Yes, the feds approve you for your loans "no matter what" as long as your STUDENT LOANS (and any tax debt) are in good standing. Basically, as long as you aren't "defaulted" (not just late..defaulted usually means 6+ months past due) on your student loans, don't owe any back taxes or child support, you're good to go with the Stafford Loans....and of course, you don't need a co-signer for federal money.
Oh yeah, for those of you that might be defaulted or late on student loans, as long as you've made arrangements and paid ON TIME for six months, you can still get NEW student loans. If you were only late once or twice, or if you've paid all the past due amounts, there shouldn't be any problem at all (or need for the 6-month "re-establishment" period). The feds are pretty lenient actually...a lot more so than "private" lenders. The key with federal loans is to keep them INFORMED! If you can't pay you're loans, just call them up (or go on-line) and it's quite easy to get deferments and/or forbearances on your loans.
One last thing, you should start processing your financial aid data (FAFSA) as SOON as you get your W2's (and your parent's) in January/February...even if you haven't been accepted ANYWHERE (or haven't decided which school you'll attend). All you do is name the "anticipated" schools on your FAFSA and the info will be sent to them. The FAFSA only has room for 6 schools, so you'll want to try to narrow down your list (assuming you applied to more than 6 schools), but even if you end up accepting at a school that you didn't "originally" list, it's quite easy to add them in at a later date (FAFSA is MUCH more efficient than AMCAS!)
Remember, most schools award scholarships/grants/low-interest "house" loans on a first-come-first-serve basis, so it's in your best interest to get your info to every school you can, as SOON as you can! That way, when you DO get accepted, they can immediately start processing your financial aid. Many students make the mistake of waiting to find out EXACTLY where they'll be going before they transmit their FAFSA...and they lose out on a lot of "free" money. Not to mention that if you wait til the last minute, there's a good chance that your aid won't be processed BEFORE school starts...which means you could receive your aid weeks (if not months) after classes begin (I still have classmates that heaven't received their aid, and we've been in class since the middle of August!) Makes it kinda hard to pay the rent....