Kristen BixbyBy now, hopefully, your main financial aid applications (FAFSA, CSS Profile) are submitted. For those of you who applied under an early admission program, you may have already seen some financial aid awards. Think you’re done? Sorry: there may be more roads to travel. The colleges and government sure can make this financial aid process convoluted.
In January and February, colleges begin to heavily review financial aid applications and with this process, they often request additional documents from families. Don’t be alarmed! This is a standard part of the process.
Many colleges will reach out directly to the student (sometimes CC’ing the parents) notifying them to log into their applicant portals. These emails may be specific and list the new requirement, or be more general in nature, putting the onus on the student to actively identify the new requirement. Another scenario you may experience is when a college adds a new requirement to the application without sending a notification about that new requirement.
At Campus Bound, we recommend being proactive. By taking a few minutes to log into each school’s portal each week to ensure all requirements are satisfied, you will avoid having your financial aid award delayed. If the school is requesting parent or guardian tax returns, proof of citizenship, or an internal form, take a few minutes to fulfill their request. Many schools will require that you respond to these additional requests before moving forward with your financial aid award.
We know the financial aid process can be lengthy and involved. Contact us with your questions: we are here to help!