It is officially time to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2019-2020 school year!
Stop by and meet with Director of Financial Aid Diana Strom or a financial aid advisor to get FAFSA help!
Applying for FAFSA will let you find out if you are eligible for federal and state grant programs, work-study and student loans.
Submitting as early as possible is a great idea because some financial aid programs have limited funding and are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
Every year the application becomes available on Oct. 1.
Even if you do not believe you will receive any assistance, you are still strongly encouraged to apply. You may be pleasantly surprised!
Many scholarships require FAFSA to be completed as a part of their application process as well, so there is a benefit to filling it out even if you do not think you will receive financial aid.
FAFSA Completion Help
Need some assistance completing FAFSA? It is available!
Financial Aid staff members can answer questions and help you navigate the process Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
At the Quad-Cities Campus, the Financial Aid Office is in Building 1, Room 227, and at the East Campus, Financial Aid is in Building A, Room 246.
The Quad-Cities Campus Financial Aid Office also has computers available for students to use.
Financial Aid is holding FAFSA Completion Night events at each campus where staff will help you complete your application.
At the Quad-Cities Campus, FAFSA Completion Night is Monday, Oct. 15 from 4-7 p.m. in the ESL Computer Lab in Building 1 (below the library).
For the East Campus event, save the date for Monday, Nov. 5 from 4-7 p.m. The location is the Testing Center in Building A, Room 239.
FAFSA Completion Nights are free events that are open to the public.
What You Need for FAFSA
Here is what students and parents should bring to the event, or have on hand before beginning the FAFSA at home:
- Federal Student Aid (FSA) ID (an electronic signature you obtain in advance at https://fsaid.ed.gov)
- Social Security Card, and if applicable, Permanent Resident documentation.
- 2017 federal tax documents, including 1040 form(s) and W-2s/1099s
- Records of 2017 untaxed income
- Records of assets and investments
- Current bank statements (savings/checking)
Please keep in mind new students and parents will need to obtain their Federal Student Aid (FSA) IDs two to three days before starting their FAFSA application.
You only get one FSA ID per person that you will use every year. Each person should set up their own FSA ID. It is the equivalent of a legal signature, so do not share it with others.
Other Financial Aid Help
The Financial Aid Office encourages students and parents to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to electronically transfer their 2017 tax information from the IRS to the FAFSA application. Learn more about the IRS Data Retrieval Tool by watching this tutorial.
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) Student Portal offers tips as well as online chat and texting options. The online chat option can be found on the main page of the ISAC Student Portal website, and the number to text is 309-306-7066.
ISAC also has ISACorps, a group of recent college graduates dedicated to mentoring high school students by helping them and their families navigate the process of applying to and entering college. Find your local ISACorps representative.
You can also call Federal Student Aid at 1-800-4-FED-AID to ask questions or to get troubleshooting help with FAFSA or FSA IDs.
Applicants will receive their 2019-2020 Financial Aid notifications in March 2019-April 2019 through their BHC email accounts, so look for updates then! Make sure to check your inbox regularly.
BHC Financial Aid Contact Info
Quad-Cities Campus
Building 1, Room 227
309-796-5400
309-796-5447 (fax)
Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
East Campus
Building A, Room 246
309-854-1708
309-852-3571 (fax)
Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.