Arielle Spiridigliozzi, an incoming Kansas University freshman from Lawrence, and her mom, Erin Spiridigliozzi, work together on financial aid forms during College Goal Sunday on Feb. 8 at KU’s Eaton Hall.

Lu Ann Nystrom sat in Eaton Hall recently with her soon-to-be college-age daughter, Stephanie Nystrom.

Together, the pair were trying to negotiate the Free Application for Federal Student Aid — the FAFSA form that unlocks not just federal aid, but all sorts of institutional aid as well.

Stephanie, a high school senior who is partially home-schooled and attends some class at Veritas Christian School in Lawrence, had only recently heard of the form.

As experts will confirm, it’s about time to start submitting those forms for financial aid, if students and their parents haven’t already.

Though the form may seem like a bureaucratic hassle, it’s important for everyone to fill one out, says Stephanie Covington, associate director of Kansas University’s Office of Student Financial Aid.

Yes, it’s important even if you don’t qualify for federal grants, Covington says. Especially in this economy, remember that loans might not seem important at the time but might become more important at a time when layoffs and cuts abound. Students might need to find money fast.

With a properly completed FAFSA form, the process for a student to get a loan can take as fast as a couple of days in a pinch, Covington said.

Another important date to keep in mind is the school’s priority date for receiving FAFSA forms — KU’s is March 1.

Forms received by the priority date (it varies by institution) can be eligible for more funding provided by the college or university, Covington says.

And you don’t need to have your taxes done — an estimate will work fine, and an amendment can be filed later, she says.

Robert Shandy, a counselor at Lawrence High School, says his school frequently sends out reminders for important dates in the college application process.

He says the school will also frequently issue reminders to students using events such as a financial aid night in January and a scholarship news bulletin to coax people along the road to filing a FAFSA.

The process has now mostly moved online, Shandy says.

“They try to really simplify it,” he says. “It’s really not that bad.”

Shandy, too, stresses that simply filling out the FAFSA form is the simplest and best way to qualify for aid.

Covington says that even need-based loans can provide government-subsidized interest payments at rates much better than what are usually available on the open market.

“This is called a FREE Application for Federal Student Aid,” she says, emphasizing that it costs next to nothing to fill out.

Shandy says he encourages his students to apply for a number of different sources for aid.

For people like the Nystroms, any financial help is appreciated, even if it means sifting through some paperwork. Stephanie Nystrom is choosing among three schools, and her top two are smaller schools — LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas, and Sterling College in Sterling.

For her mother, like many others, the financial situation is different than it was six months ago.

“All our money is very different now,” Lu Ann says. “It gets a little more complicated.”