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Allison Martin
Allison Martin is a contributor to Bankrate covering personal finance, including mortgages, auto loans and small business loans. Martin’s work began over 10 years ago as a digital content strategist, and she’s since been published in several leading outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, MSN Money, MoneyTalksNews, Investopedia, Experian and Credit.com. Martin, a Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFE), also shares her passion for financial literacy and entrepreneurship with others through interactive workshops and programs.
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Aylea Wilkins
Aylea Wilkins has been at Bankrate since 2019, editing content in student, personal and home equity loans and auto, home and life insurance before taking on editing content in a variety of other categories. She has nearly a decade of editorial experience with a primary focus on helping people confidently make financial and purchasing decisions by providing clear and unbiased information.
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The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) must be completed to access federal aid to help cover higher education expenses. After you complete the FAFSA, you’ll need to get for your Student Aid Report, confirm its accuracy and adjust your FAFSA if needed. If not, you could miss out on financial aid to help offset higher education costs.
The Student Aid Report (SAR) outlines how much money you could receive in federal student aid. It has a summary of all the answers you submitted on your FAFSA and is usually sent to you via email a few days after you complete the form. You can also find it by logging into your FAFSA account or contacting the Federal Student Aid Information Center and requesting a copy by postal mail.
The SAR is important because it gives you an at-a-glance view of how much financial aid you might receive in Pell Grants and federal student loans. While it’s not the final figure — it won’t include any potential financial aid from your college or your state — having a general dollar amount gives you an idea of how much your family is expected to contribute financially to your education.
The SAR is sent to any schools you’re applying to. Schools will use this document to determine your final financial aid package, including scholarships and grants.
You can also use your SAR to correct select errors you made when completing your FAFSA. Correcting errors can change how much financial aid you receive at the federal level and from your school.
The SAR has several components that outline your financial aid for school:
You can find your SAR in a few days:
Once you’ve completed your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), be on the lookout for your SAR. It summarizes your entries, and you want to confirm it’s accurate to avoid missing out on potential aid.
Review the “What You Must Do Now” to confirm no further action is needed regarding the form from your end. Your college could need verification of your financial information, so check to see if there’s an asterisk by the EFC.
Taking the necessary actions promptly ensures the timely processing of your financial aid application. You’ll also be better positioned to receive monetary awards before they’re exhausted.
You can make changes to your entries online at studentaid.gov. Login to access your FAFSA and select the “Make Corrections” option found on the homepage of the online dashboard.
Changes to your Social Security number cannot be made online. You’ll need to resubmit a new FAFSA to rectify this issue.
When you receive your SAR, review it to ensure the financial information listed is accurate. If you spot errors, adjust your FAFSA right away. Also, refer to the “What You Must Do Now” section to verify there are no outstanding issues. Otherwise, you risk missing out on funds you’re entitled to that can help cover your higher education expenses.
Contact your school’s financial aid office if you need additional assistance.
Electronic filers who complete the FAFSA online and provide an email address could receive a SAR within three to five days of completing the FAFSA. Those who submitted online but did not provide an email address should expect a turnaround closer to seven to 10 days.
Filers who submit the FAFSA by mail will have a longer wait time. Those who provide an email address should receive a result within two weeks, and those who don’t should receive a result within three weeks.
Arrow Right Contributor, Personal Finance
Allison Martin is a contributor to Bankrate covering personal finance, including mortgages, auto loans and small business loans. Martin’s work began over 10 years ago as a digital content strategist, and she’s since been published in several leading outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, MSN Money, MoneyTalksNews, Investopedia, Experian and Credit.com. Martin, a Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFE), also shares her passion for financial literacy and entrepreneurship with others through interactive workshops and programs.
