Is FAFSA Simplification keeping you up at night? Or are you too busy to even think about it? Either way, please join us for the first in a series of virtual roundtable discussions for financial aid administrators on this topic co-sponsored by MEFA and MASFAA (Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators) and led by Gail Holt, Dean of Financial Aid at Amherst College and Chair of the NASFAA FAFSA Simplification Implementation Working Group, and Jill Desjean, Policy Analyst at NASFAA. Throughout these conversations, as information unfolds and we continue to learn more, we discuss the different approaches colleges are taking to implement these financial aid updates, learn from each other, and develop an execution plan for our own institutions.

Are you interested in supporting first-generation students through the college application process and their college years? Join this interactive webinar for counselors, college access professionals, and college administrators to learn more about some tools that can help first-generation students survive and thrive. The presenters discuss who are considered first-generation students, the variances that exists in the population, the issues and hurdles students face before and after college acceptance, and how we can all help them succeed.

This webinar provides key information that help participants guide students through applying to college. Topics include current trends in admissions, building a balanced list of colleges, the different components of the college application including transcripts, essays, and letters of recommendation and how to incorporate MEFA Pathway into the college admissions process.

This webinar provides an overview of the state-based financial aid programs in Massachusetts. Join Dr. Clantha McCurdy, Senior Deputy Commissioner of Access and Student Financial Assistance, as she discusses each of these programs and highlights some initiatives by the Commonwealth of MA and Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA). Live transcription will be available.

This webinar provides valuable guidance as you help high school seniors who have received college acceptance letters and financial aid offers and are trying to make the college decision. Topics include an overview of different types of financial aid, an explanation of how to calculate the balance due for each college, and methods for paying the college bill.

In this webinar for school counselors and college access professionals, learn how the Internship feature in MEFA Pathway, MEFA’s free college and career planning portal, helps students search for opportunities supporting work-based experiences, an integral component of the self-discovery journey.

In this webinar for school counselors and college access professionals, learn how the interests and values inventories in MEFA Pathway, MEFA’s free college and career planning portal, can help students discover which careers may fit them best. In addition, find out how students can start a careers list based upon criteria specific to them.

Learn how MEFA Pathway, MEFA’s free college and career planning portal, can help students find available scholarships, build a list of scholarships, and manage deadlines and awards. Also learn how to add Local Scholarships to the Counselor Portal for students to view and apply.

This webinar, presented by Suellen Dean, Senior Assistant Director of Financial Aid at Assumption University, Kevin DeRuosi, Associate Director of Special Programs and Compliance at Salem State University, and Karensa DiFonzo, Director of Student Financial Services at Wellesley College, provides guidance for school counselors and college access professionals in working with families with unique circumstances throughout the financial aid process. Topics include independent students, undocumented students, nontraditional parent families, and financial aid appeals.

This webinar for school counselors and college access professionals, presented by Gail Holt of Amherst College, introduces the nuts and bolts of the CSS Profile, a financial aid application required by roughly 200 colleges, universities, and scholarship agencies across the country. Topics include tips on completing the CSS Profile, specific financial and household data collected, and how colleges and universities use the application information.