What is FAFSA?
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a federal program that helps determine your eligibility for various grants, scholarships, loans and work-study programs based on personal and family income.
It’s a key first step in to receive financial aid from almost ANY organization, not just the government. Many private foundations and organizations that offer scholarships use the FAFSA to determine your financial needs. So even if you don’t think you’ll qualify for federal aid, complete the FAFSA! It will open the door to many other sources of financial assistance to earn your ECE credentials.
FAFSA Overview
Types of Financial Aid
Important Things to Know About FAFSA
- Deadlines. Apply in time to qualify for as much aid as possible. Every college and/or state has different “priority deadlines,” which means although you can still apply for FAFSA after the deadline, if you apply by the priority deadline set by your college, you will likely qualify for more financial assistance opportunities.
- Application opens every year on: October 1
- Priority deadlines for UH campuses varies: visit your campusʻs Financial Aid Office to find out the exact deadline
- Save your FSA ID and password. You will set one up when you begin the FAFSA application. Save and remember this ID # and password, you will need it every year to renew your FAFSA.
- Federal Tax Returns. To complete the FAFSA, you will need your tax returns from the prior or current year (or if you are a dependent, the tax returns of whomever files you as a dependent). If you run into obstacles at this step, donʻt give up! Ask someone for help.
- Other Information/Documents Needed. In addition to your taxes, you (or your parents, if you are a dependent) will need the following to complete your FAFSA:
- Personal email address (we recommend NOT using High School email addresses)
- Personal Information (legal name, date of birth, social security number)
- W-2 Forms
- You must renew your FAFSA every year. In order to keep receiving funds every school year, you must renew your FAFSA. Instead of starting a whole new application, you just need to update your income and tax information starting when the application opens in October.
- Federal School Codes. Every college campus has its own code number. When completing the FAFSA form, you will be asked to enter the codes for the schools you are applying to. Below are different codes for UH campuses offering ECE credentialing programs.
- Kauaʻi Community College: 001614
- UH West Oʻahu: 014315
- UH Mānoa: 001610
- Honolulu Community College: 001612
- UH Maui College: 001615
- UH Hilo: 001611
- Hawaiʻi Community College: 005258
- Financial Aid Awards. For every college you select and enter a school ID in your FAFSA application, you should receive a financial aid award package after you have been accepted into the college. Each collegeʻs award package will look a little different, depending on what they are able to offer you. It may be a combination of grants, scholarships and/or loans (subsidized and unsubsidized). You may opt to accept or deny these awards. Most grants and scholarships are automatically applied to your account when you enroll in the college, whereas loans are left for you to choose whether or not you will accept them. Whatever the case, you should always check with your collegeʻs Financial Aid Office to confirm which awards have already been applied to your tuition bill or not.
Ready to Apply?
The funding you receive from completing the FAFSA is handled by your college’s Financial Aid Office. Itʻs important to follow the instructions from your college’s Financial Aid Office to secure your awards. Be sure to be informed about your responsibilities for each award so you do not jeopardize future funding opportunities if you do not fulfill any requirements. If youʻre not sure what are your responsibilities, be sure to ask!
Donʻt Forget Other Sources of Funding!
Donʻt stop there! You can also apply for other sources of funding in addition to your Financial Aid Award Package. These other sources of funding have separate application processes from completing the FAFSA. However, many of these other funding sources may request and/or use results from your FAFSA to determine your scholarship eligibility, so completing your FAFSA is still an important first step.
The chart below shows a very general overview of how funding sources are organized for UH students.
| UH SYSTEM & CAMPUS SPECIFIC (for UH students) | EXTERNAL SOURCES (non-UH) |
|---|---|
| These are only open to UH students, and may also have additional requirements to attend a particular UH campus. If awarded, funding will probably be directly applied to your account through your campus’s Financial Aid Office or Billing Office. | Qualifying criteria is set by organizations outside of UH; any college student may apply to these sources of funding, not just UH students. If awarded, funds may go directly to the college or to the student. |
| HOW TO FIND FUNDING SOURCES | |
| Use these search engines: – UH Foundation Scholarship Search (all UH students) – STAR UH Mānoa Scholarships (UH Mānoa students only) – Visit your home campus website for other funding sources available only to students there Click on Find Other Funding Sources Within UH to find out more. | Click on Find External Funding Sources below to learn more. Some campus websites also provide a list of possible external funders to look into. |
Visit the link above for some strategies to find various funding sources both within the University of Hawaiʻi system.
Visit the link above for some strategies to find various funding sources outside of the University of Hawaiʻi system.
Already familiar with how to apply to other sources of funding? Click above for a quick list of ECE-related scholarships found within the UH system as well as from external funding sources.
Visit the link above for a quick review of tips to ensure you not only increase your chances of receiving scholarships for the first time, but also know how to maintain them for future funding opportunities.