You are right the FA policy changes daily so we leave that up to staff of FA
Admissions are exepected to follow guidelines and procedures for the admissions roles. Even if the admissions representative is well educated on the financial aid process that in depth information should be conveyed by the financial aid officer.
I agree that it's best left to the FA specialists. However, it is important to understand how to overcome FA obstacles. Point blank if they do not see the value in the institution then chances are the person will not be ok with tuition or be interested in sitting down with an FA specialist. I do want to stress that it is important we include the prospects buying party with them in the process. Whether it's a grandparent, spouse, sibling, relative or guardian it would be a lot harder for the student/prospect to explain FA to their buying party at home then if they are together at the meeting. We should not go into details of FA but we should know the basic so that we could buffer any obstacles that come up in the meeting. It is important for the FA specialist to keep us informed if they feel the student is uneasy. Us reps have the strongest/closet relationship with the student so we should make sure they are comfortable with how the FA meeting went. Since we cannot be in the room with them during the FA meeting then we have to make sure we understand what is going on with our students. Whether they will be part time, if there is an out of pocket, if parent or spouse needs to be involved, or if they are any concerns that we might be able to help them overcome.Sometimes in the room they didn't feel comfortable or forgot to ask the FA specialist. We should be following up with students with any documents that need to be brought back in order for the student to be completely packaged.This would ensure a smoother enrollment and the student would be able to start class without having to run around from department to department or be prevented from starting because of lack of communication between departments or students.
William,
FA details and discussions should really be held in the Financial Aid office. Unfortunately, many students have been mislead in the sector by admissions wanting the make the sale.
Becky,
Being a good admissions rep is knowing how to hand off the prospective student.
I agree. I do however feel that the Admissions Office NEEDS to be in the know a little more than they are on policies, refunds, LOA's, how attendance affects FA, all sorts of things...Also if we're the first point of contact for everything we need to know everything.
I completely understand that the FAO is the go to person for all these things, but when they ask you and you just point them to someone else... it looks like you're telling them "I don't know that answer".
I completely agree that this is a matter that is best left to FA specialists. They have been expertly trained in all things financial. While we want to assume the confident, all knowing role of Admissions rep, we should divert to the expert. Whenever I have a student ask me questions about FA, I tell them that our FA department is highly qualified to answer those types of questions and the last thing I want to do is provide them with misinformation. Our FA department is ready to meet with potential students to answer all of their questions correctly. On the flip side, Admissions is required to have knowledge of the FA process and how it works. It is crucial to understand all aspects of the education process, from marketing to graduate placement. This gives me the opportunity to be confident when speaking with a student.
I agree, however; A rep or agent should be knowledgeable of the FA packages. They sometimes can make or break a deal.
Dov,
It is a precarious road to follow. Even the best intentions can lead to misinformation.
Richard,
This is an important point regarding misleading information. That is why we have experts.
I think that a admissions representative should be knowledgeable in the various options concerning financial aid, however this is definetely the role of a specialist. There are a variety of mistakes that can be made trying to cover or explain this.
While I couldn't agree more that the two jobs should not overlap, they do! It seems it cannot be avoided. I went to a financial aid conference recently where I heard for the first time that I, as an Admissions Specialist, was not to do financial aid, I receive hundreds of calls on a regular basis regarding our programs and one of the top questions is financial aid. I am careful not to go into specifics, as I do not know the potential students financial situation. I give the basics...yes, we are Title iv approved, which means the Pell Grant. It's public knowledge what the max on the Pell is. I always say, "if you qualify." Once I notify the potential student if they passed our entrance test, I schedule the appointment. Period, end of story. I do know the refund policy if it comes up, which it does on occassion, particularly someone who knows they do not qualify for Pell. They want to know if they will get their money back if they do not enroll.
While this thinking is obviously correct, agents (as recruiters) will try their best to explain the product at hand. As FA is very likely to come up, an agent should at least have a basic grasp as to what the institution offers so as not to make any misleading statements.
There's no question one should keep these departments seperate. By saying something incorrect you can put your school in jeopardy with regards to compliance.
David,
FA regulations seem to be changing daily. That is why we leave those discussions to FA staff.
Steve,
Your school has in place a Best Practice when it comes to questions on Financial Aid!
To best serve the student, each area such as admissions and FA requires fully trained specialist in those areas, to provide the best information to the student and ensure that all of their questions are being answered. At our school we have a finance manager or director at each campus who meets w/students and advises the student on options for funding their education. Admissions staff do not go into detail on any aspects of FA, rather deferring those discussion to the finance experts.
