Major kinds of financial aid:

• Federal Student Aid
• Student Loans
• Scholarships
• Grants
• Employer-based Reimbursements
• Military Assistance

The Federal Student Aid offers financial packages from the US government administered by the US Department of Education. It is perhaps the largest source of student financial aid in America and provides more than $100 billion a year in grants, loans and work-study assistance. If you’re looking for financial aid, applying for a Federal Student Aid may be a good first move.

To start, applicants must fill out the online Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA, which is available free of charge at the Federal Student Aid website. The website provides financial aid applicants with a good overview to getting started on their FAFSA as well as clear guidelines to follow while filling up the application. This includes providing your personal information, your dependency status, plus your state for expanded options as well as gathering all the documentation you would need such as Social Security number, driver’s license, income tax returns and the like.

The FAFSA is perhaps the most popular financial aid form widely used by nearly all two and four-year colleges and universities, to award federal student aid as well as most state and college student aid, so if you’re looking to apply for financial aid, this is the best place to start.