Finding 33559 (2022-001)

Finding - Eligibility Condition Out of forty students selected for testing, one student was under awarded subsidized and unsubsidized loans based on their grade level. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Actions During our annual audit, one student was identified as receiving less than the maximum eligibility in Federal Direct Student Loans for her grade level. This issue was the result of human error. While processes were in place to identify and resolve any students who are potentially awarded federal student loan amounts which exceed their eligibility, isolating students who are under-awarded is more complex. ? A student's eligible loan amount can be less than the maximum associated with their grade level for several legitimate reasons: ? A student elects to reject or reduce their loan amount. ? A student reaches or approaches the maximum lifetime limit in federal student loan programs for an undergraduate program. ? A student is enrolled in their final semester which may require loan amount proration. ? A student earns more credits or is granted additional transfer credits after the loan is initially awarded. To ensure all students are receiving the maximum Federal Direct Student Loan eligibility, the Office of Student Financial Services has put the following steps in place: ? Additional training has been provided to undergraduate financial aid counselors to remind them of the need for accuracy when determining eligibility based on grade level. ? To ensure the most up to date information on transfer credit evaluation is available to financial aid counselors at the time of awarding, staff in Undergraduate Admission have received additional training on the importance of recording the total number of transfer credits awarded at the time of acceptance. ? A thorough review of all 2022-2023 Federal Direct Student Loan amounts for undergraduate students was conducted that included an examination of all registered undergraduate students who were awarded. Any students who did not appear to receive the maximum amount for their grade level were reviewed prior to disbursement by the assigned counselor to determine if an increase was appropriate. If a student had additional eligibility, the award amount was revised and an updated award offer was sent to the student. ? The staff in Student Financial Services will continue this monitoring process on a monthly basis to ensure any future awards are also offered at the student's maximum eligibility. Responsible Official: Jennifer Ricciardi Completion Date: August 31, 2022