While 45 million Americans are eligible for college financial aid through the U.S. government, only 20 million on average file every year.
For those overwhelmed by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), Frank Financial Aid offers free assistance.
“We really like to make things simple,” founder and CEO Charlie Javice said.
“All that you need to do is take a picture of the first two pages of your federal tax return, and we do all of the financial math for you, so there is no room for error,” Javice said.
The Frank application also asks fewer questions.
“They’re able to file in as little as four minutes, and most of our students actually do it from their mobile phones,” Javice said.
Filing through Frank is free, but if the amount of financial aid awarded comes up short, a Frank counselor will try to negotiate a larger amount for a fee, but there are no guarantees.
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“We help you put together that case with all of the supporting documents, and we’ll be the liaison between the school and you and your parents,” Javice said.
Third-party services like Frank Financial Aid are not affiliated with the government nor the common app.
The Department of Education says the safest way to apply is through the official government form and never pay to file the initial form, because it FAFSA is the free application, after all.
But every student is eligible and every student should apply.
