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FAFSA Form Guide: 2012-2013 FAFSA Form Help

How to fill out the FAFSA Form (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and not miss a dime of financial aid!

The FAFSA is one of the most important and most confusing documents you will ever complete in your quest to make college affordable. Take a deep breath. Relax. The FAFSA form may be time-consuming, but it's not impossible, and you can do it with the help of this line by line guide.

Download this guide as a PDF »

The FAFSA document you will need for the upcoming school year is the 2012-2013 FAFSA.

Before You Begin the FAFSA Form

You will need to gather some personal paperwork as well as the appropriate IRS tax forms. We strongly recommend that you do your taxes prior to filing your FAFSA. If possible, do them using estimates so that you can file your FAFSA as early as possible.

We will be using the 2012-2013 FAFSA on the Web Demo as a reference during this tutorial. The 2012-2013 FAFSA on the Web is available starting January 1, 2012. Please note that any personal information in this guide is part of a fictitious identity provided by the Department of Education.

FAFSA Form Step by Step Guide

  1. Prepare Your FAFSA

  2. FAFSA Account Set-up

  3. Student Information Section

  4. Eligibility for Financial Aid

  5. FAFSA Dependency Questions: Dependent Status

  6. FAFSA Dependency Questions: Independent Status

  7. Parent Demographics

  8. Parent Financial Information

  9. Student Financial Information

  10. Student Tax Information

  11. Complete and Sign Your FAFSA

  12. FAFSA Filed | Next Steps

Quick Tips

  • When the FAFSA refers to "I", "You", "Your", etc. it is referring to the student! (not the parent, family, or FAFSA preparer)
  • Always double check even basic items, such as your address and ZIP code.
  • Nothing will kill a FAFSA faster than errors or omissions! Check everything!
  • Colors matter and each year's FAFSA is different. Student-related items are in orange this year on the paper FAFSA and blue online. Items for the parent(s) are in purple.
  • The FAFSA is free. You do not need to pay for it.
  • File your FAFSA as early as possible! Some federal financial aid is allotted on a first come, first served basis, so if a student with greater need applies later than a student with lesser need, the student with lesser need will get more financial aid because they were in line sooner. File your FAFSA as soon after January 1 of each year as possible to ensure you are awarded the maximum amount of financial aid you are eligible for.

Ready to get started with your FAFSA? Continue on to Step 1: Prepare Your FAFSA