Financial Aid Facts
There is a lot of information in an offer letter, but what does it all mean? Here is some information to help understand more about your financial aid, payment options, and other requirements:
About Your Financial Aid
COST OF ATTENDANCE (COA)
The COA is a budget of anticipated costs established by the institution for the following factors: Tuition, Fees, Room, Meals, Books/Supplies, Travel costs and Miscellaneous/Personal expenses.
ESTIMATED DIRECT COSTS
COA components that will be billed directly to the student by the institution. For Benedictine College, these items are Tuition & Fees, Room and Meals (if living on-campus).
STUDENT’S FINANCIAL NEED
A student’s Financial Need is determined by subtracting the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) score on the submitted FAFSA from the COA budget for the institution (assumes living on-campus).
GIFT AID
Financial aid provided to students that does not require repayment (free money). Scholarships and Grants are defined as Gift Aid.
SELF-HELP AID
Financial aid provided to students that requires a level of requirement. Student Loans and Work Study are considered Self-Help Aid because loans require repayment and Work Study requires the student to work for the funds to be paid in the form of a paycheck.
HOW MUCH DO I STILL OWE?
This is how much of the student’s charges billed by the institution are not covered by Gift Aid and Student Loans. If the student chooses not to utilize student loans, then the balance will be charges less Gift Aid. All charges and aid for the year are split between the Fall and Spring semesters.
Payment Options
After Gift Aid is applied, the student is responsible for paying the remaining balance. Here are options to consider:
FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS
By completing the FAFSA, the student is eligible to access Federal Direct Student Loans. The amounts of eligibility are determined by the US Dept. of Education. These loans can be subsidized (no interest to student while in school at least half-time) or unsubsidized (interest accrues while in school). An origination fee applies to these loans, so the student will receive the loan amount minus the origination fee each semester.
Loan funds (if accepted by student) will be disbursed to the student billing account in equal amounts each semester.
FEDERAL PARENT PLUS LOAN
Parents can utilize a federal loan to assist their student with paying their educational costs each year. An annual application is required. The application is available at studentaid.gov. An origination fee applies to this loan, meaning the student will receive the loan amount less the origination fee each semester. Excess loan funds can be refunded to the student or the parent (determined on the application). Please contact the Financial Aid Office at finaid@benedictine.edu if you have questions.
PRIVATE (ALTERNATIVE) LOAN
Private lenders offer loans to students and parents (select lenders). These loans will require a separate application and must receive credit-based approval. For students without a minimum two years of credit history, a credit-worthy co-signer may be required. These loans do not usually have an origination fee, so all borrowed funds are disbursed to the student billing account. The application process and a list of lenders is available here.
COLLEGE PAYMENT PLAN
Benedictine College offers a zero-interest monthly installment plan for families to pay their student’s remaining balance (after financial aid) each semester. Terms and Conditions for the plan can be accessed via the student’s RavenZone account.
Participation requires an enrollment fee each semester. Balances from the current semester must be resolved prior to enroll in plan for the subsequent semester.
COLLEGE 529 PLANS
If you plan to utilize a college 529 savings plan to assist with paying the student bill, please contact the Business Office at bcbusinessoffice@benedictine.edu to expedite timely distributions to the College.
VA BENEFITS
If you are looking to utilize a Veteran’s Administration (VA) Benefits to assist with paying the student bill, please contact the Financial Aid Office at finaid@benedictine.edu to begin the process for accessing this form of assistance.
OUTSIDE SCHOLARSHIPS
Students often receive scholarships from entities not affiliated with the College to be attended. Students receiving such scholarships should notify the Financial Aid Office of any pending award by providing a copy of the notification letter from the awarding entity, indicating the name of the award, the amount, and the anticipated timeframe for delivery of the funds. Funds will be applied to the student’s billing account upon receipt by the College. Award amounts up to and including $1,000 will be automatically applied toward first semester charges in full, unless otherwise indicated by the awarding entity.
WORK STUDY
Student employment through the College. Students interested in employment positions can access the application process in the Helpful Links section of their RavenZone after July 1. For other questions, contact the Financial Aid Office at finaid@benedictine.edu or call (913) 360-7484.
Other Requirements
Once you have your Offer Letter, there are other tasks the student will be required to complete for the financial aid to be disbursable to the billing account.
ACCEPTING/SIGNING THE OFFER LETTER
The student will be required to actively notify the College of the financial aid options they wish to utilize. This is done by logging into the student’s RavenZone and clicking on the Student
Self-Service link to complete this process within their student checklist.
ENTRANCE COUNSELING
Students choosing to utilize their federal student loan eligibility will be required to complete the federal entrance counseling process. This is accessible on the federal website studentaid.gov. This process is required before any loan funds will be disbursed to the student billing account. This counseling will be done one time and applies to both subsidized and unsubsidized student loans. This process introduces the student to loan terminology and advisement as a first-time student loan borrower.
ANNUAL STUDENT LOAN ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The U.S. Deptartment of Education is requiring all student loan borrowers (student and parent) to complete the Annual Student Loan Acknowledgment (ASLA) process. This process establishes an understanding by the borrower of their responsibility to repay the loan. This process is completed on the federal website studentaid.gov.
SIGNING THE MASTER PROMISSORY NOTE (MPN)
Students choosing to utilize their federal student loan eligibility will be required to sign the Master Promissory Note. This is accessible on the federal website studentaid.gov. Like with other types of loans, this is the contract stipulating the terms of the loan. This will be done one time during the student’s continued attendance at Benedictine College and applies to both subsidized and unsubsidized student loans.