Five Good Steps to a Financial Aid Process

1. Conduct your own scholarship search. Below are some of the resources you can check into for educational funding opportunities:
    
   1. Baker College Website and the Internet
   2. Church and/or religious organizations
   3. High School counselors
   4. Employer benefits for students
   5. Library (local, city, and state)
   6. Veteran’s benefits (refer to our veteran's link on this website for more information)
   7. Associations (i.e.…Kiwanis, Rotary, Native American…)
   8. Michigan Department for Career Development (810) 760-2103
   9. Michigan programs www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid
   10. Beware of scholarship scams. There are people and/or organizations who will approach you to do a scholarship search for you. They will charge you a fee for their service. We recommend that if there is a fee attached to this service that you avoid them. If you decide to use their service, insure that you research the organization (people) completely. You can access this website www.finaid.org/scholarships/scams.phtml to get information on people/organizations that have been listed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as scam artists. In most cases, you can conduct your own scholarship search at no cost, and get the same results.
          
2. Use the correct form(s). It is extremely important that you use the correct form(s).
   1. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the form to use when applying for federal and most state aid programs. You can complete a financial aid application with the paper version of this form, or the electronic version on the Internet (www.fafsa.ed.gov). Remember only one application per student.
   2. College institutions may require you to complete their own or other forms. Make sure you ask the your admissions or financial aid office on what forms are necessary to complete the financial aid process at the college you plan to attend.
   3. You may also be required to submit other personal forms or documentation (i.e. student tax returns, marriage license, birth certificate…)
       
3. Complete the forms accurately. As you are going through the financial aid process there will be forms you have to complete (as we mentioned in Step 2). If the required forms are not done correctly, you will have problems. For example, there are specific questions on the FASFA, which if left blank will result in your application being rejected. We recommend that if you are having problems with your forms get professional help (i.e. financial aid or admission offices, federal and state government, and legitimate professional people).
   
   Making mistakes on your forms may result in a loss of money you could have been eligible for.
    
4. Meet required deadlines. Always consult your financial aid and/or admission offices at the college you plan to attend about these deadlines. Also, when applying for scholarships, you may have to consult the college/organization that you are applying through for this type of information. Your financial aid and admission offices may not know about specific deadlines when applying for money not controlled by the college.
   
   Missing required deadlines can result in a loss of money you could have been eligible for.
    
5. Follow Through. After you have submitted your financial aid application to the federal government, you may still need to follow up on certain requests. The application sends information to the federal and state Departments of Education, the college, and in some cases, other organizations. As a result, these organizations may request additional information in order to complete the financial aid process and determine your eligibility for financial aid. Insure that you respond to these requests as soon as possible. If you do not understand the information they are requesting, seek professional help (i.e. financial or admissions offices and other knowledgeable professional people.)