Maintained for Historical Purposes

This resource is being maintained for historical purposes only and is not currently applicable.

Section A "You (the student)"

AwardYear: 1996-1997
Edition: PostSecondary
Part: 3 - - Filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
SectionNumber:
SectionTitle: Section A "You (the student)"

PageNumbers: 64

PURPOSE: The FAFSA collects identifying information that is used
to track a student (name, telephone number, address, Social Security
Number, and so on) and other information that affect a student's
basic eligibility for federal student aid. For instance, Section A
includes a question about citizenship status because a student must
be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen to receive federal student aid.
Similarly, a student who has a bachelor's degree is ineligible to
receive a Federal Pell Grant or an FSEOG.

Questions 4-7 ask for a student's permanent mailing address. The
student must give a PERMANENT HOME MAILING ADDRESS
(not a school or office address).

Question 8 asks for a student's SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
(SSN). A student must have an SSN to apply for federal financial
aid. If the student submits a FAFSA without an SSN, the FAFSA will
be returned to the student unprocessed. To get an SSN, or to
determine what it is if a student's Social Security card has been lost,
the student must contact the local Social Security office. The one
exception to the SSN requirement is for students from the Republic
of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, or the
Republic of Palau. The FAFSA instructions refer these students to a
postsecondary school's financial aid office for more information.

Questions 11 and 12 ask for the student's STATE OF LEGAL
RESIDENCE. The student's state of legal residence identifies the
state agency to which information will be sent unless the student has
refused to authorize such a release in Section H of the form. The
state then may use this information to determine eligibility for state
student aid programs. The student's state is also used in the EFC
calculation to determine the appropriate allowance for state and other
taxes paid by that state's residents. For a dependent student, the state
of legal residence is usually the state in which his or her parents live.

Questions 17 and 18 ask about a student's MARITAL STATUS
because the treatment of a student's income and assets in the EFC
calculation is directly affected by the student's marital status. Marital
status cannot be projected--the student must report his or her marital
status as of the date the application is completed.

Question 19 asks whether a student will have a FIRST
BACHELOR'S DEGREE BEFORE JULY 1, 1996 because
eligibility for Federal Pell Grants and Federal SEOGs is restricted to
students who have not yet received bachelor's degrees. If the student
answers "yes" to this question, a message saying a bachelor's degree
has been received will be printed at the top of page one of the SAR
or on the electronic filing results.