All Financial Aid Articles

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financial aid

Understand The Language of Financial Aid

By College Raptor StaffLast updated on March 12, 2025
One of the biggest obstacles students encounter in trying to get the financial aid due to them, is understanding the very formal and utterly complicated language used in describing the application process and many the terms and conditions. Many students, who are otherwise eligible for financial aid, end up not availing of a large portion …
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financial aid

FAFSA deadlines you need to know

By Hilary CairnsLast updated on June 26, 2026
Key takeaways The federal government requires the FAFSA be completed by the end of the academic year (June 30th) for federal student loans. Colleges often have priority FAFSA deadlines in November for early decision and early action students, and in February for regular decision applicants. Some state grant programs are first come, first serve, so …
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financial aid

What are financial aid refunds?

By Hilary CairnsLast updated on March 27, 2026
Key takeaways:  A financial aid refund is money that’s left over from a financial aid package after a college tuition bill is fully paid.  Colleges will send financial aid refunds through direct deposit or check, or the student can keep it in a school account for future expenses.  Some forms of aid have restrictions on what they …
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financial aid

How Divorced Parents Affect Student Loans

By Morgan StaubLast updated on February 25, 2025
A common proverb reminds us that half of marriages end in divorce. To be more exact, approximately 42% of married couples are divorced. It should be noted that the divorce rate for couples without children is 40% higher than those with children. It’s often said, for good reason, that divorce is hardest on the children. …
Like a gap on a sidewalk, gapping is when a college can't meet the full financial needs of a student.
financial aid

A Guide to Funding the Financial Aid Gap

By Hilary CairnsLast updated on February 27, 2025
Although many schools offer financial aid packages to help make college more affordable for its students, some individuals find themselves unable to cover the entire cost of their education even with these packages. This is what they call a financial aid gap. If a student is in this situation – what are their options? Finding …
How are scholarships and grants similar and different? Scholarships vs. grants
financial aid

Scholarships vs Grants: The Similarities And Differences

By College Raptor StaffLast updated on February 26, 2025
In your search for financial aid to pay for college, you’ve likely come across the terms “grants” and “scholarships”. In fact, these two terms are often grouped together in most discussions related to financial aid, and there’s a reason for this. Grants and scholarships are the only two types of free financial aid available to …
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financial aid

Use Summertime to Search for Financial Aid Opportunities

By Hilary CairnsLast updated on March 25, 2025
Summer is a great time to relax, catch up on your reading list, play a few video games, or take on a part-time job. Before college starts up again though, you may want to consider using some of your summer to expand your search for financial aid opportunities. Here are a few things you should be …
Overlay text "SAR" against a yellow paper with lines to separate the letters.
financial aid

A Breakdown Of The Student Aid Report

By College Raptor StaffLast updated on December 22, 2022
The SAR or Student Aid Report is a detailed document full of abbreviations and numbers. Making sense of it all can be challenging, especially for those who are seeing one for the first time. This short breakdown aims to simplify this document so you can better understand the SAR. EFC EFC stands for Estimated Family …
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financial aid

What Is Your Student Aid Report Telling You?

By College Raptor StaffLast updated on December 22, 2022
The SAR or Student Aid Report is a document you will receive after you have submitted your FAFSA application. This document is based on your answers to the questions on the FAFSA and includes information regarding the type and amount of financial aid that is available to you from the federal government and the schools …

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