Financial Aid Process

Financial Aid Process

This information is to help students understand the time frames involved in receiving financial aid and processing a financial aid disbursement remainder check.

• The student completes Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at fafsa.ed.gov.
• The student completes their Student Interview on the Virtual Financial Aid Office at faithseminary.vfao.com (VFAO).
• The student signs a Master Promissory Note (MPN) on studentloans.gov.  Please choose the “sub/unsub” MPN, not the Graduate Plus MPN.
• The Student Interview is received by the Financial Aid Officer at Faith Evangelical College & Seminary to be reviewed for accuracy before being “confirmed” and forwarded to the processor for review and certification of funds.

Note:  The Student Interview will not link with the FAFSA if there is conflicting information between the 2 documents, thus delaying the processing of funds.

• The time frame for processing and delivering of funds to the institution is approximately 2 weeks from the date the FAFSA, Student Interview and MPN are received by the processor.  If there are mistakes or if the student is chosen by the Department of Education for Verification, the process will take longer.  It is the student’s responsibility to monitor their email for requests from the VFAO and to submit any requested information in a timely manner.

Note:  The Financial Aid Officer at Faith Evangelical College & Seminary does not receive the emails from the VFAO sent to students and therefore is usually not aware of outstanding issues.

• Once the funds have been reviewed and certified by the processor, the student will receive an Award Notice via email listing the types of funds they will be receiving (Pell Grants, Subsidized Loans and/or Unsubsidized Loans) along with the estimated dates of disbursement to the institution.
• The funds are primarily disbursed to the institution at the beginning of each quarter and the Business Office will process a refund in the form of a check, if applicable, after tuition/fees and other institution charges are paid, to the student within 2 weeks of the receipt of funds (by federal regulation, unless written permission to retain funds has been given by the student).
• The financial aid disbursement remainder checks are processed and mailed in the order of registration (i.e. if you register first you will be the first person to have your check written), as long as you are registered for the correct number of credits each quarter and are making Satisfactory Academic Progress (please reference the Academic Catalog or Student Handbook for details).*

The Business Office prefers email correspondence during the first 2 weeks of  the quarter for questions pertaining to financial aid disbursement checks. Phone calls may not be answered or responded to right away. If you have a request, please submit it via email to businessoffice@faithseminary.edu or financialaid@faithseminary.edu. Calling and/or emailing prior to the 2-week period does not cause the disbursement to go out any earlier.

*Students are not to contact the VFAO processor directly via email or phone unless specifically directed by the Financial Aid Officer.  There is a “Contact” form on the VFAO website for that purpose (mostly technical issues) i.e. reset of password.  All other communication is to be handled by the Financial Aid Officer at Faith Seminary via email financialaid@faithseminary.edu or phone 253-752-2020 ext. 31 or 888-777-7675 ext 31.

Verification Process

Each year the US Dept. of Education selects a percentage of students for a process called “Verification” to check the accuracy of information submitted on the FAFSA, with the information contained in official documents i.e. federal income tax returns, Social Security statements, Drivers License, Selective Service documents and/or any other necessary documents.

Students selected for verification must submit documentation for the process of verification in order for official financial aid eligibility to be determined.  When a student is selected for verification, the student will be notified as follows:

• The Virtual Financial Aid Office (VFAO) will notify the student via email.  The email will outline what documents are required for the student to submit, one of which will be a Verification Worksheet (which will be attached to the email).
• All documents submitted must be hand signed.  If the tax document was e-filed, the student must hand sign it at the bottom of the page where a signature would typically be required.  The processor will reject the documents if they are not hand signed.
• Please submit all Verification documents to the Financial Aid Office via fax at  253-759-1790 or email at financialaid@faithseminary.edu.  The financial aid office will check the documents for accuracy and forward them to the processor.
• The student will continue to receive email requests from the VFAO until the documents have been received.  The documents are due immediately and any delay in submitting the required information ultimately causes a delay in the institution/student receiving their funds.
• The Virtual Financial Aid Office will notify the student of the results of verification, if the student’s Estimated Family Contribution changes and results in a change of the student’s financial aid amount.

The Virtual Financial Aid Office will report any suspected fraud or falsified information (on the part of the student, parent, or related parties) to the US Dept. of Education and all other related parties for immediate action.