It's that time of year where students begin to look at other educational institutions which may better fit their needs and goals. Students seem to know the admissions process, but as a financial aid professional, I get a lot of questions on how to transfer financial aid from one school to another. It's a relatively simple process, but there are a few things you must know, with the most important being that you do not have to complete a new FASFA when changing schools during the same academic year.
When the FASFA was filed via the Web, you had the option of selecting up to six institutional college codes in which to send the FASFA information (only four will actually show on your Student Aid Report). With the paper version, the options were limited to four. The FASFA information was then sent electronically from the federal processor to each school listed on the FAFSA. Each school would then follow procedures to create your financial aid package specific to that institution.
Remember: the FAFSA is completed by academic year, so the school(s) you listed have the FAFSA information for the 2007-08 academic year only.
Transferring to a school that you already listed on the FAFSA?
If so, that school has already received your information. If you did not begin attending there, chances are that school "permanently inactivated" your FAFSA information, which means the school still has the information, but is not acting upon it because you're not attending. The best course of action in this case is to contact the financial aid office at the school in which you plan to attend to notify them that you will be enrolling for a future term during the 2007-08 academic year. The financial aid office can then advise as to whether additional information may be needed to process your financial aid package.
Transferring to a school not listed on the FAFSA? You have several options for transferring FAFSA information to the new school:
- Add the new school by accessing FAFSA on the Web
- Under Step 3, select the Add or Delete a School link
- Follow the instructions on each page until you reach the school choice page
- If you have room to Add a school, select the Add a School link at the bottom of the screen and follow the directions to add the new school
- If all school choice options are filled, you will need to choose a school and click on the Edit link to remove that school. Then click Add a Schools to add your new school choice
- Use your PIN as your electronic signature
- If you provided an email address on the FAFSA, through FAFSA on the Web you can access your online Student Aid Report (SAR), print the SAR, and either:
- Call the new Financial Aid Office with the SAR in hand. Staff will ask for your name, SS#, and the Data Release Number (DRN) found only on your SAR
- Call 1-800-4-FED-AID to request a school code change. You must have your name, SS#, and DRN available
- Change the school choice(s) in Step Six on the SAR, sign, and mail the correction to the federal processor's addresses provided
- If you did not provide an email address on the FAFSA, you were mailed a paper Student Aid Report (SAR). Use this SAR to follow the same steps as the electronic SAR above.
A few additional comments:
- You only need to follow one of the options above to transfer your FAFSA information to your new school.
- While your FAFSA information will transfer to the new school, your financial aid package at your prior school will not. The institution's educational costs (budget), federal funding, and institutional funding all play a part in each school's financial aid package and student eligibility.
- You need to notify the school you are leaving so they can cancel future financial aid, including loans. This will avoid any delays when the new school processes your financial aid.
- Regardless of your you changed the school, you will be notified either electronically or by mail of the change you made to your FAFSA information.