| The Collegeboard's CSS Profile (College Scholarship | | | | for over 300 different pieces of information. As |
| Service Profile) is a secondary financial aid form | | | | compared to the FAFSA, the Profile will ask for much |
| required by 300 to 400 colleges, universities, and | | | | more detailed information regarding: your retirement |
| scholarship programs. And it is a doozy. Where as the | | | | assets, businesses, farms, and real estate. The Profile |
| FAFSA asks for approximately 150 pieces of financial | | | | will often ask for you to compile a family budget. |
| and demographic information, the Profile can ask for | | | | Unlike the FAFSA that asks for only one year's tax |
| over 300 different pieces of information. Here are six | | | | and income information, the Profile asks for three |
| characteristics of the Profile of which you need to be | | | | years of information: the last completed tax year; |
| aware. | | | | estimations for the current year; and projections for |
| 1. Earlier filing - Unlike the FAFSA form which cannot | | | | the following year. If the parents are divorced or |
| be filed until January of the student's senior year in | | | | separated, the Profile will often ask for detailed |
| high school, the Profile can be filed as early as the | | | | financial information on the non-custodial parent; |
| beginning of October. This can put a lot of pressure | | | | whereas the FAFSA only cares about the custodial |
| on families to gather their financial information much | | | | parent's information. The Profile can even go so far |
| earlier. In anticipation of filing the Profile, gather up | | | | as to ask what kind of car you drive. I assume they |
| the important financial information now and set it | | | | are tyring to find some kind of disconnect if you |
| aside in a convenient place. You will need your 2008 | | | | drive a $100,000 Mercedes but only make $30,000 a |
| IRS tax return, current cash and investment | | | | year. |
| balances, your mortgage information, and estimated | | | | 5. Changing your Profile - Before submitting the |
| income and financial data for 2009 and 2010. | | | | Profile, you can make changes as many times as |
| 2. Fewer schools - The FAFSA form is required by | | | | needed to the online form (at Collegeboard.com). |
| every college across the country (over 3,800) if you | | | | However, after submitting the Profile, you can no |
| want the money. The Profile, however, is only | | | | longer make any changes to the form. This is in |
| required by about 300 to 400 schools and scholarship | | | | contrast to the FAFSA which can be changed after |
| programs. These schools will typically be the Ivy | | | | submission at any time. In order to correct or update |
| League, the near Ivies, the most selective private | | | | any information on the Profile after submission, you |
| colleges, and a very small handful of very selective | | | | have to print out a paper copy of the Profile, indicate |
| state schools. For those schools that do want the | | | | the changes on the form, and then deliver that form |
| Profile, you will typically file the form months ahead | | | | to each college who received the Profile. You can |
| of filing the FAFSA for the same school. You can tell | | | | however add additional colleges after submission via |
| if a school requires the Profile by checking the | | | | Collegeboard's online form. |
| school's financial aid website, or by checking the list | | | | 6. IDOC - The Instituational Documentation Service |
| at | | | | (IDOC) is the Collegeboard's verification system for |
| 3. Cost - The FAFSA form does not cost anything to | | | | information submitted on the Profile. For a school that |
| file as is is a service of the federal government. The | | | | uses the FAFSA only, verification is conducted by |
| Profile on the other hand is administered by the | | | | sending documents (tax returns, W-2's, etc) to each |
| Collegeboard, a private, non-profit company. The | | | | individual school. For schools that use the profile, |
| Collegeboard charges $25 to register for the Profile | | | | those forms are sent one time to IDOC, and then |
| which includes your first college submission. For each | | | | IDOC distributes the needed information to the |
| additional college to which you want to submit the | | | | schools. This is probably the one and only aspect of |
| information, the Collegeboard charges you $16. | | | | the CSS Profile process that is simpler than the |
| 4. More Information - The FAFSA form asks for | | | | FAFSA. |
| about 150 pieces of information. The Profile can ask | | | | |