Audit 341821

2024-001 Federal Direct Student Loans, ALN 84.268 Condition: There were incorrect cost of attendance amounts used to calculate subsidized loans for 5 out 40 students tested. Criteria: According to the U.S. Department of Education, an institution must use cost of attendance minus expected family contribution and other financial aid to calculate the amount of subsidized loans that students are eligible to receive. Cause: The University’s student information system (SIS) uses rules to determine which budget components should be assigned to students' cost of attendance based on housing choice, program of student, and classification. It was determined early in the packaging process that some of those budget components were being assigned incorrectly. A support ticket was opened with SIS helpdesk and the issue was corrected within 48 hours. Once the SIS was corrected to assign budget components according to the rules for each budget, all students were reassigned budgets to reflect the correct amounts. Effect: Subsidized loans could have been improperly calculated at the time of packaging, but prior to applying these funds to student charges, there are student eligibility criteria (SEC) rules in place that prevents aid from transmitting if the student is not entitled. In addition, staff weekly run reports to review cost of attendance and subsidized/unsubsidized eligibility. Context: During the compliance audit testing of federal direct student loans, it was determined that the incorrect cost of attendance total was used on the student loan worksheet to calculate eligibility for 5 out of 40 students tested, but SIS reflected the updated correct cost of attendance. Recommendation: We recommend the University continue to monitor the system for future issues and consider updating the supporting documentation as appropriate in the future. View of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Action: Management has corrected the SIS. In reviewing the students affected, it was determined the calculated subsidized loan amounts were still appropriate even though the student loan worksheet did not match the cost of attendance reflected in the SIS.

2024-001 Federal Direct Student Loans, ALN 84.268 Condition: There were incorrect cost of attendance amounts used to calculate subsidized loans for 5 out 40 students tested. Criteria: According to the U.S. Department of Education, an institution must use cost of attendance minus expected family contribution and other financial aid to calculate the amount of subsidized loans that students are eligible to receive. Cause: The University’s student information system (SIS) uses rules to determine which budget components should be assigned to students' cost of attendance based on housing choice, program of student, and classification. It was determined early in the packaging process that some of those budget components were being assigned incorrectly. A support ticket was opened with SIS helpdesk and the issue was corrected within 48 hours. Once the SIS was corrected to assign budget components according to the rules for each budget, all students were reassigned budgets to reflect the correct amounts. Effect: Subsidized loans could have been improperly calculated at the time of packaging, but prior to applying these funds to student charges, there are student eligibility criteria (SEC) rules in place that prevents aid from transmitting if the student is not entitled. In addition, staff weekly run reports to review cost of attendance and subsidized/unsubsidized eligibility. Context: During the compliance audit testing of federal direct student loans, it was determined that the incorrect cost of attendance total was used on the student loan worksheet to calculate eligibility for 5 out of 40 students tested, but SIS reflected the updated correct cost of attendance. Recommendation: We recommend the University continue to monitor the system for future issues and consider updating the supporting documentation as appropriate in the future. View of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Action: Management has corrected the SIS. In reviewing the students affected, it was determined the calculated subsidized loan amounts were still appropriate even though the student loan worksheet did not match the cost of attendance reflected in the SIS.