Applying to college is an exercise in paperwork: recommendations, essays, the application itself, and the FAFSA — the form that determines whether your student is eligible for federal financial aid.

Hundreds of colleges use the CSS Profile to award institutional grants and scholarships to students. The 2025-26 form opened on Oct. 1, 2024. Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are ...

College financial-aid application season is coming soon. That means lots of angst, lots of questions—and lots of forms to fill out. As a minimum, most families should fill out the Free Application for ...

Non-federal financial aid, including the CSS Profile, helps US students cover college costs beyond federal aid like FAFSA. The CSS Profile, used by around 270 institutions, captures detailed financial ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and College Scholarship Service (CSS) Profile are the most common financial ...

The CSS Profile is an additional student aid application beyond the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) required at hundreds of private and public schools to be considered for ...

The CSS Profile, managed by the College Board, helps students access institutional financial aid beyond federal support. Unlike the FAFSA, it provides colleges with a detailed view of income, assets, ...

The College Scholarship Service PROFILE (CSS Profile) is an application for non-federal student financial aid that is administered by the College Board, the creator of the SAT. Nearly 400 of their ...

Julia Kagan is a financial/consumer journalist and former senior editor, personal finance, of Investopedia. Marguerita is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor ...

The University of Wisconsin will change its financial aid application process this fall by adding the College Scholarship Service Profile (CSS Profile). The CSS Profile is a longer, more detailed ...

The CSS Profile is an application for college financial aid required by about 200 undergraduate institutions. Completing the CSS Profile, short for the College Scholarship Service Profile, can be ...