Family Guide to Financial Aid at Harding

Resources Family contribution Tax savings Scholarships Grants Work Study Student loans Parent loan

How financial need is determined Formula established by Congress and implemented by the U.S. Department of Education Cost of Attendance (COA) - Expected Family Contribution (EFC) = Financial Need

Cost of Attendance Fixed Costs: Estimated Costs: Tuition & Fees Room & Board Estimated Costs: Books & Supplies Transportation Miscellaneous & Personal Expenses

Family contribution Based on federal guidelines, it is assumed that both parents and students are expected to contribute to educational costs, at a rate based upon your financial ability to do so.

Expected Family Contribution factors Parent’s prior/prior year income Value of parent’s assets Number of household members Age of the oldest parent Student’s prior/prior year income Value of student’s assets Number in household attending college

Theory of Financial Aid A B C COA 3,000 12,000 38,000 EFC 2,500 2,500 2,500 Need 500 9,500 35,500

Filling out the FAFSA Not Difficult Have completed tax return (for prior/prior year) handy – IRS Data Transfer Point in Time Document Help is available Must have a FSA ID for both student and one parent (fafsa.gov)

Submitting the FAFSA FAFSA on the web - fafsa.gov Approximate processing time: 3 business days

Tax benefits - Consult your tax adviser or see IRS Publication 970 (available at www.irs.gov) for information on education tax benefits

Important changes for 2017-18! The 2017-18 FAFSA is available online on October 1, 2016. It will utilize “prior-prior year” income information. Thus, the 2017-18 FAFSA will require 2015 IRS information, the same as the 2016-17 FAFSA. Going forward, virtually everyone should be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.

Sources of Financial Aid Federal Government Pell Grant SEOG (Grant) TEACH Grant College Work Study Perkins Loan Fed Direct Stu Loan Parent PLUS Loan State Governments State supported aid Institutional Programs Scholarships Grants Loans Private Resources Comm. & Religious organizations Corporations

Federal grants Federal Pell Grant EFC of 5328 or less (2017-18) Ranges from $596 to $5,920 (2017-18) Apply by submitting FAFSA Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) Extremely high need $500 Limited funding

Federal grants TEACH Grant / Loan www.teachgrant.ed.gov - $4,000 per year (undergrad/grad) less sequestration reduction - Academic achievement requirements - Agreement to serve and counseling requirements - Must teach in high need field (bilingual education and English language acquisition, foreign language, math, reading specialist, science, special education) - Must teach in a school serving low-income students on approved list for four years out of eight year period - If conditions are not met, grant becomes an unsubsidized Federal Direct loan with interest backdated to first disbursement www.teachgrant.ed.gov

Work Study Apply for federal Work Study by submitting FAFSA Student seeks job on campus Two rates of pay offered, based on need: 1. Federal Work Study is need-based (AR minimum wage @ $8 per hour) 2. Harding Work is NOT need-based ($6.80 per hour)

Federal Direct student loan Subsidized if need-based (government pays interest in school) Unsubsidized if not need-based (interest accrues in school) $5,500 freshmen ($3,500 sub + $2,000 unsub) $6,500 sophomores ($4,500 sub + $2,000 unsub) $7,500 juniors/seniors ($5,500 sub + $2,000 unsub) Fixed interest rate 3.76% (2016-17) Origination fee 1.068% 6 month grace period Submit FAFSA to apply Entrance counseling and Master Promissory Note required (www.studentloans.gov) Aggregate loan limits

Federal Direct PLUS parent loan A parent may borrow up to the cost of attendance minus any other financial aid awarded Parent borrower must be credit-worthy Parent cannot obtain PLUS loan without completing FAFSA Fixed interest rate 6.31% (2016-17) Origination fee 4.272% Deferment available while student is in school, but interest will accrue

Federal Direct PLUS parent loan Apply at www.studentloans.gov after April 1 - Sign in as parent using parent FSA ID - Complete PLUS application and PLUS MPN If PLUS denied due to adverse credit, student awarded additional Federal Direct unsubsidized loan automatically $4,000 (freshmen and sophomores) $5,000 (juniors and seniors)

Non-federal student loan To be utilized only after all other types of aid are awarded Interest rates and fees vary based on credit worthiness Credit-worthy co-borrower required for most students Allow at least 30 days to process For information visit www.harding.edu/finaid and click on “Apply for Student/Parent Loans” and then click on “Alternative Private Loan Search”

Applying for financial aid Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Obtain FSA ID for parent and student at fsaid.ed.gov (retain to use again) 2) Complete FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov after October 1 but before HU’s February 15 priority deadline Utilize IRS Data Retrieval Tool within FAFSA 3) If selected for verification, promptly follow instructions in student’s Pipeline account (red flags) For an early estimate, use www.fafsa4caster.ed.gov

Award notification After FAFSA is processed, email sent and award letter mailed If “selected for verification”, required documents must be submitted Tracking notice sent if any requirements are missing Revised award and tracking notices sent by e-mail

Important changes for 2017-18! The 2017-18 FAFSA is available online on October 1, 2016. It will utilize “prior-prior year” income information. Thus, the 2017-18 FAFSA will require 2015 IRS information, the same as the 2016-17 FAFSA. Going forward, virtually everyone should be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.

Scholarships and info www.harding.edu/finaid www.fastweb.com www.finaid.org www.mappingyourfuture.org www.studentaid.gov www.adhe.edu (Arkansas residents) Ask your high school guidance counselor about local scholarships

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Arkansas Academic Challenge funded by the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery Governor’s Distinguished Scholars Program

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Arkansas Academic Challenge – Graduate from an AR high school (public, private or home) At least a 19 ACT Composite Apply between Oct. 1 and June 1 at adhe.edu. Click on “YOUniversal” app. $1,000 for freshman year!* *Academic Requirements for renewal

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Arkansas Academic Challenge – 2-year schools - $1,000 first year - $3,000 second year

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Arkansas Academic Challenge – 4-year schools - $1,000 first year (no matter hours earned) - $4,000 second year - $4,000 third year - $5,000 fourth year

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Governor’s Distinguished Scholarship - $10,000 annually*! 1. Achieve at least a 32 ACT (1410 SAT) – prior to 12/31 and have at least a 3.5 high school GPA - OR - 2. Selected as a National Merit Finalist or a National Achievement Finalist

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Governor’s Distinguished (continued) - Financial need NOT a factor Arkansas resident for at least 6 months Apply between October 1 and February 1 Up to 300 scholarships funded each year *Academic requirements for renewal

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu Academic requirements for renewal - At least 12 hours first semester - At least 15 hours thereafter - At least 2.5 GPA - *120 hour limit

Arkansas Scholarships www.adhe.edu - Must have active email account Must accept scholarship by deadline Different deadlines

Institutional Scholarships 4 Types Academic Scholarships Athletic Scholarships Departmental Scholarships Miscellaneous Scholarships

Private Scholarships 1. Businesses & Corporations 2. Employer 3. Church

Academic Scholarships Recommendations Take ACT/SAT often (Spring exams) Take on leadership roles Invest in Study Skills materials

For questions or a copy of this PowerPoint Mark Pruitt mpruitt1@harding.edu