Financial Aid & Scholarships
Student Services
Financial Aid Advice
HESAA: Higher Education Student Assistance Authority of New Jersey HESSA website.
Is the only New Jersey state agency with the sole mission of providing students and families with financial and informational resources to pursue education beyond high school.
NASFAA: National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
The NASFAA web site offers the most current advice on paying for higher education.
FinAid offers comprehensive information about financial aid and scholarships. The site has a strong reputation in the educational community for offering current and accurate information on student financial aid, and tools such as loan calculators. It readily links to Fastweb, the companion scholarship search engine for students.
Visit FinAid, and Fastweb.
Veterans' Guide to Choosing the Right Vocational or Trade School
Financial Aid Forms
FAFSA: Free Application for Federal Student Aid
All families should complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1 of their student's senior year in high school. Because colleges assign federal student aid on a first-come, first-serve basis, financial aid professionals universally recommend submitting this form as early as possible. The form is free, and involves a completely online process. It is available in both Spanish and English. As you begin the form, you will be prompted to create a personal identification number (PIN). This number will allow you to sign in and out of your FAFSA account as required, and it will also serve as your electronic signature.
FAFSA Application
CSS Profile
Families whose students apply to colleges accepting the CSS Profile financial aid form should complete the Profile form in addition to the FAFSA. If a college uses both forms to determine aid, then you should always complete both. A service offered by College Board, the Profile form does have associated fees.
The Profile can be submitted as early as October of the student's senior year. Check the list of colleges that accept the Profile. If your schools are on the list, it is strongly recommended that you submit the form (in addition to FAFSA). You'll find the application and a list of participating colleges that accept the Profile here: CSS Profile.
Other Forms
Some educational institutions may require families to complete their own institution-specific financial aid form. This is an infrequent practice, but one that you might encounter. Any time a college requests a specific form or forms, you should make a point to comply with the request and do so.
Scholarship Information
Fastweb is the companion scholarship web site to FinAid.org. The site offers students the ability to search for nationally advertised scholarships.
StudentScholarships.org has been providing scholarship information to students and scholarship management services to companies since 2003.
Student Scholarships
The following guides provide a list of notable college scholarships available for African American and Black students. Scholarships for African American and Black Students