Federal Student Aid (2024)

FAQs

Federal Student Aid? ›

Through Federal Student Aid (a performance-based organization), the U.S. Department of Education awards more than $120 billion a year in grants, work-study funds, and low-interest loans to approximately 13 million students.

Through Federal Student Aid (a performance-based organization), the U.S. Department of Education awards more than $120 billion a year in grants, work-study funds, and low-interest loans to approximately 13 million students.

Apply for federal student aid—grants, work-study, and loans—using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA^®) form.

If you don't have an FSA ID and think this is an error, please call Federal Student Aid at 1-800-433-3243 for assistance with your FSA ID. Was this page helpful?

Go to fafsa.gov. Select “Start New Form.” Log in with your FSA ID (account username and password). Create a StudentAid.gov account if you don't have one.

However, federal student loans received through your FAFSA do have to be repaid with interest after you graduate or leave school. It's essential to understand the types of aid included in your financial aid award letter.

To receive federal student aid, you'll need to… to obtain a college, career school, or trade school education, either by having a high school diploma or equivalent, by completing a high school education in a homeschool setting approved under state law, or by meeting the criteria for an ability-to-benefit alternative.

Eligibility for federal student aid is based on financial need and on several other factors such as U.S. citizenship or eligible noncitizenship, enrollment in an eligible program, satisfactory academic progress in college, and more.

You also can't pay for the purchase of a car with financial aid funds. In particular, a qualified education loan is used solely to pay for qualified higher education expenses, which are limited to the cost of attendance as determined by the college or university.

Financial aid is any form of funding that helps you pay for college, including scholarships, grants, loans and work-study programs. You have to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as the FAFSA, to be eligible for most forms of financial aid.

How much is the total federal student aid? ›

$240.7 billion: The total amount of aid that undergraduate and graduate students received in 2022-23 from all grants, federal loans, federal education tax benefits, and federal work-study. Average aid per full-time equivalent (FTE) student in 2022-23 was: $15,480 per undergraduate student. $28,300 per graduate student.

Federal student loans are owned by the U.S. Department of Education while private student loans are owned by the financial institution that granted them.

The primary factors that increase your total loan balance are loan interest, recapitalized interest, fees, and variable interest rates.

You need to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA^®) form only once per year, but the federal government, your state government, and your school have different dates by which you must do so to be eligible for each of their aid programs.

For general information about FAFSA on the Web, and for technical assistance, call 800-4-FED-AID. For general information about federal student financial assistance programs, help completing the FAFSA, and to obtain federal student aid publications, call 800-4-FED-AID (800-433-3243).

Eligibility for federal student aid does not carry over from one award year to the next, so you need to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA^®) form for each award year in which you are or plan to be a student.

In the United States, federal assistance, also known as federal aid, federal benefits, or federal funds, is defined as any federal program, project, service, or activity provided by the federal government that directly assists domestic governments, organizations, or individuals in the areas of education, health, public ...

The FAFSA is an application that the federal government uses to gather the financial information it needs to assess what loans and grants you qualify for. The FAFSA needs to be completed each new aid year to determine eligibility for federal student aid.

A federal student loan is a type of loan provided by the U.S. government to eligible students or their parents/guardians to help cover the cost of higher education. Since funds are distributed directly from the government, they are a dependable option for financing education.

Financial aid is either money that doesn't need to be paid back, known as gift aid, or earned through a federal work-study program. Student loans must be repaid within a given loan term. Not only are students expected to pay back student loans, but there's typically interest that accrues over the life of the loan.