Financial Aid
As we move into the 2025-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) cycle, the U.S. Department of Education is encouraging high school counselors, principals, and other school leaders; superintendents; parent and community groups; and local and state education organizations to take action raising awareness about the FAFSA, especially focusing on helping students complete the FAFSA application.
In support of critical student and family outreach, the Federal Student Aid (FSA) office is publishing a set of FAFSA guides for non-English speakers in the 10 most spoken languages in the U.S. outside of English and Spanish, as well as making interpretive services available in these languages. Users may access the guides from the FAFSA Support in Other Languages page. Some guides (in Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog, Vietnamese, French, Korean, and Russian) are available now, and remaining guides (in German, Arabic, and French Creole) will be published in the coming months.
In addition, FSA shared updated resources, including:
Pro Tips for Completing the FAFSA Form -- information for preparing to complete and submit the FAFSA form.
Federal Student Aid YouTube Channel: FAFSA Videos -- videos to help students and families understand the importance of the FAFSA form, who is a FAFSA contributor, and what happens after submitting the form.
Tips for getting financial aid/scholarship money from colleges: Get to know the financial aid officer on a first name basis & always talk to the same person. The early bird gets the worm, so start calling before the deadline.
FAFSA is the main financial aid form. It cannot be completed before January. We have a yearly financial aid workshop here at MHS sometime in December/January (check with the Counseling Department for details) in order to help parents/students fill out the FAFSA. All parents/students, regardless of income, should submit this form; some schools require it to be considered for scholarships (check with the schools individually). Visit the website at: www.studentaid.gov.
If any financial aid/scholarship search requires payment from you, we do not encourage you to use it. You are not assured of even recouping the money you spend. You can do the research yourself for free!
TAG (Tuition Assistance Grant) is a program that provides grants to VA residents for full-time attendance to eligible private colleges & universities in Virginia.
Learn about loans - https://www.ecmc.org/studentseducators/student-resources/financial-awareness-basics-fab
Visit the following websites for more financial aid information:
Collegexpress - opportunities for students. Get matched to colleges and scholarships that really fit you.
www.fastweb.com - financial aid (a great place to start) & college searches
www.collegeboard.org - variety of college-bound subjects (college lists, payment plans, policies to reduce costs, average price per school, contact names)
www.schev.edu - The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia - information about tuition, fees, financial aid, applying for financial aid, etc.
www.collegescholarships.org - College Connection Scholarships
www.asa.org - American Student Assistance
www.finaid.org - FinAid
www.uncf.org - United Negro College Fund
www.afrotc.com - Air Force ROTC Scholarship
www.accreditedschoolsonline.org - Accredited school online
http://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/financial-aid-for-minorities/ - Finding scholarships, grants and other assistance
The Ultimate Guide to Financial Aid and FAFSA for College Students This in-depth guide gives college students all the resources they need to successfully apply for the FAFSA and fund their college costs.