The FAFSA, a federal financial aid application, is something that college students must fill out every year if they want to qualify for Pell Grants and for loans to help pay for college. The application usually opens every year on January 1st but a new permanent change pushed it to an earlier date, October 1st to be exact. The FAFSA is open right now due to an executive order signed by President Obama last fall so prospective freshmen students would get to know their aid packages around the same time they start to receive acceptance letters. They can then better plan and compare which schools to attend based on the aid money they have received for that year.

First Lady Michelle Obama encouraging students to file their FAFSAs

Along with an earlier starting date, the 2017-2018 FAFSA requires your 2015 tax information rather than the previous year. If you filed your FAFSA last year, this year's FAFSA will probably be easier to fill out because its the exact same information you filled in last year. The deadline to fill out this year's FAFSA is June 30th, 2017. Even though you have an earlier start date, do not wait. More substantial aid through grants, loans, and work study is given on a first come first serve basis so you have to file now if you want to get the most aid money as possible. With so many students struggling financially, the FAFSA is the first starting point to ensure your continued attendance. File it right now and be done with it. The longer you wait, the more money you'll lose out on. Click here to see more information about the new changes. To file your FAFSA, go to fafsa.ed.gov to get started. Happy filing!