<p>I submitted my FAFSA as a full-time student. If sometime during the fall semester I choose to get a job, would I have to change my status as a working student? How will this affect the grant money I would have already received in the beginning of the semester? Do working students get significantly less money than students who don’t work?</p>
<p>No, you don’t change your status unless the number of credits you’re taking drops below the threshold that your school considers full-time (generally, 12 credits/semester). Then you would be a part-time student…there is no FA classification called “working student” and most students work at least a few hours a week.</p>
<p>The effect that your wages would have on FA depends on the type of job (work-study or non-ws) and how much you earn. Work study jobs do not affect your EFC as they are reported on FAFSA as part of the student’s AGI, but then adjusted for in the formula. Non work-study jobs don’t have this benefit, but students do have an income protection allowance built into the EFC calculation. For 10/11, that’s $4500 (after allowances for taxes). So, the first $4500+ you earn will not add to your EFC at all. Above that, student income is assessed at 50%.</p>