The FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This form is used to apply for financial aid for college.

The information provided on the FAFSA is used to determine eligibility for need-based financial aid, such as grants, student loans and student employment. This information is used to calculate the Expected Family Contribution or EFC. The EFC is a measure of the family's financial strength and represents an estimate of the family's ability to pay for college costs. The student's financial need is the difference between the total college costs and the EFC.

The FAFSA will ask for student financial information, family size and the number of family members enrolled in college. The FAFSA also asks questions about the student's age, marital status and other demographic characteristics that will be used to determine the student's dependency status. If the student is determined to be a dependent student, parent financial information will be required as well as the age of the older parent.

Completing and submitting the FAFSA is free and gives you access to federal student aid to pay for your college, university or career school education. In addition, the FAFSA can be used to apply for state grants and money from most colleges and universities.

If the student is a dependent student, the application asks for information from both students and parents. If the student is a dependent student, the application asks for information from the student and, if the student is married, information from the student's spouse.

Besides a FAFSA worksheet, school codes and a pin number, you need these items: FAFSA checklist.

Grab the worksheet and school codes at www.FAFSA.ed.gov and the pin at www.pin.ed.gov.

It's easiest to fill out the application online at www.FAFSA.ed.gov because using an online form will yield a more accurate and quicker result. However, paper copies can be requested by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).

The FAFSA should be submitted as soon as possible on or after January 1 of the student's senior year in high school and each subsequent year.

The FAFSA has an 18-month application cycle, meaning that the FAFSA can be submitted as late as June 30 of the academic year (or the last day of classes, whichever comes first) to qualify for federal student aid for that academic year.

However, many states and colleges award their own financial aid funds based on the FAFSA, and may have much earlier deadlines for students to complete the FAFSA. For example, some states have deadlines as early as February, and several states and schools award aid on a first-come, first-served basis until the money runs out.

Therefore, it's best to submit your FAFSA according to school and state deadlines.

You can find school deadlines on the financial aid section of their website and look for state deadlines here: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/deadlines.htm.

If you miss state or school deadlines, you will be eligible only for federal student aid.