Learn More About the FAFSA
We provide 100 percent of our undergraduate students with financial assistance and make it our mission to ensure a great economic and educational value per every dollar spent. Check out the video on this page or watch our playlist about filling out your FAFSA.
Ripon College offers financial aid using information from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This form is available online at studentaid.gov, or ask your high school counselor or the Office of Financial Aid if you have questions.
To apply:
Be Prepared
- View our YouTube page to assist you and your contributors (parent(s), spouse, student, etc.) in information for the online FAFSA.
- You and your contributors should apply for an FSA User ID and Password online. The FSA ID is an ID you will use throughout your financial aid process as a digital signature. Learn more about creating your FSA ID
Complete your FAFSA
- We encourage you to use FAFSA on the Web at studentaid.gov because it is fast, easy and secure.
- Complete all sections about you, your school plans and financial information for yourself and all contributors.
- Invite all contributors (parent(s), spouse, etc.) to complete their sections of the FAFSA.
- Provide consent in order to transfer your tax information directly into the FAFSA from the IRS.
- Be sure to include our Federal School Code: 003884
- Be sure you and all of your contributors sign your FAFSA using the FSA User ID.
- Keep a copy of your submitted application for your records.
Financial Aid Forms
These forms are not required in all cases from all students. You will be notified by the Office of Financial Aid if this documentation is required from you.
Follow Up
- After the federal processor has completed its analysis, you will receive a FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS). This is your record of your FAFSA, not your financial aid offer.
- The Student Aid Index (SAI) listed on your FSS is derived from the information you listed on the FAFSA. It measures your family’s financial strength to determine your eligibility for student aid.
- Once your file a FAFSA, and the school receives your data, you will be sent an official financial aid offer.
- During the application process, you may be asked to verify the information reported on the FAFSA. We will request the appropriate documentation from you if necessary.
- Notify the Office of Financial Aid in the case of special circumstances.
For maximum consideration:
- Be accepted for admission to Ripon College.
- File the 2025-26 FAFSA as soon as possible.
- Respond quickly to requests for additional information.
FSA ID Help
All contributors will need an FSA ID. Students (and parent or spouse, if applicable) should request their FSA ID a few days in advance of completing the FAFSA. A parent or spouse without a Social Security number will be able to get an FSA ID.
Click here for the full definition and examples of contributors
To create an FSA ID, you’ll need to provide the following information:
- Your Social Security number (SSN) (you will be able to create one, without a SSN)
- Full name
- Date of birth
- Email address and/or mobile phone number*
You’ll also need to create a memorable username and password, and complete challenge questions and answers to retrieve your account information if you forget it.
*Providing a mobile phone number and/or email address that you have access to will make it easier to log in to ED online systems and allow you to verify your FSA ID before using it on the FAFSA and additional account recovery options.
Parents and/or spouses who are not U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens can use their Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) to create an FSA ID since their taxes are still required. This Federal Student Aid video can help create a step-by-step FSA ID.
If the parents of a dependent student are not married, the parent who provides the greater portion of the student’s financial support is used on the FAFSA even if the student lives with the other parent or the other parent has custody. A remarried parent must include their spouse’s (the student’s stepparent) income.
All contributors will need to provide consent in order to complete the FAFSA. This will transfer the correct tax information in from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Consenting to FAFSA
The Future Act requires that every contributor on the FAFSA provides consent to share their tax information in the application so that the IRS can share this information with Federal Student Aid (FSA). All parties whose Federal Tax Information (FTI) is included on a student’s FAFSA form must consent annually.
The consent will be required when a student submits a FAFSA, chooses Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) when starting loan repayment, or submits the Total and Permanent Disability discharge (TPD) within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for totally and permanently disabled students.
The consent is necessary not only for the Department of Education to request federal tax information from the IRS but also to use that FTI in the federal student aid application process, as well as do other things such as redisclose that information to certain eligible entities, such as higher education institutions.
If a student, spouse or parent doesn’t provide consent on the FAFSA, the Student Aid Index (SAI) will not be calculated and the student will not be eligible for any federal aid.
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