FAP899: Correction on FAFSA dependency overrides, jobs, free stuff

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FAP899: Correction on FAFSA dependency overrides, jobs, free stuff

13 February 2009 1 views No Comment

FAP899: Correction on FAFSA dependency overrides, jobs, free stuff

Listen now:[audio:http://media.libsyn.com/media/financialaidpodcast/20090213.mp3″>MP3 file

Weekly Financial Aid Roundup

There’s an epilogue to last week’s CNBC story.

What to do if your student loan company goes out of business!

Mail Bag

Robin, a financial aid administrator, wrote in with this vitally important update about FAFSA dependency overrides:

For Dependency Overrides the Federal guidelines are extremely clear. Being self-supporting is NOT grounds for an override.

Instead you must prove INVOLUNTARY DISSOLUTION OF THE FAMILY. This means you were forced to leave your parents’ home and have no contact with them. You must explain,in detail, why you cannot live with your parents. Then you must have official third party letters, on letterhead, that back up your story.

Just because you feel mature enough or responsible enough to be on your own does not erase your PARENTS’ OBLIGATION to assist you with your education.

We accept letters on letterhead from H.S. Guidance counselors and teachers, lawyers, personal counseling centers, social services, clergy, etc. We also will accept police reports documenting abuse. Absent that, we require two letters from people personally knowledgeable to the relationship with the parent like a Grandparent, Aunt or Uncle. The letters must be very detailed about the situation and their relationship to the student.

Most students make the mistake of having a roommate or employer write a letter that the student is self suffient and pleading for us to just cut them some slack. They don’t realize that Fin Aid reps are personally liable for willfully violating Federal Law. I’ve been in Financial Aid for 12 years and I haven’t met a student yet that is worth going to jail for.

There you have it, folks. That’s exactly what you need to know about dependency overrides. Thanks, Robin!

Featured Scholarships

Other scholarship goodies:
- My free Scholarship Search Secrets eBook
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News You Can Use

A quick analysis of online degrees.

Jobcast

Using a contact manager to maximize your job seeking opportunities.

Free Stuff Friday

Free subscription to American Baby magazine from Parents.com.

Heinz Baby Club stuff, too.

BeFunky image editor in your browser.

An interesting moneysaving tip for reducing or leveling your apartment rent from the WSJ.

Free video series from VehicleFixer.com on DIY car maintenance stuff.

Google Sync for mobile phones.

IYHY will strip down a web site to bare text only – great for phones or other small browsers.

Google Books now comes in a mobile version, too.

Free Song of the Week

Another oldie but goodie, this from i:scintilla – Cursive Eve.

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