1. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Talia Brown Graceland University, Lamoni, IA May 28 to 31, 2014 – Washington, DC #498 Cognos Letters for Financial Aid

2. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc.  Do you have report writers in your office?  How are you currently utilizing Cognos?  Are you utilizing Word Merge processes? Cognos Usage Here are a few ways we utilize Cognos!

3. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Prepare Data

4. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Format Page(s)

5. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc.  ‘Page’ properties; adjust margins  Utilizing ‘Padding’  Insert headers or footers as needed  Insert ‘Table’ within ‘Table’  Insert ‘Image’ Format Your Page(s)

6. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. New Students – File the FAFSA! Three simple queries 1.LETTER Identifies who needs the letter based on a specific contact (generated by tickler) and completed today. Selects the appropriate addressing fields. Ensures the student has not already filed a FAFSA. (ID not in FAFSA Query) Ensures the student is not already identified as a non- filer. (ID not in NON-FILER Query) 2. FAFSA Selects anyone who has filed a FAFSA for the current financial aid year. 3. NON-FILER Selects anyone who has been identified as a non-filer for the current financial aid year.

7. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc.

9.  Insert ‘Block’ inside ‘Table’  Utilize the ‘Render Variable’ option in the ‘Properties’ window  ‘New Boolean Variable’ Render Variable Text

10. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc.  Simple query that pulls in address information.  Prompts for ID  Variable text if the student needs to complete exit counseling or if they had a TEACH Grant. Letter to Students Leaving Graceland

11. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc.  ‘Layout Calculation’ – allows for various text options.  Example: IF (REASON CODE = ‘WD’) THEN ('Always remember, we told you not to take out the maximum loans and we told you not to blow your credit balance on video games.') ELSE ('Congratulations on your graduation. You have a grace period and then reality hits and you must repay your loans. Enjoy.') Another Variable Option

12. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Envelopes or Lables Page properties – size of your envelope Insert repeater table with address info and group by unique field Create a Page Set Group the page set by a unique field

13. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Standard Mailing Labels Insert a Repeater Table In the Properties of the table you can set the number of cells across and down

14. © 2014 Jenzabar, Inc. Cognos tools provide numerous opportunities. Try something new!