Basics

FAFSA

FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. It is the Department of Education's official application for federal student aid programs.

The amount the student is expected to pay, referred to as the Expected Family Contribution (EFC), is determined by the information submitted on the FAFSA. As a graduate/professional student, you are considered an independent student, and only your information is included in the EFC calculation.

When a student submits a FAFSA, the information is sent to the Department of Education's Central Processing System (CPS). CPS generates two reports, a Student Aid Report (SAR) and an Institutional Student Information Report (ISIR). The SAR is sent to the student, and the ISIR is sent to institutions selected by the student on the FAFSA. ACOM then uses the ISIR to determine a student's eligibility for various financial aid programs.

Title IV Eligibility Requirements

In order to qualify for federal student aid, students are required to meet certain federal requirements which include but are not limited to the following:

1. Be a U.S. citizen or an eligible noncitizen. Eligible noncitizen is defined as a U.S. national (includes natives of American Samoa or Swains Island), U.S. permanent resident (who has an I-151, I-551 or I-551C [Permanent Resident Card]), or an individual who has an Arrival-Departure Record (I-94) from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) showing one of the following designations:
   1. "Refugee"
   2. "Asylum Granted"
   3. "Cuban-Haitian Entrant (Status Pending)"
   4. "Conditional Entrant" (valid only if issued before April 1, 1980)
   5. Victims of human trafficking, T-visa (T-2, T-3, or T-4, etc.) holder
   6. "Parolee" (You must be paroled into the United States for at least one year and you must be able to provide evidence from the USCIS that you are in the United States for other than a temporary purpose and that you intend to become a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.)
2. Have a valid Social Security number (with the exception of students from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau).
3. Most male students must be registered with Selective Service to receive federal student aid. You also must register if you are a male and are not currently on active duty in the U.S. armed forces. If you are a citizen of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands or the Republic of Palau, you are exempt from registering. You can call Selective Service toll-free at 1-888-655-1825 for general information about registering, or register online at www.sss.gov or via the FAFSA.
4. Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a regular student in an eligible degree or certificate program. A regular student is someone who is enrolled or accepted for enrollment at an institution for the purpose of obtaining a degree, certificate, or other recognized education credential offered by that institution.
5. Be enrolled at least half-time to be eligible for Direct Loan Program funds.
6. Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress.
7. Possess a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent.
8. You must not be in default on a federal student loan, and you cannot owe money on a federal student grant.
9. You must not be convicted of the sale or possession of illegal drugs while receiving federal student aid.
10. If applying for a Federal Direct Grad PLUS loan, you must not have a negative credit history.

Drug Convictions & Title IV Eligibility

Students convicted of a federal or state offense of selling or possessing illegal drugs may not be eligible for federal student aid (grants, loans, and work-study). Students who answer "Yes" to the drug conviction question on the FAFSA will be sent a worksheet by the federal processing center to determine if the conviction affects eligibility for aid. In addition, if the Financial Aid Office is notified that a student has been convicted of possession or sale of illegal drugs during the academic year, all federal student aid will be suspended immediately.

If a conviction was reversed, set aside, or removed from the student's record, it does not count. Convictions occurring during periods of non-enrollment do not count. In addition, any conviction received as a juvenile does not count, unless they were tried as an adult.

The chart below illustrates the period of ineligibility for federal student aid funds, depending on whether the conviction was for sale or possession and whether the student had previous offenses. (A conviction for the sale of drugs includes convictions for conspiring to sell drugs.)

Students regain eligibility the day after the period of ineligibility ends or when they successfully complete a qualified drug rehabilitation program. Further drug convictions will make them ineligible again. Students denied eligibility for an indefinite period can regain it only after successfully completing a rehabilitation program or if a conviction is reversed, set aside, or removed for the student's record so that fewer than two convictions for sale or three convictions for possession remain on the record. In such cases, the nature and dates of the remaining convictions will determine when the student regains eligibility.

It is the student's responsibility to certify to the Financial Aid Office the date of the conviction and if (s)he has completed a drug rehabilitation program.

Verification

Verification is the process by which the Office of Financial Aid checks the accuracy of information submitted by the student on his or her FAFSA. It is intended to reduce errors in the financial information that students submit so that eligible applicants can receive the correct amount of financial assistance.

When a student submits the FAFSA to CPS, CPS determines whether the school will be required to verify the application. CPS sends verification instructions to ACOM via the student's ISIR. ACOM will review all applications which are required to be verified. Students who are selected for verification will be contacted via email and required to submit additional documentation to the Office of Financial Aid, including an IRS tax return transcript and an Independent Verification Worksheet. If selected, financial aid will not be awarded until the verification process is complete.

Cost of Attendance Determination

The Cost of Attendance (COA) is defined as an estimate of a student's educational expenses for a period of enrollment and is determined annually by the Director of Financial Aid. The COA for a given award year indicates the annual limit for a student's total financial aid package. Every effort is made to ensure that allowances in each category are realistic and fair. Currently, expense levels in many cost categories are based upon data made available by the IRS.

Need Determination

Need is defined as Cost of Attendance (COA) minus a student's Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as determined by the FAFSA. EFC is defined as a measure of how much the student and his or her family can be expected to contribute to the cost of the student's education for the year.

Financial need is a prerequisite for the awarding of some sources of financial aid, and assistance may be limited by need. Although every effort is made to meet a student's financial need, financial assistance is not an entitlement and, in some instances, not all of a student's need will be met.

Special Circumstances

A Financial Aid Administrator may exercise professional judgment to assist students that have extenuating circumstances which warrant a reevaluation of their eligibility for financial aid. Examples of possible extenuating circumstances include but are not limited to:

• Involuntary loss of employment (e.g. termination, lay off) of student, spouse, mother or father;
• Reduction or loss of untaxed income or benefits (e.g. unemployment compensation, social security, AFDC, etc.) for student, spouse, mother or father;
• Divorce or separation of student or parent;
• Death of mother, father or spouse;
• Extraordinary medical expenses paid by student, spouse, mother or father not covered by insurance.

Students who wish to make a request for professional judgment will be required to submit a Professional Judgment Request form and documentation to support the evaluation. Requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and required documenation will vary among students. For more information, please contact the Office of Financial Aid.

Overview of the Financial Aid Process

• The student completes all items listed on the Application Quick Reference.
• The Central Processing System (CPS) performs matches and edits, and calculates a student's EFC.
• ACOM receives the student's application electronically within three to five business days.
• If the student's application must be verified, the Office of Financial Aid requests additional documentation from the student via email.
• Once a student's application has been reviewed for completeness, the Office of Financial Aid sends the student an award notice via email.
• Following the instructions on the award notice, the student logs in to Net Partner and accepts, refuses, or modifies the award package.
• Within three to five business days, the Office of Financial Aid schedules loans, scholarships, and grants accepted by the student.
• On the scheduled disbursement date(s), the Office of Financial Aid confirms that the student is still eligible for aid, and authorizes disbursement of funds by the Business Office.
• Within three business days, the Business Office requests funds from the appropriate programs and posts funds to the student's ACOM account.
• If a credit balance is owed to the student, and proper documentation is on file, a payment will be directly deposited into the student's checking account within three business days. Otherwise, a check will be issued to the student.