Your Financial Aid Offer

The Financial Aid Office will prepare your financial aid offer once you have been accepted to the college and you have submitted your FAFSA. Don’t forget to add Elms College’s school code: 002140. Students will be provided with their log-in credentials for ElmsConnect once they have been accepted to the college. Once they receive this information, they can check on the status of their financial aid offer anytime.

On the Financial Aid Page on ElmsConnect students can also see if the Financial Aid Office needs any documentation from the student or their family before they can create their offer. The Financial Aid Office will communicate to the student via email regarding any information that is missing but required in order for us to move forward with the student’s financial aid offer. Documents that need to be sent directly to the Financial Aid Office may be emailed to finaid@elms.edu.

Along with being able to view their offer online, financial aid offer packets will be emailed to the student’s email address. These packets are filled with important next steps, as well as critical next steps for you and your family.

Accepting or Declining Your Financial Aid Offer

If you don’t actually accept it, you won’t get it! Students will be required to visit the Financial Aid page on ElmsConnect to accept or decline their financial aid offers. An encrypted email with your ElmsConnect log-in credentials is emailed to the personal email for all new students from the IT Department at Elms College. If you did not receive this email (don’t forget to check your spam folder!), or if you have trouble activating your account, you may contact the Elms College Help Desk at helpdesk@elms.edu or 413-265-2390. If you accept any of the federal student loans you have been offered, you will also be instructed on ElmsConnect to complete both your Entrance Counseling (ENT) as well as your Master Promissory Note (MPN) on studentaid.gov.

Review the Financial Aid Enclosure

Although there is A LOT of information on this handout, it is super important to review so you and your family understand the financial aid policies at Elms College.

Calculate Your Balance with the Cost Planning Worksheet

Your financial aid offer packet will include a Cost Planning Worksheet that will allow you to use your financial aid offer to determine your out of pocket expense for the academic year. Sorry, there is math involved. Fill in the blanks using your financial aid offer. If you lost your financial aid offer, that’s okay! You can view your financial aid offer electronically on ElmsConnect (and even print a new copy for your records).

Understand Your Payment Options

Ok, you’ve figured out your estimated balance for the upcoming academic year. Use the 2020-2021 Payment Information handout you received in your financial aid offer packet, or visit the Loans & Payment Options webpage. Now’s the time to come up with a plan to reconcile your balance in preparation for your billing statement. If you have a plan, great! If not, feel free to reach out to your admission counselor or the Financial Aid Office for help.

Finalizing Your Financial Aid Offer

The Financial Aid Office may need to have students and/or parents complete/submit documents to our office in order for us to finalize the student’s financial aid offer. The Financial Aid Office will communicate this to students via email and/or telephone. Documents that need to be sent directly to the Financial Aid Office may be emailed to finaid@elms.edu. Students are responsible for responding to all requests from the Financial Aid Office in a timely manner. Students can view any outstanding documents on ElmsConnect 24/7. An encrypted email with your ElmsConnect log-in credentials is emailed to the personal email for all new students from the IT Department at Elms College. If you did not receive this email (don’t forget to check your spam folder!), or if you have trouble activating your account, you may contact the Elms College Help Desk at helpdesk@elms.edu or 413-265-2390.