and will be addressed to the student.) Look at it; it contains all the information you provided on the FAFSA. If you have corrections, make them and follow the instructions for returning the form. Also, this is your chance to have the information sent to up to six additional colleges. (You are only allowed to list six on the original form.) Save the SAR; eventually you will need to mail the original to the college where your child matriculates.

Please note: If the changes you make on the SAR are significant, send a copy to the six colleges you listed on the original form. The folks at FAFSA will send the revised SAR only to the colleges listed on the correction form. (If your child only applied to six colleges, just list those same schools again. If, however, you are using the additional spaces to send information to the remaining colleges on his/her list, that’s when you will need copies.)

10. Do not make "dumb" mistakes when you fill out the form. For example, do not print the wrong social security number. That could delay processing for months. The form needs your child’s number, not yours. (A student MUST have a social security number to apply for aid.)

11. If you have filled out your tax forms, you will have a much easier time filling out the financial aid forms. (You still do not have to file your tax returns before April.) If you will be estimating numbers, please refer to last year’s tax forms before you make your estimate and then adjust for any changes in income.

Before the amount of an award package is finalized, the college will need accurate tax information. The size and direction of an adjustment will reflect the discrepancy between estimated and actual tax information. Do not be surprised if a college asks you to send a copy of your tax returns. This is a common practice.

12. Every question that solicits a numerical response needs to have a number, even if that number is zero. Do not leave any "numerical response" questions blank. That, too, will slow the process significantly.

13. When you list college names on the FAFSA, do not use any abbreviations. W & M will not do for William and Mary. Also for U Mass, make sure you write the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. The code numbers for FAFSA are available in the college office, but you don’t need them as long as you have the correct name of the college. The FAFSA only provides space for six colleges. List your top six colleges unless one of the other schools has an earlier financial aid deadline (than one of the six). When you receive your SAR, you will be given the opportunity to have the SAR sent to six additional colleges.

14. Do not be surprised if the aid packages you see in April are not identical. Sometimes one school will increase its package to match one offered at another school. Call us if you want to pursue increasing a package. (Do not, on the other hand, assume a college will offer more money if you try to "negotiate." Financial aid officers need "new information" to change a package, but often another school’s financial aid package counts as "new information.")

15. If you have a complicated circumstance, you should write a letter and send that information directly to the financial aid office at each school where you child has applied. The processing centers are not equipped to analyze that information.

16. If you need to borrow money to meet the family contribution, talk to a financial aid officer at the college where your child is going to matriculate. The aid officer can help direct you to options for parent loans.

Good luck!

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