BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's students are following the governor's stay at home directive, but the state government wants college-bound students to know they should still work on their Free Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) paperwork as soon as possible. 

In a statement released Thursday morning, the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance (LOSFA) urged the class of 2020 to apply for financial aid that does not need to be paid back. 

By completing an application, students will find out how much aid they qualify for, which can greatly reduce out-of-pocket expenses for post-secondary education. 

“The return on investment is far greater when completing the FAFSA as opposed to not completing the application,” said Brittani Williams, LOSFA’s Financial Aid and Career Development Specialist.  

The FAFSA is also the application for state aid such as the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS), and the Louisiana GO Grant. 

In addition to this, many institutions also use information from the FAFSA when deciding which students receive scholarships or institutional aid. Some national scholarships, like the Bill Gates Scholarship, also require completion of the FAFSA.

Students interested in completing FASFA and who would like assistance in doing so should text the word ‘LOSFA’ to 50065, use #GeauxFAFSA on social media, and/or email GeauxFAFSA@la.gov.