Q. Who is
eligible to receive financial aid?
A. Students who apply for and receive financial aid
must be degree-seeking candidates, enrolled at least
half-time (at least six credits per semester) to receive
federal aid, or enrolled full-time (at least 12 credits
per semester) to receive institutional aid. Federal
regulations specify that federal aid recipients must
be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or eligible non-citizens.
Some Pell recipients can receive Pell grant for less than half time enrollment.
Q.
What are financial aid awards based on?
A. Awards are based on demonstrated need, academic progress,
and fund availability.
Q. What’s
a FAFSA?
A. FAFSA is a “Free Application for Federal Student
Aid.” The first step in applying for financial
aid is to fill out this standard federal application
used to determine a student’s eligibility for
all federal and most forms of other financial aid.
Submit
the FAFSA as soon after January 1 as possible to increase
your chances of getting the aid you need. You will
need
both your parents’ and your tax information from
the previous year to complete the FAFSA. The schools you
indicate on your FAFSA will also
get a copy of the application.
Q. On average,
how much aid do students usually receive?
A. The average undergraduate award in 07-08 was nearly $11,634.
Q. How is
the amount of aid determined?
A. A federal and institutional formula is used to calculate
a family’s
contribution. This is deducted from the cost of attendance,
resulting in the family’s need. The amount of
need a family demonstrates determines the amount of
assistance the student is eligible to receive.
The college does not meet need in all cases.
Q. Does a
financial aid request affect my admissions decision?
A. Financial need has no bearing on your admission to
Elms College.
Q. What is
the deadline for submitting financial aid applications?
A. Financial aid applications from incoming students
are accepted on a rolling basis. To receive priority
consideration for financial aid, new students
should return all requested documents by March
1(returning students by April 15)
Q. Can I view my financial aid information online?
A.Yes. At: https://elmsnet.elms.edu/netpartnerstudent. Student ID's are mailed to all new students from Amissions. PIN's are mailed to all applicants for admission starting in January of each year.
Q. What documents are required to make a complete financial aid application at Elms College?
A. All students should submit the following documents:
- Free Application for Federal Student Aid (Elms College school code is 002140)
- If selected for a process called verification, student will be asked to send signed copies of the most recent federal 1040 and federally dependant students will be asked to also send a copy of the parent's signed 1040.
Q. Should
I wait until after I am admitted to file financial aid
applications?
A. First year and transfer students must be accepted
for admission to Elms College before aid eligibility
will be determined and awarded. However, you should
begin applying for financial aid as soon as possible
after January 1.
Q. How are
private scholarships incorporated into financial aid
awards?
A. Federal regulations require that students notify
financial aid services of any scholarships, grants,
or loans received from sources outside the college.
The outside resources must be considered as financial
aid, and therefore may result in a change in the aid
package. In the event of an overaward, we will reduce
or eliminate PLUS loans, Alternative Loans, unsubsidized Stafford Loans, Federal Work Study, Federal Subsideized Stafford Loans, Grants/ Scholarships, in that order.
Q. Can students
expect to receive similar aid packages from year to
year?
A. Financial aid is not automatically renewable. Families
must reapply each academic year. If financial circumstances
remain unchanged from year to year and applicants meet
the priority-filing deadline, financial aid packages
should contain approximately the same amount of aid.
Changes to a family’s financial circumstances
include increases or decreases in overall income, number
of family members in the household, and the number of
family members in college.
Q. If I need
to supplement my aid package, what other sources of
assistance are available?
A. We can provide you with information on other sources
of funds, and there is information available on the
Internet. For starters, you can check these sites:
- Massachusetts
Office of Student Financial Assistance
The Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA)
is primarily responsible for the administration of
all state funded financial aid programs. The mission
of the Massachusetts Office of Student Financial Assistance
is to provide access to financial aid resources to
Massachusetts residents.
- College View
The College View site has a financial aid section
that includes information on understanding financial
aid, and a scholarship search and directory.
- Peterson’s
Education Center
Peterson’s site has a financial aid channel
that allows the user to research scholarships, loans,
and other financial information.
- U.S. Department of
Education
The Department (ED) will provide more than $67 billion
this year, about 70 percent of all student aid, to
help millions of students and families pay for postsecondary
education. This site has a financial aid section that
includes a guide to finding financial aid, which tells
who is eligible for student financial aid and how
to apply. It provides information about accrediting
agencies, tax credits for education expenses, and
additional sources of aid. You can compare programs
and costs at 9,000 postsecondary schools in the U.S.,
apply for aid online, and find answers to questions
such as, "Why should I go to college? What can
I do to prepare for college?"
- Financial Aid Information
Page
FinAid was established in the fall of 1994 as a public
service. This award-winning site has grown into the
most comprehensive annotated collection of information
about student financial aid on the web. Access to
FinAid is free for all users and there is no charge
to link to the site.
- The College
Board
This site has a “Paying for College” section
that can help you figure out what college really
costs,
and what you can afford. Advice, information, and
interactive tools will help you navigate the financial
aid maze and figure out how to pay the bill.
- Fast Web Scholarship
Sources
This is a free scholarship search database containing
600,000 scholarships worth over a billion dollars.
- YAHOO!
Financial Aid Search
YAHOO! provides lists of sites for available grants,
scholarships and loans.
- College Answer
The Planning for college destination
- Broke Scholar
A comprehensive scholarships database that matches student information with relevant financial aid opportunities
Q. What
types of financial aid are available?
A. A financial aid package may be made up of federal,
state and college funds, available in the following
forms:
- Merit based
scholarships, which are
awarded by the college at the time of admission and
do not depend on need
- Need-based assistance, such as grants
(do not require repayment) awarded by the college,
Federal Pell Grants, or state grants.
- Loans (must be repaid), which are
available from the federal and state governments;
and
- Employment, through federal work-study
funds, which provides part-time jobs for students
during the academic year.
Q. As a student,
can I be the applicant for an alternative loan?
A. Yes, some lenders will allow you to be the primary applicant. If you or
your parents (who are typically co-signers) have adverse
credit (including late payments, charge-offs or bankruptcies),
you might want to consider a more creditworthy co-signer.
Q. Does the college offer a payment plan?
A. Yes, the college contracts this service with Tuition Management Systems.
Q. How can parents apply for a PLUS loan?
A.Contact Sallie Mae at www.opennet.salliemae.com or call 1-888-799-5118
Q. On Average, how much debt do Elms College students incur?
A. For students who graduated between 09/01/2006-06/30/2007, the average debt from loans (from any source) while at Elms College was $26,605.50. The average debt from federal loans while at Elms College was $18,063.
Q. What is the percentage of students at Elms College who borrow money from any source for their college education?
A. The percentage of students who borrowed from any source between 09/01/2006-06/30/2007 was 84.21%. The percentage of students who borrowed from a federal source was 83%.
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