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i gotta be honest.

even FAFSA is difficult for me. I did the schools for which i just needed my info for FAFSA

however one of the most important schools wants parent info on FAFSA, and i dont know what to do.

i asked if we could get an accountant to help us but its their busiest time of the year too.

shoot!

FAFSA has been open to work on since Jan 1. It's a pain, but life is full of paperwork; get used to it.

yeah that is a big mistake that i made. i assumed it would be due way later. compeltely my fault. im not lamenting the creators or the fact that we have to do it.

just that its difficult as hell. and also kind of amazed that people just do it on their own (especially those who are new to this stuff)

sangr wrote:yeah that is a big mistake that i made. i assumed it would be due way later. compeltely my fault. im not lamenting the creators or the fact that we have to do it.

just that its difficult as hell. and also kind of amazed that people just do it on their own (especially those who are new to this stuff)

Do any of your schools require NeedAccess? It's like 1000x worse than FAFSA. Absolutely awful.

yeah...ugh.. i really hope i can get some help on this within this week. but like i said heard its really busy season for those in the field who can help.

1) for someone knowledgeable is it able to be finished in short time?

2)what about the FAFSA w/ parental? is it just 1 or 2 pages of info that they want? (i cant check the next page cuz i havent filled it out). or do they want like 5 pages of info

thanks!

Wait did I not fill out my FASFA right? I swear I didn't get to the "hard" part.

a ha ha, funny funny

well the section with just my info was easy.

with parents it's much more confusing because they ask ur parents assets n all. is there a corresponding block for every question on fafsa for the tax return?

What about the FAFSA is hard? The form tells you which lines of the tax return to use for each of the blanks.

t14fanboy wrote:What about the FAFSA is hard? The form tells you which lines of the tax return to use for each of the blanks.

This. If you think the FAFSA is hard, enjoy law school.

aha ok thanks guys the comments are actually reassuring me more because u guys are saying its so easy.

Enjoy your 150k of non-dischargeable debt.

I agree that it is easy, I think people get annoyed with it due to how long it takes to fill out (because there is a lot of basic information going into it). Same thing for the NeedAccess. The only tough thing might be coordinating with your parents to get their information.

If you want to see someone for assistance, that actually isn't that uncommon in terms of getting them to prepare your return (assuming you mean a CPA and not someone in audit or such, but I imagine by your posts that by accountant you really meant CPA) more quickly in order to file it and fill in these forms. If they have had to fill out either recently, they also can help you. However, if they don't have children in college or grad schools over the past so many years, they likely will be of no assistance.

Additionally, if you are contacting a CPA for help, wait until after March 15th. That's the corporate filing deadline, so the next few days are crazy.

landla wrote:I agree that it is easy, I think people get annoyed with it due to how long it takes to fill out (because there is a lot of basic information going into it). Same thing for the NeedAccess. The only tough thing might be coordinating with your parents to get their information.

If you want to see someone for assistance, that actually isn't that uncommon in terms of getting them to prepare your return (assuming you mean a CPA and not someone in audit or such, but I imagine by your posts that by accountant you really meant CPA) more quickly in order to file it and fill in these forms. If they have had to fill out either recently, they also can help you. However, if they don't have children in college or grad schools over the past so many years, they likely will be of no assistance.

Additionally, if you are contacting a CPA for help, wait until after March 15th. That's the corporate filing deadline, so the next few days are crazy.

It doesn't take that much information. You guys are in for an awakening.

blowhard wrote:

landla wrote:I agree that it is easy, I think people get annoyed with it due to how long it takes to fill out (because there is a lot of basic information going into it). Same thing for the NeedAccess. The only tough thing might be coordinating with your parents to get their information.

If you want to see someone for assistance, that actually isn't that uncommon in terms of getting them to prepare your return (assuming you mean a CPA and not someone in audit or such, but I imagine by your posts that by accountant you really meant CPA) more quickly in order to file it and fill in these forms. If they have had to fill out either recently, they also can help you. However, if they don't have children in college or grad schools over the past so many years, they likely will be of no assistance.

Additionally, if you are contacting a CPA for help, wait until after March 15th. That's the corporate filing deadline, so the next few days are crazy.

It doesn't take that much information. You guys are in for an awakening.

This. If you think FAFSA is hard, I highly recommend you look at the application for your state's bar before going any further. Law practice is full of figuring out ridiculous red tape with no explanation.

t14fanboy wrote:What about the FAFSA is hard? The form tells you which lines of the tax return to use for each of the blanks.

thiiiiis. Seriously. it is not the least bit difficult. being a lawyer is all about paperwork. suck it up.

Once I had my W-4's it took about 5 minutes to fill out.

sangr wrote:2)what about the FAFSA w/ parental? is it just 1 or 2 pages of info that they want? (i cant check the next page cuz i havent filled it out). or do they want like 5 pages of info

I keep seeing this on here... and I know the FAFSA now gives students the option to provide parental info when not required, but I have not seen a single law school ask for it (and, for the record, it is NEVER required by Uncle Sam himself for law students--only childless, single undergrads under 25 who are not military veterans). Plenty require parental data on Need Access, but no school to which I applied wanted it on the FAFSA. Did I just happen to apply to a bunch of schools that don't want it or what?

Also, this is where I gloat about being old enough that a lot of schools don't want my parents' info on Need Access and the ones that do understand when they refuse to provide it.

[quote="03121202698008] It doesn't take that much information. You guys are in for an awakening.[/quote]


I was saying it isn't tough. I was commenting on the question about a CPA. Additionally, it does require more information from some people, such as business owners. It's not tough (once you fill out the tax return especially), just more information.

I've been filling out my FAFSA on my own since I graduated high school. Get a copy of your parents tax returns and some coffee with a side of patience. It's really easy, just be thorough and detailed and understand what they're asking for and what your parents tax returns say - using the lines they tell you to look at, its really easy. Also, you can submit corrections on your FAFSA if you realize you've made a mistake later on - its not a big deal. The great thing is that its usually processed (at least for me) within a week at most and you'll have your Student Aid Report with your EFC number pretty soon.

Don't worry.

As for Need Access - it was such a pain trying to calculate credit card debt and car loans and all that. BUT! There is hope because it asks for rough estimates. I think they do realize that most people filling these out are NOT accountants and can only give a ballpark number on these amounts, but try to be as specific as possible. I figure, the more specific you are with your numbers, the more they'll take it seriously and award you the amount you need.

der_saeufer wrote:

sangr wrote:2)what about the FAFSA w/ parental? is it just 1 or 2 pages of info that they want? (i cant check the next page cuz i havent filled it out). or do they want like 5 pages of info

I keep seeing this on here... and I know the FAFSA now gives students the option to provide parental info when not required, but I have not seen a single law school ask for it (and, for the record, it is NEVER required by Uncle Sam himself for law students--only childless, single undergrads under 25 who are not military veterans). Plenty require parental data on Need Access, but no school to which I applied wanted it on the FAFSA. Did I just happen to apply to a bunch of schools that don't want it or what?

Also, this is where I gloat about being old enough that a lot of schools don't want my parents' info on Need Access and the ones that do understand when they refuse to provide it.

GW asks for parental info, even if you're 30 and have 11 children.

It's honestly pretty quick and painless

I never understood FASFA hate. I swear its one of the easiest forms I've ever filled out

Now Need Access was the most ridiculous thing I've ever done... it just ask for complete estimates that are unrealistic "HOW MUCH WILL YOU SPEND ON TRANSPORTATION / FOOD / ETC IN 2014, 2015?" Wtf? lol, but yea the good thing about that is they admit all you can do is guess

Yeah, Fafsa's a breeze. Plus, they have live chat if you need help.

ThreeRivers wrote:I never understood FASFA hate. I swear its one of the easiest forms I've ever filled out

Now Need Access was the most ridiculous thing I've ever done... it just ask for complete estimates that are unrealistic "HOW MUCH WILL YOU SPEND ON TRANSPORTATION / FOOD / ETC IN 2014, 2015?" Wtf? lol, but yea the good thing about that is they admit all you can do is guess

The only good thing about NeedAccess was that it admits that quitting your job to go to school will drastically reduce your income, and allows you to estimate the reduced income. FAFSA calculates your EFC based on how much you made the year before, even though you are now making nothing. If you question that, they say "lol, don't worry, it will adjust the next year!" like it's no biggy.