I believe that the f/a person is a big part in keeping the student calm about the choice they have made to attend school...f/a is a scary thing especially for the first time student or first in the family...I have had students meet with f/a only to never be heard from again...I think its wise for all parties to be fully informed and work together in insuring the student understands the entire procedure...Im very adament that a student is to meet with me after every f/a appointment before leaving the building, this procedure has helped clear up many issues of mis-understanding for the student. If I find a student is confused or if f/a feels they are we sit down together with the student and re-visit the situation until were able to solve it
I have always believed that the best training for admissions reps is to say that FA will answer all of your questions and concerns, they will help to make your education affordable and that's it!Every one has different financial issues so it is not a good idea to generalize.
Brandi,
There is so much information to cover and the last thing we do not want to do is muddy the waters. Having the shift to FAO brings in a new conversation.
Patty,
Great post! Many reasons for the experts in FA to take over.
Maria,
Agreed! We all have our expertise.
Terry,
I like your descriptives of oversharing, overstating, overgeneralizing and overlooking. It made me think seriously about the path we take when speaking with students about FA.
I agree!! We wouldn't want financial aid representatives to start advising our students about start dates, programs, and why they need to change their lives!
NO. ONLY if the admissions rep is the financial aid advisor which makes it seamless in a smaller school. There is so much involved in Title IV funding and it's personal and emotional and ongoing from interview to graduation. Admissions reps could use a generic handout stating something like this "Our school offers Federal Pell Grants and Federal Student Loans for those who qualify. Students who wish to apply for financial aid must have a personal interview with the financial aid advisor(or visit the FA office) and complete the appropriate application. Amounts of awards are determined by the amount of financial need the student can demonstrate." and maybe include a little map to FA office.
I agree. It is a fine line between knowing and sharing. If an admissions rep is aware of the maximums in loan and pell and discloses such with a student, then he or she may feel entitled to the same. Ultimately, it can leave a student with a lot of concerns in addition to comparing and contrasting with others who may have qualified for more.
I agree that too much knowledge of FA policies can lead some Admissions Representatives to overshare with students or overstate their own expertise. It is helpful in understanding student's expectations to know about FA policies and how the student's thoughts may conflict. However the danger lies in over generalizing and overlooking the subtleties that make each student's FA package unique.
I believe that it is very important to know the basics about FA for an admissions representative since it is very common that after seeing the FA department students have so much information in their heads, that sometimes it is ovelwhelming for them so corroborating the info given for FA department is a good thing to do, but only the basics, like "grants awarded don't need to be repaid, but loans do"
I believe the best way to assist a student with Financial Aid issues is to refer them to the Financial Aid experts rather than risk the possibility of giving a student incorrect information that can come back as severely daminig to the admission rep as well as the school.
Deborah,
It takes the whole school to work together but we do need to let the experts take over for the details.
Mark,
The financial aid process and information can be overwhelming.
Deborah,
Your post has reiterated the many misconceptions surrounding financial aid.
I agree, Admissions only aware of bare minimums, FAFSA, all other policies and regulations will be put them in violations.
That is true that you do walk a fine line when you ask and answer questions about FA. However, admissions rep's should be aware of basic information on FA; for example, FAFSA and Loans. Majority of the students do know about FA, so having admissions knowledgeable will be great!
Over time we have learned that it is best both for the potential student and the employees to be subject matter experts in very specific arenas. We have experts in Admissions and Business Office. And while both teams can converse about each others topics, the depth of knowledge resides with the SMEs. We believe this provides better customer service for the potential student.
Even if not to provide that information to new applicants, but to be savvy enough to understand the guidelines, rules and policies that they can better help walk a perspective student through those steps, and corroborate what is being said by the financial aid department .
I feel it would be too easy to send the student in the wrong direction. Also its gives us an advantage as the good guy admin rep. Students love us, not always them.
