FOX 21 News, KQDS-DT

SUPERIOR - College is expensive, and applying for aid can be overwhelming, but one organization is here to help.

Having the grades good enough to get into college is only half the battle of attending college.

Figuring out how you’re going to pay for college is just as important.

“We wanted to make sure that when we do apply for college and financial aid, we get as much money as possible. Today, with the FAFSA it really helped clear up what we needed to know,” Travis Sznaider, incoming college freshman, said.

The first and most important step in getting help to pay for college, is filling out a FAFSA.

“I heard about it, I knew you had to fill it out, and I knew it was going to help you a lot with the process of financial aid, but that’s basically all I knew about it,” Sznaider said.

But, what exactly is the FAFSA?

“It stands for Free Application For Federal Student Aid. So, it’s the application that all students in our country have to fill out in order to apply for federal aid,” Donna Dahlvang, director of financial aid at the University of Wisconsin Superior and the site coordinator of College Goal Wisconsin, said.

And for the state of Wisconsin, it also doubles as the state application.

College Goal Wisconsin provided free information and assistance to families filing of the FAFSA at 31 sites across the state.

“These events are important especially for people who’ve never filed a FAFSA before, so that they’re in an environment that they’re comfortable in, especially if they aren’t particularly computer saavy and they aren’t comfortable doing it online,” Dahlvang said.

Luckily for Travis and his parents, it turns out, it wasn’t as difficult as they thought it would be.

“It was pretty easy once you got going. It helped a lot with what we need and what to expect for college coming up,” Sznaider said.

“It was pretty easy, couple little questions we needed help with, so we were glad we came and did it here so there was help available right there,” Tuula Sznaider, parent of incoming college freshman, said.

And with his FAFSA filed, Travis is one step closer to starting his college career.