Financial Aid | Steps to Apply

Completing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or CA Dream Act Application (CADAA) is the first step to kickstart a student's educational journey! It's important to note that financial aid is not intended to cover a student's basic living expenses and needs. Instead, it's meant to assist qualifying students by alleviating the financial burden of paying for college expenses.

FAFSA 
By completing the FAFSA, students can be considered for several state, federal and institutional financial aid opportunities.  

1. Complete the FAFSA. Students can complete the FAFSA online at www.studentaid.gov or in paper PDF format.  Students can receive assistance with their application, by joining our application workshops and/or one on one assistance year-round.  When students are completing their application, add the school code for MSJC (001246) so that we may receive the student's information. 
2. Once the student completes their FAFSA they will receive a FAFSA Submission Summary Report (FSSR) by email or mail from Federal Student Aid Programs. The FSSR is the student's initial response to their FAFSA application. An accurate FSSR requires no corrections. Be sure to read the “Comments” section of the student's application. If corrections are necessary, students may consult the financial aid office for assistance before submitting corrections. FAFSA applicants must use the Federal Student Aid Identification Number (FSA ID) username and password to make corrections to the FAFSA application online. All contributors must have StudentAid.gov account, and all individuals, even those without a Social Security Number (SSN) can create an FSA ID.  Users may no longer access, create, or submit an online FAFSA without FSA ID.

Who Is considered a Parent Contributor

Parents' Marital Status	Provide Information For
Never Married	The parent who provided more financial support during the last 12 months. If equal amount of support provided, provide information for parent with greater income and assets.
Unmarried and both legal parents live together	Both legal parents.
Married	Both parents.
Remarried (after being widowed or divorced)	Parent and stepparent.
Divorced or separated	The parent who provided more financial support during the last 12 months. If equal amount of support provided, provide information for parent with greater income and assets.
Widowed	Surviving parent.

The FSA ID 
To begin the FAFSA application process, students (and contributors) will need to create an identification (ID) account to complete federal student aid tasks.  

An FSA ID is an account and password that gives you access to the Federal Student Aid online system and serves as your electronic signature. 

With the FSA ID, you can fill out the FAFSA when it's available.  

Items Needed to Create an Account  

• Social Security number: Students must have a Social Security number (SSN) to create an FSA ID account. Enter the SSN that is printed on the student's Social Security card.  
• The student's own mobile phone number and/or email address: Students will be required to verify their FSA ID with either a cell phone number to receive confirmation texts, or an email address to recover forgotten usernames or passwords. Cell phone numbers and email addresses can only be associated with one FSA ID.  
• Parents and Students will be required to certify that the information they provide to create an account (FSA ID) is true and correct and that they are the individual creating the account. Parents and students will always have separate FSA ID accounts.  

Note: A user can only have one account associated with their Social Security Number.  

If your name has changed, you must update it with the Social Security Administration (SSA) before you can create an account. For more information, you can call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213 or visit ssa.gov.  

CADAA 
By completing the CADAA, students can be considered for several state and institutional aid opportunities.  

1. Complete the CADAA.  Students can complete the CADAA online at https://dream.csac.ca.gov.  If you would like assistance with the student's application, we offer application workshops and one on one assistance year-round.  When students are completing your application, add the school code for MSJC (00124600) so that we may receive their information.  
2. Once the student completes their CADAA the student will receive their California SAR (CAR) from the California Student Aid Commission. An accurate CAR requires no corrections. Be sure to read the “Comments” section of the student's application. If corrections are necessary, students may consult the financial aid office for assistance before submitting corrections.  

CADAA applicants must complete the AB540 California Non-Resident Tuition Exemption Request form with Admissions and Records at MSJC to qualify for aid offered under this application. 

If the student is a California resident or eligible AB540 student and did not receive a Cal Grant in previous years, the student must submit a 2025-2026 FAFSA or CA Dream Act Application by the priority deadline of April 2, 2025. Students verified GPA must be submitted to California Student Aid Commission by March 3, 2025. 

Follow the instructions below to determine which school verifies the student's GPA on the 2025-2026 Verification Form.

• If the student earned less than 16 college semester units prior to Spring 2025, then the student must contact their high school or last institution of attendance on how to get their GPA verified.  Please reach out to them as soon as possible to ensure verification of the student's GPA in a timely manner as they may need to complete the GPA verification form.
•  If the student earned 16 or more college semester units and with a 2.0 GPA, including at least 1 unit at MSJC prior to Spring 2025, MSJC will automatically send their cumulative GPA to the California Student Aid Commission Electronically, once they have been evaluated.  Students meeting the above criteria and who have attended within the past two years do not need to submit a GPA Verification Form.  
  
• If the student completed their high school education with a GED, a copy of their certificate must be submitted along with the GPA Verification form and submitted to the California Student Aid Commission.   
  
• If the student has not attended MSJC at least in one term within two years prior to the term of the electronic submission, they will need to complete a paper GPA Verification form with the financial aid office to be submitted to the California Student Aid Commission. 

Students will want to log into Self-Service.  On the main page, students will select the Financial Aid box on the right and the FA Checklist will be displayed towards the bottom left of the screen.   

The “Checklist” will display the status of the student's financial aid process, where they stand in the financial aid process, and alert the student to any remaining steps they still need to take to finalize their financial aid in a particular year, including: 

• Receipt of the FAFSA or CADAA application. 
• Any outstanding documents required, or further actions needed to complete file. 
• Check Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). 
• Review and print Offer Letter.  

Students will need to verify if they have verification documents pending listed under their Self-Service Financial Aid Checklist box to complete their financial aid file to determine their eligibility for all types of aid at MSJC.  To complete any requested verification documents indicated on the students Self-Service Financial Aid Checklist, students will begin creating an account/log-into the StudentForms portal.  

To access  Student Forms, please complete the following:

1. Login using the MSJC student email and corresponding password; the login information will match the student's Self-Service password.
2. Verify the student's FAFSA identity information (First and Last Name, Date of Birth, Social Security Number) to create an account. 
3. Complete all verification documents listed on the Needs Action screen.
   1. Carefully read all instructions published within each listed task before submitting documents (some tasks contain instructions directly from the Financial Aid office and are highlighted in red and blue).  
   2. Required documents and tasks assigned are based on the information provided in the FAFSA application.  Additional documentation may be requested based on the answers that students provide in their verification webform. 
      1. Some examples of items students may be asked for: 
         1. Verification Web forms (Dependent or Independent). 
         2. Prior prior year Tax Transcripts or prior prior year taxpayer-signed tax returns.
         3. Proof of Citizenship, identity, or high school completion.
         4. Statement of Educational Purpose. 
         5. Or other documents/tasks needed to complete your file. 
   3. When uploading required documents, please be sure that photo images are clear, text is legible and all pages (front and back, if applicable) of required documents are included.
   4. Dependent students may be required to provide a parent signature on their webforms by including a parent email address which will prompt a link to be sent to verify the parent's identity. 
      1. Once parent identity is verified, parents may follow the Parent Portal instructions to login to the Parent Portal to create a Username and Password to electronically sign documents.
4. When prompted, students will E-Sign documents by creating a 5-digit E-Sign PIN using the links above the text box; parents will sign with their username and password, instead of a PIN.  
   1. If students prefer to opt-out of the electronic signature, they can download, print and sign the forms manually, before uploading the forms to StudentForms. Either E-sign or original wet signatures may be used however, parent and student signature types must match.
5. It is imperative to click "Submit" when documents are successfully signed and uploaded. Next, always click the red “Finish” button to notify our office that your file is complete and ready to be reviewed.  
   1. Upon evaluation of a student's file, further documentation may be required. Students will be notified via their MSJC student email.  

Once student files are awarded, they will be sent notification to their student email that their financial aid award(s) are available to view on theirSelf-Service. 

MyMSJC Self-Service will provide students with the types of aid programs offered to them and amounts by per term and /or academic year, based on a full-time enrollment status.  Expand our Aid Programs for further explanation on the different award details.   

*Note: Grants are automatically accepted on students' behalf.  As a condition of receipt of any federal or state financial aid funds, all students agree and accept the Terms and Conditions. If students wish to decline any awards, please contact the Financial Aid Office. 

After receipt of the financial aid award notification email, any aid students are eligible for will be disbursed according to the disbursement schedule.  MSJC delivers your refund with BankMobile Disbursements, a technology solution, powered by BMTX, Inc.  Students must select their refund preference with BankMobile Disbursements to avoid delays in their financial aid disbursement.  If no preference is selected within 30 days, funds risk being returned and reversed. 

Please refer to our: Disbursement Schedule & Important Dates  

• If eligible, students will receive their disbursement according to the dates on the appropriate semester disbursement schedule.  
• Grant disbursement amounts are based on the student's enrollment intensity and eligibility.  
• If students receive Financial Aid at another school, they CANNOT receive a disbursement at MSJC for the same payment period.  
• Disbursement dates are contingent upon funding and are subject to change without notice.  
• Students will want to monitor their MSJC student email for their financial aid status.  
• If a student is a new or returning student to MSJC and did not attend the previous term, and if they have been awarded the Federal Pell grant, we must verify with the Department of Education that the student has not received financial aid from another school prior to any disbursements.    

FAFSA and DACAA applications will become available for the 2026-2027 year on October 1, 2025.  Students should make sure they apply! 

If there is no financial aid application on file when the student registers for next year, the student will be required to pay same day of registration for all tuition and student mandatory fees.