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Frequently Asked Questions & FAFSA Information

The first step is to submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.studentaid.gov. The FAFSA determines your eligibility for grants, loans and work study. It must be completed EVERY YEAR. For maximum consideration, it should be completed by March 1. The FAFSA for the upcoming academic year becomes available October 1.

Each year a random number of students are selected by the U.S. Department of Education for verification. The verification process requires the Financial Aid Office to confirm the data supplied by the student and/or parent(s) for accuracy and completeness. You will need to submit a verification worksheet along with financial and/or other documentation to verify the information reported on the FAFSA.

Each year, the U.S. Department of Education selects certain applicants for verification. The verification process requires the Financial Aid Office to confirm the data supplied by the student and/or parent(s) for accuracy and completeness. If your FAFSA is selected for verification, immediately submit all requested documentation to our office for review since timeliness is necessary for certain financial aid awards.

Your Student Aid Report (SAR) will indicate whether or not your file has been selected for verification. The SAR is typically accessed via a link sent to you by the Department of Education after you file your FAFSA. If you are selected for verification, there will be an asterisk* next to your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) figure on your SAR. You will also receive a letter and/or email notification from the Financial Aid Office alerting you to what documentation you will be required to submit before your financial aid application is fully processed.

Failure to provide required documentation WILL negatively impact your financial aid award package.

You need to reapply for aid each year using the FAFSA. Aid changes each year based upon changes in the family’s financial situation and changes in college expenses. Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards will also apply, along with the established renewal requirements for state and institutional aid.

The Office of Financial Aid is required by federal statute to recalculate federal financial aid eligibility for students who withdraw, drop out, are dismissed, or take a leave of absence prior to completing 60 percent of a payment period or term. The federal Title IV financial aid programs must be recalculated in these situations.

If a student leaves the institution prior to completing 60 percent of a payment period or term, the Office of Financial Aid recalculates eligibility for Title IV funds. Recalculation is based on the percentage of earned aid using the following Federal Return of Title IV Funds formula:

Percentage of payment period or term completed = the number of days completed up to the withdrawal date divided by the total days in the payment period or term. (Any break of five days or more is not counted as part of the days in the term.) This percentage is also the percentage of earned aid.

Funds are returned to the appropriate federal program based on the percentage of unearned aid using the following formula:

Aid to be returned = (100 percent of the aid that could be disbursed minus the percentage of earned aid) multiplied by the total amount of aid that could have been disbursed during the payment period or term.

If a student earned less aid than was disbursed, the institution would be required to return a portion of the funds and the student would be required to return a portion of the funds. Keep in mind that when Title IV funds are returned, the student borrower may owe a balance to the institution.

If a student earned more aid than was disbursed to him/her, the institution would owe the student a post-withdrawal disbursement which must be paid within 120 days of the student’s withdrawal.

The institution must return the amount of Title IV funds for which it is responsible no later than 30 days after the determination of the date of the student’s withdrawal.

FAFSA FAQ

FAFSA Deadline

Submit your FAFSA by April 15th!

FAFSA School Code

#003810

The first step is to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA form is available on the web at https://studentaid.gov/.The application determines your eligibility for grants, loans, and work study. It must be completed EVERY YEAR. For maximum consideration, you must complete (with signatures) the FAFSA by March 1. The FAFSA for the upcoming academic year becomes available October 1.

If you plan to attend College From You will Submit this FAFSA You can submit this FAFSA From Using Income and Taxes From
8/1/21 thru 7/30/22 2021-22 10/1/20 thru 6/30/22 2019
8/1/22 thru 7/30/23 2022-23 10/1/21 thru 6/30/23 2020

The FAFSA requires two years’ prior tax information to be used:

  • The 2022-2023 FAFSA requires 2020 tax information.
  • The 2023-2024 FAFSA requires 2021 tax information.

Do not change the tax information entered on your FAFSA; however, you may submit documentation to the Concord University Financial Aid Office, and a professional judgment can be performed (form can be found here). Please keep in mind the following that may be considered for changing the EFC.

The following conditions may be considered:

  • Loss of Employment/Reduction of Income
  • Separation/Divorce
  • Death of Parent/Spouse
  • Reduction/Loss of Child Support
  • Healthcare and Dental Expenses Out of Pocket, Paid in Full
  • One-time Income Used for Essential Items

The following conditions generally may not be considered:

  • Information on the FAFSA resulted in a 0 Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
  • Loss of overtime or bonus
  • Bankruptcy, foreclosures or collection costs associated with outstanding debts
  • Consumer debt (credit cards, car payments, loans, etc.)
  • Payments on back taxes owed to the IRS
  • Debt forgiveness that reflects as income on a tax return
  • Lottery or gambling winnings or losses
  • One-time income used for non-life essential items (e.g. family vacation)

Click here to find out who counts as a parent on your FAFSA.

An FSA ID is a username and password that you must use to log in to certain U.S. Department of Education (ED) websites. Your FSA ID identifies you as someone who has the right to access your own personal information on ED websites such as the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) site at https://studentaid.gov/

It’s important to understand that the student and the parent may not share an FSA ID: Your FSA ID is your signature, so it has to be unique to you. If you are a parent of a dependent student, you will need your own FSA ID if you want to sign your child’s FAFSA electronically. If you have more than one child attending college, you can use the same FSA ID to sign all applications, but each child must have his or her own. Please note: Each FSA ID user must have a unique mobile phone number and/or e-mail address.

If you’ve forgotten your username or password, there are options for you to recover your account information. On most of the log-in pages, you’ll find links that say something like “Forgot My Username” and “Forgot My Password” so you can start the process of recovering your information.
Click the “Forgot My Username” (or similar) link on the site you want to log in to, and select one of the following options:

Option 1: Text a secure code to my mobile phone (your mobile phone must be verified to use this option).

  • Enter your mobile phone number and the month and day of your birthday.
  • Enter the secure code from your mobile phone.
  • Your username is shown on the screen.

Option 2: Email a secure code.

  • Enter your email address and the month and day of your birthday
  • Enter the secure code from your email.
  • Your username is shown on screen.

Option 3: Answer my challenge questions.

  • Enter your SSN, last name, and date of birth.
  • Answer your challenge questions correctly.
  • Your username is shown on screen.

You can follow the same steps for “Forgot Password”.