How to Apply for Financial Aid

The financial aid application process and required documentation are different for domestic and international students.

Swarthmore considers you a domestic student if at least one of the following is true:

You are a U.S. citizen, U.S. dual citizen, or a U.S. Permanent Resident in possession of a valid Green Card*
You are eligible to complete and submit a valid FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
You are undocumented or in the Asylee/Refugee status application process, and you reside in the U.S., and are graduating from a U.S. high school.

* Individuals currently applying for permanent residency but who do not possess a Green Card at the time of application are not considered a domestic student.

If you don’t fall in any of the above categories, you are considered an international student.

Applying for financial aid can feel overwhelming, but our staff is here to help make the application process as smooth as possible. Below, you’ll find information about what you need to get started.

Preparing to Apply for Financial Aid
Logging into the FAFSA and the CSS Profile

Preparing to Apply for Financial Aid

Swarthmore College requires domestic students to submit the CSS Profile and the Free Application for Federal Financial Aid (FAFSA). International students also must submit the CSS Profile.

Here's what you and your family should gather before starting the FAFSA and CSS Profile.

1. 2024 Tax Documents

You'll need your family’s complete federal income tax return from 2024, including:

All pages and schedules (personal and business, if applicable)
W-2s and 1099s

How to submit tax documents:

Use the College Board’s IDOC tool to upload tax documents. You will gain access to this tool after completing the CSS Profile.
When filing the FAFSA, provide consent and approval to retrieve and disclose federal tax information with the Future Act Direct Data Exchange. This is required even if a tax return was not filed.

Note: The Future Act Direct Data Exchange will not work if your parents:

Are married but filed taxes separately
Are married and filed as Head of Household
Filed Puerto Rican or foreign tax returns

In these cases, tax info must be entered manually on the FAFSA.

Commonly Asked Question: What Is "Prior-Prior Year"?
Both the FAFSA and CSS Profile use tax info from two years earlier. To apply for financial aid in 2026–2027, use 2024 tax data. This policy gives families more time to prepare since most have already filed their 2024 taxes.

2. Asset Values Information

Have your most recent statements ready (not from 2024), including:

Checking and savings account balances
Stocks, bonds, and other investments
The current market value and debt of any real estate you own (including your primary home)
Retirement accounts (Values are required to complete the CSS Profile; however, Swarthmore does not include them in our needs analysis)
Business value and debt (if applicable)

3. Expenses & Additional Financial Info

The CSS Profile will also ask about:

Sibling child care costs
Sibling private school tuition
Out-of-pocket medical expenses
Trust funds (name, number of beneficiaries, and value)
Inheritances
Untaxed income (source and amount)
Student loan payments made by parents for their own education

Tip
Keep all your financial documents in one folder or digital drive in PDF so you can easily access them during the application process—and in case you need to refer back later.

What login accounts are used for logging into the FAFSA and the CSS Profile?

Parents and their dependent children who are applying for financial aid will each need their own unique and secure login IDs for the CSS Profile and the FAFSA.

When applying for financial aid, both parents and their dependent children need their own separate login accounts for FAFSA and the CSS Profile. Here's what to know:

Students & Parents Need Separate IDs for FAFSA
Students and parents each need their own FSA ID (a username and password) for the FAFSA. You’ll use your FSA ID to login to the FAFSA site and electronically sign and submit the FAFSA. Student and parent FSA IDs must be different: don’t share logins!
Students & Parents Need Separate IDs for the CSS Profile

Similar to FAFSA, students and parents need separate logins for the CSS Profile. They should each create their own College Board account to access and submit their parts of the application.

Divorced and Separated Parents
For the FAFSA, only one contributor (in most cases, a parent) is needed. For the CSS Profile, each parent must create a separate parent account when submitting financial aid forms. This helps keep everyone's information secure and accurate.

To promote sustainability and security of information, the application process for a Swarthmore College need-based scholarship is paperless and electronic. All documentation is submitted electronically. Documentation must be authentic and submitted in its original, unaltered form. Documentation that has been altered, forged, fabricated, or otherwise manipulated in any way is considered fraudulent. This type of discovery may lead to indefinite ineligibility for Swarthmore College financial aid and potential ineligibility for other sources of financial aid as well.

Prospective students access their Financial Aid Checklist via their Applicant Status page portal link sent from the Admissions Office.

Current students should access their financial aid checklist in mySwarthmore to check application status. Students must reapply for financial aid each year following the same application process. Please allow a few days for electronic processing of your application before viewing your financial aid checklist on mySwarthmore.