When can you apply for FAFSA? Age requirements and graduate school funding options

For the first question, there's no specific minimum age to apply for FAFSA, but students typically first become eligible during their senior year of high school when they're applying to colleges. The FAFSA is available starting October 1st for the following academic year. Your niece in 10th grade should focus on maintaining good grades and exploring scholarship opportunities, but it's too early to file FAFSA. However, it's never too early to start planning! You can use the Federal Student Aid Estimator tool to get a rough idea of what aid she might qualify for later. As for graduate school - yes, you can absolutely get FAFSA for master's programs, but the options are more limited than for undergrads. Graduate students aren't eligible for Pell Grants, but there are still some options: 1. Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans (higher limits for grad students) 2. Graduate PLUS loans 3. Federal Work-Study 4. TEACH Grants (if pursuing education-related degrees) You should also look into: - Departmental assistantships/fellowships - Employer tuition assistance - Private scholarships specific to your field

My son started applying his junior year and they told us it was WAY TO EARLY!! Total waste of time, they made us redo everything senior year anyway. The whole system is confusing tbh.

i just went thru this with my daughter. u can't apply for fafsa until senior year of high school, but honestly you should start looking at the website earlier so you understand all the requirements. there's a TON of paperwork and tax info needed. for master's degrees there's way less free money. mostly just loans. i did my MBA last year and only qualified for the unsubsudized loans which have higher interest rates than what my daughter got for undergrad. check with your specific program though because sometimes they have their own scholarships that aren't on fafsa.

To add some specifics to what others have shared: 1) For your niece: Students can submit their first FAFSA on October 1 of their senior year of high school. However, I strongly recommend creating FSA IDs for both the student and parent/guardian during junior year so that's ready to go. Also use that junior year to estimate your Expected Family Contribution (now called Student Aid Index or SAI) using the Federal Student Aid Estimator tool. 2) For your graduate studies: While Pell Grants aren't available, depending on your field, look into these options: - TEACH Grants: These are specifically for students planning to become teachers in high-need fields in low-income schools, so probably not applicable for public policy. - Department-specific fellowships: Many public policy programs have their own merit-based funding not connected to FAFSA. - Federal Work-Study: Available to grad students but positions are limited. - Professional organization scholarships: Many policy-focused organizations offer scholarships. Most graduate students end up with a combination of unsubsidized federal loans, graduate assistantships, and external scholarships.

tried calling fafsa about grad school options last month and was on hold FOREVER then got disconnected twice!!! so frustrating!!! ended up using claimyr.com to get through to a real person without the wait. they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. saved me hours of frustration and the agent confirmed grad students can get aid through fafsa but its mainly loans not grants unless ur in specific programs like teaching.

Just to add something nobody's mentioned - if your niece has any special circumstances (like disability or being in foster care), there are additional FAFSA opportunities that might be available. Worth looking into if applicable. For grad school, I'm currently in a PhD program and while FAFSA mostly offered loans, I found that individual departments often have their own funding that isn't advertised well. For public policy specifically, check if your program offers graduate assistantships where you work 10-20 hours a week for tuition remission and sometimes a stipend. Also look at prestigious fellowships like the Truman Scholarship if you're early in your planning - those can fully fund graduate education in public service fields.

One more thing to add - for your niece, even though she can't apply for FAFSA yet, junior year is a great time to start looking into state-specific grants and scholarships. Many states have their own financial aid programs that supplement federal aid, and some have early application periods. For example, if you're in California, the Cal Grant application process works alongside FAFSA but has specific deadlines. Other states have similar programs. And for graduate study in public policy specifically, look into: 1. The Presidential Management Fellows Program 2. Pickering Fellowship (if interested in foreign service) 3. Local government scholarship programs Many public policy schools also offer merit scholarships based on your application, completely separate from FAFSA.

everyones giving good advice but NOBODY mentioned that you need to renew FAFSA EVERY YEAR!! we messed up my sons sophomore year thinking it carried over and he almost lost his aid. just fyi

This thread has been incredibly helpful! As someone new to navigating financial aid, I had no idea there were so many nuances and deadlines to keep track of. One question I haven't seen addressed - for students who might take a gap year between high school and college, does that affect FAFSA eligibility or timing? My niece is considering taking a year off to work and save money, but I want to make sure that won't complicate her financial aid options when she does apply to college. Also, for anyone who's been through the graduate school funding process - how far in advance should I start applying for those departmental assistantships and external fellowships? Some of these deadlines seem to be really early in the application cycle. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this community is amazing!

Welcome to the community! This is such a comprehensive discussion and I'm learning so much from everyone's experiences. I wanted to add something that might be helpful for both your niece's planning and your own graduate school considerations - the new FAFSA Simplification that went into effect has changed some of the requirements and timing. The Student Aid Index (SAI) replaced the Expected Family Contribution (EFC), and there are some changes to how family income and assets are calculated. For your niece's gap year planning, one strategy some families use is timing when parents realize investment gains or bonuses, since the FAFSA looks at income from two years prior (so for 2027-2028 aid, it would look at 2025 tax year income). This is called "base year planning" and might be worth discussing with a financial advisor. For graduate school in public policy, I'd also suggest looking into the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program if you're planning to work in government or qualifying nonprofits after graduation. While you'd still need to take loans initially, knowing you have a path to forgiveness can make those federal loans more palatable than private alternatives. Also, many public policy programs have partnerships with local government agencies that offer internships with stipends or even tuition assistance - definitely worth asking about during the application process!