For the 2009-10 academic year, the U.S. Department of Education has made some significant changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
The first change is the elimination of the Worksheets page.
The data elements from Worksheet B have been incorporated into question 47 (student) and question 95 (parents).
The data elements for Worksheet C have been incorporated into question 46 (student) and question 94 (parents). The data elements from Worksheet A have been eliminated from the FAFSA entirely. The second significant change is the expansion of the dependency criteria to determine a student’s dependent or independent status.
Prior to 2009-10, for a student to be considered “independent” for the federal financial aid programs, the student had to meet one of the following criteria.
-- Be 24 years of age or older.
-- Be married
-- Be enrolled in a graduate degree program
-- Have a child/dependent that is receiving more than half of their support from the student.
-- Be an orphan or ward of the court
-- Be a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces
For the 2009-10 academic year, the additional criteria to determine a student’s independent status include:
-- Be in foster care at age 13 or older.
-- Be a minor under legal guardianship.
-- Be verified as an unaccompanied youth who is homeless. The Financial Aid Newsletter provides you with the latest financial aid news. If you want to be more knowledgeable of financial aid news please go to https://www.monroecc.edu/depts/finaid/PDFdoc/2009WinterNewsletter.pdf
Ramon L. Rodriguez
Financial Aid
03/12/2009 |