The Montana Community Foundation scholarships open January 1, 2024. An eligibility requirement to apply is to have a completed FAFSA. We bring the most important pieces of information from studentaid.gov.

From Federal Student Aid:

Creating a StudentAid.gov Account

Federal Student Aid strongly recommends you create a StudentAid.gov account before starting your FAFSA form. When you create your account, be careful to enter your name and Social Security number (SSN) exactly as they appear on your Social Security card.

2024–25 FAFSA^® Form

On the 2024–25 FAFSA form, every contributor—anyone (you, your spouse, a biological or adoptive parent, or your parent's spouse) who's required to provide information on the FAFSA form—will need a StudentAid.gov account before accessing and completing their section of the online form. Contributors will access their StudentAid.gov account by using their FSA ID (account username and password).

Note: Starting December 2023, contributors without an SSN can create a StudentAid.gov account to fill out their portion of your 2024–25 FAFSA form online.

To start the online 2024–25 FAFSA form when it becomes available in December 2023, you’ll select “Start a New Form.” You’ll be taken to the “Log In” page to enter your account username and password. After logging in, you can select your applicable role to fill out the FAFSA form: “Student” or “Parent.” You (the student) should select “Student.” If a parent wants to start their dependent child’s FAFSA form, they should select the “Parent” option.

Gathering the Documents Needed To Apply

2024–25 FAFSA^® Form

You might need the following information or documents as you fill out the 2024–25 FAFSA form:

• Your parents’ SSNs if you’re a dependent student
• Tax returns
• Records of child support received
• Current balances of cash, savings, and checking accounts
• Net worth of investments, businesses, and farm

Keep these records! You may need them again. Do not mail supporting documents.

2023–24 FAFSA^® Form

You might need the following information or documents as you fill out the 2023–24 FAFSA application:

• Your Social Security number (it’s important that you enter it correctly on the FAFSA form!)
• Your parents’ SSNs if you are a dependent student
• Your driver’s license number if you have one
• Your A-number if you are not a U.S. citizen

• Federal tax information, tax documents, or tax returns, including IRS W-2 information, for you (and your spouse, if you are married), and for your parents if you are a dependent student:

  • IRS Form1040
  • Foreign tax return or IRS Form 1040-NR
  • Tax return for Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, or Palau
• Records of your (and, if you’re a dependent student, your parents’) untaxed income, such as child support received, interest income, and veterans noneducation benefits
• Information on cash; savings and checking account balances; investments, including stocks, bonds, and real estate (but not including the home in which you live); and business and farm assets for you and for your parents if you are a dependent student

Keep these records! You may need them again. Do not mail these supporting records.

Please click here for a full list of Federal Student Aid YouTube videos.