FAFSA necessary for merit scholarship? Forum

[lefty20]

I'm curious if anyone knows whether FAFSA must be filled out at each school in order to be offered a merit scholarship. I know that I'm not going to receive any need-based funds anywhere, and so I wouldn't bother filling out FAFSA, but I also don't want to shoot myself in the foot for merit-based. I've looked around and haven't seen a definitive answer. Any info is appreciated. Thanks.

[lefty20]

Crickets, huh?

Anyone?

[rinkrat19]

I don't know if ALL schools require it, but I know for sure that some do.

They also may require NeedAccess, which is like FAFSA but 100 times more of a pain in the ass.

[lefty20]

Thanks for the response. I guess I'll look into it more. Anyone out there received and used a merit scholarship without filling out any other financial aid info?

[Nelson]

Thanks for the response. I guess I'll look into it more. Anyone out there received and used a merit scholarship without filling out any other financial aid info?

Are you personally independently wealthy? Just fill out the forms. If you're that rich, pay your accountant to fill them out.

[lefty20]

Ha. No. But I've been out of college a while and have had enough income that I won't get need-based aid. I guess I will end up just filling out the forms, but I was just trying to avoid the hassle.

[MrPapagiorgio]

Same boat. I wasn't going to get any need-based aid but I needed to fill out the FAFSA in order to claim the scholarship my school gave me. Had to do the same thing in UG.

[rinkrat19]

From what I understand, there's very little purely need-based aid in law school anyway. They may call it "need-based," or a mixture of need and merit, but rarely do you see an award larger than what the person would expect given their numbers anyway.

So at many (most?) schools, you're going to have to fill out the forms to be eligible for any aid (including loans) at all.

[lefty20]

Same boat. I wasn't going to get any need-based aid but I needed to fill out the FAFSA in order to claim the scholarship my school gave me. Had to do the same thing in UG.

That's exactly the kind of case I was wondering about. Glad to hear the scholarship was offered first. So if I luck into one, then I'll worry about the forms. Thanks for the info.