Financial Aid & College Scholarship Cheat Codes

In this article, you will find useful information that we share with our clients to help maximize the aid they receive while attending college. Our Financial Aid/College Scholarship department educates the family on the application process. Last year on average our clients received $31,130.00 in college financial aid. If you are a family looking for help in this department or your college hockey recruiting process please contact us at @Info @ Tri-State Athletic.

Understanding the differences between categories of aid will help you maximize your search for aid. Grant, Loan, Work Study, Scholarship, EFC, FAFSA, Loan, NEED are all terms that families need to become familiar with. Below we have defined these terms for your use:

• Grant - Aid that does not need to be paid back. The most common grant we recommend is the Pell Grant. The Pell Grant is typically awarded to undergraduate students who need financial aid. Although, not a massive amount most students qualify for anywhere from 3-6k. 

• Scholarship - Financial Aid that is awarded on Athletic Ability, Merit and the most common Academic Achievement. This does not need to be paid back however it can be lost due to poor performance when the student attends the University. Athletic Hockey Scholarships are only offered at the Division 1 level.

• Need - Used in Financial Aid applications. This takes into account the student's parents' incomes and the cost of the University/College. This is where they take into consideration siblings, disabilities, etc.

• EFC- Also known as Expected Family Contribution. This is different from need base. Need base is how much you can literally afford. EFC is taking into consideration what you plan on paying. For a basic example: a household income of 300k, a Mortgage payment of 4,000 a month, and no siblings in College applying to a 60k year school would most likely not qualify for any financial aid. ***This will change for the 2024-2025 school year to Student Aid Index

• FAFSA - Also known as Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Distributed by the government to figure out Need and EFC.

• Work Study- Employment is given to the student to help pay for school. 

• Loan- Money that needs to be paid back both privately and by the government.

Scholarships

Most of our athletes receive most of their scholarship money through academic achievement. Our advisors consider this when trying to match the athlete up with a school. GPA vs Athletic want (how important you are to those coaches recruiting) will help maximize your value. Even at the Division 1 level this is required, even with Athletic Scholarships being available. Athletic scholarships are rarely full rides, the most common is a 50 percent athletic scholarship through 4 years. Meaning if the school is 50,000 per year your athlete is still coming out of school 100k in debt. 

Another way to obtain scholarships is by looking at the school websites that you are applying to as many of these schools do offer other scholarships. State institutions are less likely to have a large selection simply because of state regulations. Private institutions tend to become much more creative in terms of Scholarships if they want the athlete. 

FAFSA Tips and Facts

• Currently, students can only use FAFSA for 10 schools. That will change to 20 for the 2024-2025 School year.

• Federal Student Aid ID, must be included on application forms.

• Not signing the forms will eliminate you from aid, this is one of the most common errors.

• Parents, please use the current year's tax records, not last year's. 

Appeals Process

At the end of all the applications and negotiations, players/students who feel like they did not get enough aid can file for an appeal. Although, a difficult process with help and guidance students/players usually get what they are looking for. Our advisors and financial aid department can help guide your family through this process. 

We hope you enjoyed this little crash course. If you need help with your application process, please contact us directly @Info @ Tri-State Athletic. We can help guide your athlete through the negotiation process. 

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