nikkyraney21810

= Filing as an Independent for FAFSA. =  By: Nikky Raney

Students at the New England School of Communications are being reminded to fill out their Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by April 15, 2010.

When it comes time to fill out the FAFSA students need to decide whether or not they are filing as dependent or independents. When first going at this decision I realized that after much research and talking with others, that this is not a decision at all. Students do not have a choice whether they are considered independents or dependents. The FAFSA independent eligibility has very strict guidelines with few exceptions.

So students who think that they are going to file as an independent on their FAFSA for the 2010-2011 school year must fit the criteria. This criteria can be found on the FAFSA website (Fafsaonline.com).

The criteria states that at least one of the following must be true about the student in question, except in case if unusual circumstances. The student must either be:
 * 24 years of age or older when filing the FAFSA


 * An orphan or a ward of the court


 * A U.S. military veteran


 * Serving on active duty in the U.S. armed forces


 * Married


 * Have a child or children who receive more than half their support from the student and lives with the student


 * Homeless


 * Enrolled as a graduate or professional student pursuing a master’s degree or doctoral degree


 * Was an emancipated minor.

A student that does not fall under criteria is unable to be considered an independent.

Students that don’t fit the criteria will be filing as dependents and must include their parents’ information when filling out the FAFSA. For more information or help with filling out the FAFSA students can go to Fafsa.com, Fafsaonline.com or talk with Katie Leighton in Financial Aid.