FAFSA.

Filing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the most important step you can take toward receiving financial assistance for college. Submitting a FAFSA is what starts the process for receiving federal or state financial aid, whether you are hoping to receive grants you will not have to pay back or need a student loan which you will repay after graduation.

Here's how the process works and what you need to do if you will be attending KCC:

1. Appl early for admission (link to app. form) to KCC.
2. Apply for a pin number at http://www.pin.ed.gov/. Parent and student should both apply. This pin number will serve as your electronic signature and will allow you access to your personal records.
3. Fill out the FAFSA.
   • KCC's Title IV school code is 007690.
   • The FAFSA form for the upcoming school year is available online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/.
     • You may also call the Federal Processor at (800)433-3243 to request a paper FAFSA be mailed to you.-- 
   • Filing the FAFSA electronically will speed up the process considerably. Computer terminals are available on campus in Student Services and Financial Aid to submit your FAFSA. You can also submit electronically from local libraries, high schools and the Illinois Employment and Training Center in downtown Kankakee.
4. Submit your completed FAFSA to the federal processor. If submitting by mail include only the application in the envelope provided. Submit the FAFSA by May 1 for priority consideration for the following fall. However, if you miss that deadline, there still may be time to apply. Check with KCC's Office of Financial Aid.
5. Within seven (7) business days after submitting the FAFSA on line, you will receive an SAR (Student Aid Report)  at the email you provided while completing the FAFSA.  If you did not provide an email address the SAR will be forwarded to you by mail.  When completing the paper mail in FAFSA allow four to six weeks after submittion to receive an SAR (Student Aid Report) in the mail or on line. Check it immediately for errors. If corrections are needed, log back into http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ and follow the correction directions in Step 3.
6. The KCC Office of Financial Aid will send you a large white envelope with important documents and a  Financial Aid Handbook. Make sure to read these documents thoroughly.
7. Some students are selected by the federal processor for a review process called verification. If you are selected, you will receive a Verification Worksheet when you receive KCC's Financial Aid Handbook. Complete the Verification Worksheet and return it to KCC's Office of Financial Aid with photocopies of all the documents requested.
8. You will receive an Award Letter from KCC's Office of Financial Aid listing the assistance for which you have been approved.  Report any assistance you will receive that is not listed on the Award Letter.
9. For students with a MAP grant, the award will be applied by KCC's Accounting Office.  When you register for classes each semester, your bill will be paid through a transmittal process until it is depleted.
10. If you are receiving a student loan, these funds will be disbursed according to federal regulations.
11. If awarded funds exceed your costs at KCC, a refund check will be issued to you according to the Financial Aid Calendar (see tab on left to view this calendar).

Note: For students enrolled in classes which are late starting in a semester, the date of financial aid disbursement will be affected.