With all of the changes the U.S. Department of Education made to the 2024-2025 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), navigating how to pay for school is exceptionally hard right now.

First and always foremost, we’re here to help! We can help you complete your FAFSA. The Department of Ed anticipates sending FAFSA results to schools sometime in late March, but we can help you interpret the results now.

Grants and scholarships are pretty common at SSMT, even before these new FAFSA changes. From July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023 (the most recently completed award year), 69% of our total student body received either a Pell grant, an SSMT scholarship, or both. Almost 15% of our students who did not qualify for any Pell grants still received an institutional scholarship from SSMT.

Even though waiting on the 2024-2025 FAFSA is frustrating, the good news is the Department has changed their calculations. A higher percentage of the population will be eligible for more grant funds. Those who weren’t eligible for any grants in 2023-2024 may be eligible for some in this coming award year.

The first step is just to complete the FAFSA. It’s free and you’ll then have a clear picture of your possibilities. It’s the not knowing that usually stops us, isn’t it?