The final weeks of a senior year are a real rush in so many ways. With no intent to add to stress levels, there are a few things to consider now that will affect how you pay for college next year.

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid): If you and your family are concerned about the cost of college, this is the starting point for all need-based federal, state and college assistance. While the FAFSA doesn't affect merit-based scholarships, not filing it can make thousands of dollars of difference. If you have questions on filling it out, call us at (866) 781-0001. We'll be glad to help. The Northland code is #003875. The FAFSA is required for the Northland Access Guarantee.

Access Guarantee: Northland is continuing its pledge to award scholarship and grant assistance that, at a minimum, will bring your cost of tuition, fees, housing and meals down to the level set by the primary public university in your home state. You qualify if you have a 3.0 GPA and your family's adjusted gross income is under $150,000.

Wisconsin Tuition Grant Deadline: If you're a Wisconsin resident and haven't yet filed a FAFSA, get moving! The state funded Tuition Grants will run out this year, perhaps as early as mid-April. Don't miss out.

Scholarships: Northland uses a "Rolling" system for admission, scholarships and financial aid. In other words, we make decisions in the order we receive applications. Because we're late in the year, we can get that information back to you within about a week of the time we receive your application.

Scholarship and Grant Estimates: If you filed a FAFSA but haven't requested the results to be sent to Northland, there are two shortcuts available:

1. You can call or email us for an estimate of scholarship and grant eligibility.
   We'll need three numbers from you.
   o   EFC (Expected Family Contribution) from the FAFSA
   o   High School GPA
   o   Test Scores
2. If you have applied and been accepted and want to speed up your official scholarship and financial aid award, call us with your DRN (Data Release Number) from the FAFSA. We can then download your FAFSA results and make a full financial aid award.

Loans: Concerned about college loans? While you do need to take any loans seriously, the average Northland student borrows far less than at most colleges. Recently released data showed the average indebtedness of Northland graduates was approximately four thousand dollars lower than for students at Wisconsin's public universities. That's due in part to the scholarship and grant assistance our students receive. Perhaps more important, nearly everyone who starts and finishes their college degree at Northland does so in a four-year period. That makes a huge difference in the overall cost of your education.