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Financial
Aid
Review and
Appeal
Process  Financial
aid awards may be appealed based
on special circumstances. If
a student wants his/her financial
aid to be reviewed, the student
(and if applicable, his/her parent(s))
should complete an OCC's Projected
Income Worksheet. Additional
information and documentation
may be required by the Financial
Aid Office.
The
most common special circumstances
are:
Reduced Parent/Student Income: Parents
or students can appeal if current year income
will be substantially less than previous year
income. Common reasons for the decrease is loss
job, reduction in hours, disability, divorce/separation.
Appeals based on reduced income are generally
not considered before September 1, except in unusual
circumstances such as a parent's/student's permanent
lack of employment (retirement, etc.). An explanation
of the reason for reduced income must be submitted,
including dates associated with the reduction.
Also, previous year W-2s and federal 1040s must
be submitted with an appeal based on reduced income.
Unusual Medical/Dental Expenses:
A student may wish to appeal if the family had
excessive unreimbursed medical/dental expenses
in the previous year. For documentation, the Financial
Aid Office requires either a Schedule A, as filed
with a federal 1040, or an itemized list of medical/dental
expenses paid out of pocket in the previous year,
including insurance premiums. Expenses paid by
medical savings through payroll deduction (cafeteria
plan) should not be reported as they have already
been excluded from income.
Adjustment to the Cost of Attendance:
A student's budget is based on an assumption of
full-time enrollment, and adjusted after the term's
census date for actual enrollment at full-time,
three-quarter time, half-time, or less than half-time.
The living expenses are based on the student's
response to the FAFSA housing question. The student
may have responded that s/he would be living with
parents or living off-campus. If the student did
not complete the housing code, an assumption is
made that the student is living with parents.
If a student provides proper documentation, i.e.,
rent contract, the living allowance may be changed
Appeals
are handled in the order that
they are received. Changes in
income and assets are reported
to the federal and state processor
to determine eligibility for
need-based grants. Loan funds
totaling maximum eligibility
are usually packaged.
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