Tax season also means FAFSA and scholarship season

Ah, the new year. For many, this means drinking less coffee, hitting that treadmill, not texting your ex after that third glass of wine. If you’re like me and have no life, however, the first of the year means two things: taxes and financial aid.

If you made the same amount of money in 2016 that you made in 2015, doing your taxes is less time-sensitive. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) allows you to use your tax information from 2015 to save time and get that sweet, sweet federal aid sooner.

If, however, your level of income has changed, you should fill out a new FAFSA. This means reaching out to all your employers from 2016 (that barista job you worked for two weeks before deciding it wasn’t a “good fit”? Get ahold of them!) and verifying they have the correct contact information for you.

Once you get your W-2s back, it’s tax time! I personally use Turbo Tax because I’m both lazy and tax-illiterate, but use whichever method works for you.

And when your taxes are done, it’s FAFSA time! Filling out the FAFSA sucks. I know. I recommend a cup of coffee, a good playlist and a high tolerance for pencil-pushing. Ultimately, however, it’s worth it: In 2012, the average two-year community college student received $4,600! That’s serious money – that’s a car, that’s a tour of Europe, that’s a down payment on a house. FAFSA doesn’t seem quite so arduous now, does it?

Anyway, once that’s all filled out, the feds will send it to Mt Hood Community College, which will work to decide how much federal money you qualify for, based on your income and tuition costs. You may not be able to get the whole school thing paid for, but, depending on your income, you should be able to get a good chunk taken care of.

For everything else, I highly recommend pursuing grants and scholarships.

OSAC (Oregon Office of Student Access and Completion) is a phenomenal resource — you enter in things like your grades, a couple other tasty bits, and they match you up with dozens, sometimes hundreds, of potential grants and scholarships for which you may qualify.

These are great, because you don’t have to pay them back (read: free money). Just make sure to check with your Financial Aid office before jumping into them headfirst, because in certain cases, scholarships can affect the financial aid you receive.

In fact, regardless of what you do, checking in with the Financial Aid office isn’t going to do anything but help you. Mt. Hood’s Financial Aid department is located on the upper level in the main mall, in Room 2253. I have no doubt it’s gonna be packed these first couple weeks of the term, but the help is so valuable.

Though it may seem like a lot of work, securing federal money to help offset the cost of college is definitely worth it: 1 in 5 community college students do not apply for federal financial aid, and 1 in 3 doesn’t apply for any financial aid at all!

The money is there – just waiting for you to fill out a couple of measly forms.

To complete a FAFSA application, visit oregonstudentaid.gov/. To apply for OSAC scholarshipe, go to fafsa.ed.gov.

Deadlines:

*OSAC private scholarship deadline is March 1.

*Oregon Opportunity Grant money available starting Jan. 1; awards offered until funds are depleted.

*Oregon Promise funding (for 2017 graduating high school seniors): Application deadline for early notice of approval is April 1.