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New tool launched to estimate federal financial aid

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September 30, 2021

Students and parents can get a peek at how much federal financial aid they might receive with a new tool released this week by the U.S. Department of Education.

On September 26, the Department launched the Federal Student Aid Estimator, a free tool that allows students to calculate the amount of financial aid they might be eligible to receive.

According to the Department, anyone can use the estimator, which is available in English and Spanish. Students do not need an account to use the tool so that means, in addition to seniors, other high school students can use the tool to plan for postsecondary education.

The Federal Student Aid Estimator provides students with:

  • information about the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and its role in determining their federal student aid, and
  • a link to the College Scorecard to help them find the college or career school that's the best fit for them.

When using the estimator, students will enter information in three sections – student, household, and financial – and the tool displays estimated results. The Department said students will receive a nonbinding estimate of their EFC, along with estimated eligibility for Federal Pell Grants, work-study funds, and federal student loans.