The Westwood High counselors strongly encourage all students to complete the FAFSA regardless of income. The process is the only way to ensure receipt of the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship and the Tennessee Promise Scholarship.

1. Gather tax forms for the student and parents filed two years prior to the college entrance date. For example, students entering college in fall 2023 will need 2021 tax forms.
2. Create a FAFSA ID for both the student and the parents.  https://studentaid.gov/fsa-id/create-account/launch
3. Begin the process by signing in at https://studentaid.gov/
4. Follow the pages answering the questions.
5. Every student should make a Tennessee school his/her first choice.
6. Any student unable to secure parent(s) information should see a counselor for assistance.
7. Once you submit, please make sure you receive a confirmation email.

A few weeks after filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), you will receive a copy of your Student Aid Report (SAR) with your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The prospective

college(s) will receive your FAFSA information as well. Each school you apply to will send you a Financial Aid Award Letter, breaking down the college costs and summarizing your eligibility for each type of financial aid. The aid offered in the letter will be based on your demonstrated financial need, which is equal to the Cost of Attendance (COA) minus your EFC.

To understand the financial aid process better, here are the key terms you need to know:

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA): The FAFSA is a form used to apply for student financial aid from the federal and state government, as well as most colleges and universities. The government uses the information from your FAFSA to determine your expected family contribution (EFC). You can file the FAFSA at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid.

FSA ID: Students, parents and borrowers are required to use an FSA ID, made up of a username and password, to access certain U. S. Department of Education websites. Your FSA ID is used to confirm your identity when accessing your financial aid information and electronically signing your federal student aid documents. FSA ID's can be created by clicking here

Student Aid Report (SAR): The SAR is the official notification sent to you in about a week after filing the FAFSA online. This document includes your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The SAR also provides information about the colleges you are considering, such as the graduation rates.

Expected Family Contribution (EFC): The EFC is a measure of your family's financial strength. It is based on the information you submitted for the FAFSA, including income, assets, family size and the number of children in college. Your EFC represents the amount of money the federal government believes your family can contribute toward one academic year of college. It is a harsh assessment of the ability to pay, since it does not consider many types of consumer debt, such as credit card debt, student loan debt and auto loans. The actual amount your family ends up paying could be higher or lower than the EFC figure, depending on the source of aid available to you.

There are two main formulas for calculating an EFC, the federal methodology (FM) and the institutional methodology (IM). The two formulas differ in the types of assets that are included (e.g., family home, assets of siblings), the assumption of a minimum student contribution, the treatment of paper losses, regional differences in cost of living, allowances for educational savings and emergency funds, the treatment of children of divorced parents and adjustments for more than one child in college at the same time. The FM EFC is used for determining eligibility for federal and state aid and financial aid at most colleges. About 250 colleges use the IM EFC for awarding their own financial aid funds.