Timeline for Financial Aid
Office of Financial Aid Timeline
Timing is everything in financial aid! To maximize your financial aid, you should comply with these deadlines.
October 1st
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is available:
Examples:
Aid Year | Semesters Covered | Tax Information Year
2023/2024 | Fall 2023, Spring 2024, Summer 2024 | 2021 Tax Information
2024/2025 | Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Summer 2025 | 2022 Tax Information
2025/2026 | Fall 2025, Spring 2026, Summer 2026 | 2023 Tax Information
*Undergraduate students receiving Pell who wish to take summer courses should have the next year’s FAFSA completed by March 1 along with any other requested documents. This will allow WNMU to utilize the aid year that will be most beneficial to the student.
January 15th
Students chosen for verification should submit all requested documentation.
FAFSA verification is a review process mandated by the US Department of Education that requires financial aid offices to verify the information reported on the FAFSA application. At minimum, the government will randomly select 30% of a college’s population for this process. WNMU is also required by federal law to verify FAFSAs that present conflicting information. Documentation may also be requested to verify a student’s eligibility for other purposes not related to verification such as prior loan default, etc. as required by the US Department of Education.
March 1st
WNMU Financial Aid Priority Deadline
Continuing students who complete the next year’s FAFSA and submit all required documentation by March 1st of each year will be given priority for awards that may be limited. This may include awards for the state and federal work-study programs, New Mexico Student Incentive Grant and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant.
Prior to June 1st
Enroll in Fall Classes.
Enrolling by June 1st allows WNMU to determine aid for the upcoming semester with few adjustments needed. This will allow students to correctly estimate the fall semester bill and borrow the appropriate amount in student loans, if necessary.
July 15th
All FAFSAs and requested documentation should be completed by this date in order to help ensure financial aid is posted to your account for the fall semester. Parents of dependent students who will be applying for a Parent Plus Loan should do so by this date.
Early August
Please accept or decline any student loans and tuition awards by this date. Please make sure to complete loan entrance counseling and promissory notes for student loans accepted. A valid ID will need to be submitted for any tuition waiver award before it can be authorized to your account.
It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of important dates such as:
1st day of regularly scheduled classes
Follett access opt out window
Last day to make payment arrangements with the Business Office (to avoid being disenrolled)
Last day to add/drop (without affecting charges)
*These dates can be found on our website and are emailed to enrolled students before the semester begins.
Financial Aid funds can only be paid to your student account when your individual classes have started. Pell is prorated and only the portion that is applicable to classes you are currently attending can be paid. When your later classes start, the additional aid will be credited to your account.
Student loans cannot be paid until you are attending half time. Half time is always six credits for undergraduates. For graduate students half time is five credits in the fall/spring semesters and three credits in the summer semester.
Four Steps to Financial Aid
Follow these Four Steps to Apply for Financial Aid
Step 1: Create a FSA ID or Retrieve your FSA ID Username or Password
Retrieving your lost FSA ID or FSA ID Password
- Go to https://fsaid.ed.gov
- Click on Manage My FSA ID
- Click on Forgot My Username
- Choose Text a secure code to my mobile phone (only if you validated your mobile phone number) or
- Email a secure code (to the email that you validated) or
- Answer my challenge questions, or
- Click on Forgot My Password
- Use my username (or verified e-mail address) or
- Use my mobile phone number
- If you are unable to get back into the account through these methods call – 1-800-433-3243
Note: your school does not have access to this information, and cannot reset it or retrieve it for you.
To recover a forgotten FSA ID password, go to the StudentAid.gov login page and select “Forgot My Password”. You will then need to enter your username, email, or mobile phone number, along with your date of birth. From there, you can reset your password by following the instructions to receive a secure code via email or text, or by answering your challenge questions.
- Go to the login page: Navigate to the StudentAid.gov login page.
- Select “Forgot My Password”: Click the “Forgot My Password” link on the main login screen.
- Enter your information: On the next screen, enter your username, verified email address, or mobile phone number, along with your date of birth.
- Choose a recovery method:
- Secure code: Select “Continue” to receive a secure code via your verified email or mobile phone number.
- Challenge questions: Select “Continue” to answer two of your challenge questions.
- Secure code: Select “Continue” to receive a secure code via your verified email or mobile phone number.
- Follow the prompts:
- If you chose a secure code, enter it into the field provided. Check your email or text messages for the code.
- If you chose challenge questions, answer them correctly to proceed.
- If you chose a secure code, enter it into the field provided. Check your email or text messages for the code.
- Create a new password: Once your identity is verified, you will be taken to a page to create a new password. Follow the password requirements, which include length and character type.
- Log in with your new password: After creating and confirming your new password, you can return to the login screen and access your account.
Step 2: Complete and Submit a FAFSA Application
Visit: studentaid.gov to complete and submit your FAFSA application. Download the MyStudentAid App from the App Store or Googleplay store.
The FAFSA website or App will walk you through the process.
- take your time
- use the Help and Hints box on the right hand side
- list all schools you are considering, each time you make a correction your chances of being chosen to provide additional information increases
- as you go through your FAFSA the left hand bar tells you if the student’s information or parent’s information should be entered
- Use the Data Retrieval Tool(DRT) whenever possible, this allows you to transfer tax information directly from the IRS
While the taxes used are from two years prior, all household and personal information are either the date you are completing the FAFSA or what you expect to be the situation during the upcoming aid year, read carefully. Do not return and update throughout the year, if something changes, consult the Office of Financial Aid for any needed updates.
If you, or your parents income situation has changed substantially since the tax year being used, contact the Office of Financial Aid for guidance.
Step 3: Review your Student Aid Report (SAR)
Step 4: Chosen for Verification? Additional Documentation Required?
here are three types of Verification – please do not submit any documents unless they have been requested.
- Do not submit tax information from years that have not been requested
- Do not submit the Tax Return itself – we must have the Tax Return Transcript issued by the IRS
- Do not submit W2’s unless they have been specifically requested, or you (or your parent) has gotten married, or Separated/Divorced or Widowed since the taxes requested were filed, or you incorrectly reported you did not work and were not required to file, when you in fact worked.
- Submitting unneeded documentation complicates the process and results in our office having to review and clarify the additional information.
Starting for the 2020/2021 award year, the WNMU Office of Financial Aid will be obtaining all documentation for verification through the ProVerify website. All students will upload documents to their website and will log onto the ProVerify website to see requirements or any additional requirements.
About 30% of all FAFSA filers are selected for verification, which requires schools to collect documentation to check the accuracy of the FAFSA information. If selected before you are awarded, the verification process must be completed before financial aid can be awarded. But Federal Student Aid can select you at any time. Even AFTER you have received aid, and the process must still be completed, or we must cancel aid already received.
If your FAFSA is selected for verification after you have been awarded, you have 45 days to complete verification. If the process is not complete within the 45 day window, your aid must be cancelled which may result in a balance owed to the university.
When selected for verification the student will be notified by e-mail and there will be a requirement for ProVerify listed in Mustang Express. Students will then go to ProVerify’s website and create an account to log in and see what documents are required and how to turn them in. While reviewing your verification we may find that we need additional documentation. Watch your email, your ProVerify account as well as your Mustang Express Requirements List and Messages.
The Office of Student Financial Aid may be required to verify the following data elements on your FAFSA:
- Adjusted Gross Income (parent and student, if the student is dependent)
- Taxes Paid (parent and student, if the student is dependent)
- Income Earned from Work (for non-tax filers)
- Certain Untaxed Income Items (parent and student, if the student is dependent)
- Household Size
- Number in College (excluding parents for a dependent student)
- High School Completion
- Prior College Attendance
- Any other inconsistent or conflicting information
Why were you selected:
- Completing the FAFSA late – In the 2019-2020 aid year 100% of Pell Eligible Students who completed the FAFSA after August 1 were chosen for verification, even if they used the IRS retrieval tool.
- Including inconsistent information – Reporting earning compared to taxes paid that are outside the norm, reporting the same amount earned as paid in taxes, leaving blanks
- Information inconsistent with prior years – large changes in income or number in Household
- Making multiple changes to the FAFSA – even adding a school can trigger the request
- Not using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool
- Random – Yep, sometimes it just happens
The IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) is available! Please be sure to use the tool to transfer your tax information directly into your FAFSA! The 2019-20 FAFSA uses 2017 Tax Info and the 2020-21 FAFSA uses 2018 Tax Info. Using DRT speeds up the verification process! You may return to the FAFSA, use the DRT and import your tax information, we will receive it within 3-5 business days, then we will not need the Tax Return Transcript.
If you are ineligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool or do not choose to use it, you may also submit a tax RETURN transcript.
There are four options for obtaining a tax RETURN transcript.
- You can get your free transcripts immediately online.
- Go to IRS.gov and use the Get Transcript tool.
- You can also get them by phone.
- Call 800-908-9946 and follow the prompts.
- You can receive transcripts by mail or by fax (within five to 10 days from the time IRS receives your request).
- Complete Form 4506T-EZand follow the instructions.
- You can pick up a copy of the requested document at your local IRS Office.
- Please note: as of fall 2017 many offices require a appointment information on the location, hours and appointment is available at IRS Local Office Locator
What if you or your spouse/parent/stepparent were not required to file in the tax year?
Each non-filing Parent (step-parent) and Independent student/spouse must submit a verification of non-filing, from the IRS. This can be requested through the above or by submitting IRS Form 4506-T.
YOU CANNOT Have the form Faxed or Mailed Directly to WNMU. The IRS now redacts your name, social security number and address, please see below.
PLEASE NOTE:
The IRS recently implemented new security features that redact (remove) a significant amount of personally identifying information from all of their documents. While these added security features protect your personal information and identity, it makes our job more difficult. If we are unable to match your document to your account, it must be shredded.
As such, when submitting any documents from the IRS (tax return transcripts, wage and earnings statements, etc) to our office, we ask that you list the student’s full name and Student ID in the top right corner of each page of the document.
Failure to provide this information will increase processing time and may prevent us from processing your document entirely. Additionally, when ordering tax return transcripts, please have them sent to you, NOT WNMU, so that you can add the student’s name and Student ID to the transcript before submitting it to our office via ProVerify.
There may be other documents that we are requesting (like a Verification Worksheet) that you will still need to complete and submit. Check your ProVerify account to determine if there are other verification documents that are needed.
You may submit documents to the ProVerify site. For further questions concerning documents, please feel free to call ProVerify at 575-342-3068 or our office at 575-538-6173.
- Complete all requested forms in full: Do not leave any questions blank. All questions must have an answer even if it is an “0”.
- Be sure all required signatures have been provided.
- Submitting your FAFSA early and completing verification is required before aid can be awarded. The WNMU Priority Deadline is March 1 of each year. Student who submit the FAFSA and all documentation prior to that date are given priority for Work-study, and other grants, in addition Pell student’s may have additional aid for Summer classes.
- Next year’s FAFSA is available in October of the preceding year.
- During peak processing times, please allow extra time for processing your verification documents. To expedite your financial aid, file your FAFSA as early as possible and send all required documents together at one time and include the Student ID on all documents. Any FAFSA or Documentation submitted after August 1st of each year cannot be guaranteed to be processed by the beginning of school and students may be required to pay in full or through the payment plan to retain their enrollment. Any student who has not satisfied payment, either through Financial Aid or a payment arrangements with the Business Office may be dis-enrolled at the end of the add/drop period.
- Once verification begins, you may be asked to submit additional documentation. If this occurs, an email will be sent to the student’s WNMU email account and all requested documents can be viewed on the student’s Mustang Express account on either their requirements list and/or through the message system.
Apply for New Mexico Financial Aid
New Mexico Financial Aid is available to all students who:
- are working on their first bachelor’s degree (except for New Mexico Work-Study which is available to both Graduate and Undergraduate students), and
- are New Mexico Residents, and
- graduated from a New Mexico High School or completed a New Mexico GED, and
- apply for Federal Financial Aid using the FAFSA or
- submit a paper financial aid application with the WNMU Office of Financial Aid.
Note: to be considered for the Lottery Scholarship the above is not necessary as the Lottery Scholarship is not a need-based award, but you are encouraged to complete the above to be considered for additional aid.
The State of New Mexico offers a variety of programs for Undergraduate and Graduate students, many of these programs are administered by The New Mexico Higher Education Department. Please see their webpage at: http://www.hed.state.nm.us/students/ for a full list of programs, including state loans and repayment programs.
With an application (either FAFSA or a paper financial aid application with the WNMU Office of Financial Aid) students will be considered for all available Grants as well as New Mexico Work-Study. To receive New Mexico Work-Study students must submit employment documentation.
Youth who are adopted from the foster care system at age 16 or older may be able to receive the Education and Training Voucher (ETV) assistance, which can give up to $5,000 per year for youth who are in college or at an accredited vocational or technical training program. Go to http://www.fc2sprograms.org/ for more information.
Free College Tuition and Fees for Former Foster Youth in New Mexico
Who is eligible?
Young people can take advantage of the tuition waiver law if ANY of the following apply:
- They were in foster care on the day before their 18th birthday.
- They were in foster care on the day they graduated from high school or received their GED in New Mexico.
- On or after the day of their 14th birthday, their parents’ rights were relinquished or terminated.
Important: Participants must be enrolled in a school of higher education before their 25th birthday.
Complete the following steps to access your free college Tuition:
- Request a tuition waiver letter: Contact a young person’s CYFD Youth Transition Specialist (YTS) and request the tuition waiver letter that verifies the student was in foster care.* Eligible young people who currently do not have a YTS may contact the CYFD Youth Services Bureau Chief at 505-841-7786 to request a letter.
- Give the tuition waiver letter to the school: A copy of the letter must be given to the Admissions and Financial Aid Departments of the school the young person plans to attend. If they transfer to a different college, university, or trade school, they must submit a new tuition waiver letter to the new school they are attending.
*Foster care means a young person was in the legal custody of the State of New Mexico’s Children, Youth, & Families Department (CYFD); a New Mexico Indian Nation, Tribe, or Pueblo; or the US Department of the Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs, Division of Human Services.
*A school or higher education includes any publically funded and accredited state college, university, or any of their branches, a community college, or a technical/vocational institute in New Mexico.
Apply for Tuition Awards
Including, Colorado, Wue, Arizona and El Paso
Tuition Awards (sometimes referred to as Tuition Waivers) are available to students from the following States/Areas.
- Colorado
- El Paso
- Arizona or
- The WUE states, which include: Alaska, Washington State, Oregon, California, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nevada, Utah, Hawaii, Northern Mariana Islands and Guam. (also Colorado and Arizona)
Colorado – Will be charged Out of State Tuition, along with a Tuition Award of the difference between instate and out of state tuition.
- continue to live in Colorado
- complete a minimum of 30 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if an Undergraduate Student
- complete a minimum of 18 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if a Graduate Student
- earn a 2.0 cumulative GPA if an Undergraduate
- earn a 3.0 cumulative GPA if a Graduate Student
El Paso – Will be charged Out of State Tuition, along with a Tuition Award of the difference between instate tuition and out of state tuition.
- continue to live in Texas, within a 135 mile radius of the Silver City Main Campus of WNMU
- complete a minimum of 24 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if an Undergraduate Student
- complete a minimum of 18 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if a Graduate Student
- earn a 2.0 cumulative GPA if an Undergraduate
- earn a 3.0 cumulative GPA if a Graduate Student
Arizona – Not available to Graduate Students. Will be charged Out of State Tuition, along with a Tuition Award of the difference between instate tuition and out of state tuition.
- continue to live in Arizona
- complete a minimum of 30 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if an Undergraduate Student
- earn a 2.5 cumulative GPA if an Undergraduate
- students who fail to meet the GPA requirement, but meet the below WUE requirements will be awarded the WUE
- the number of Arizona Tuition Awards are limited, returning students who meet the qualifications are given priority, and New Students are awarded until the limit is meet, for the best chance of being awarded, apply and be accepted prior to June 1st
WUE States and Territories – Not available to Graduate Students. Will be charged Out of State Tuition, along with a Tuition Award of the difference between 150% of instate tuition and out of state tuition.
- continue to live in a WUE state
- complete a minimum of 24 credits in the prior Fall/Spring year, if an Undergraduate Student
- earn a 2.0 cumulative GPA if an Undergraduate
All Tuition Awards, including the WUE, COLORADO, ARIZONA and El PASO will be adjusted to cover actual class enrollment at the end of the Add/Drop period each semester. At this time if students are not enrolled in the required minimum number of credits, the waiver will be cancelled. Any classes added after this point will not be covered by the Tuition Award, and any students taking late start classes who later drop below full time enrollment, will lose eligibility for the Tuition Award. Withdrawing from a class after the Add/Drop period does not reduce your student bill, therefore the Waiver will not be adjusted for classes students withdraw from, as you will still be charged.
The good news is: you don’t have to!
New Students from Tuition Award States/Area’s will automatically be considered for the appropriate Tuition Award, you can expect to see the award listed on your award information on Mustang Express for you to then accept.
Accepting your award is agreeing that you:
- Live in the appropriate state/territory
- Plan on enrolling full time for the upcoming year or semester
- Understand that the award will be discontinued if you do not continue to meet the requirements of your individual award.
- Submit a copy of a state issued ID to the Office of Financial Aid by email to fadocuments@wnmu.edu or by fax to 575.538.6189. You MUST put your W# on all documentation for it to be properly processed.
If you have received any of the Tuition Awards for both the Fall & Spring of the prior years, your Tuition Award will automatically be awarded if you met the requirements of your award.
For the award year you will need to:
- Live in the appropriate state/territory
- Plan on enrolling full time for the upcoming year or semester
- Understand that the award will be discontinued if you do not continue to meet the requirements of your individual award.
- Submit a copy of a state issued ID to the Office of Financial Aid by email to fadocuments@wnmu.edu or by fax to 575.538.6189. You MUST put your W# on all documentation for it to be properly processed.
Unusual Circumstances
Students who were in foster care, ward of the court, or were adopted at 13 or older are considered automatically independent on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Independent means the student will not need to provide any parent information on the FAFSA.
- The student will then have an 0 EFC (estimated family contribution) which allows them to receive the full amount of the Pell Grant. Student may also be eligible for any New Mexico Incentive Grant (NMSI) or Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) with the EFC of an 0.
Filling out the FAFSA for Adoption, Foster Care, Legal Guardianship:
- Be sure to answer yes to the following questions about being in foster care, adopted, or legal guardianship.
- Choose “no” when asked about providing parent information if the FAFSA states you are considered independent. If you are dependent due to being adopted, in foster care or legal guardianship at age 12 and under, you must answer “yes” to providing parent information.
- Include your own personal income if you worked in the year stated on FAFSA.
* Foster Care students in New Mexico can refer to Apply for New Mexico Financial Aid to view the waiver requirements. The waiver can provide free college tuition and fees for the student.
A student is considered homeless if they do not have fixed, regular, and suitable housing. This is broader than just living “on the street.”
Homelessness includes:
- Temporarily living with other people because the student had nowhere else to go
- Living in substandard housing (if it doesn’t meet local building codes or the utilities are turned off, it is generally not suitable)
- Living in emergency or transitional shelters:
- Trailers provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency after disasters.
- Living in motels, camping grounds, cars, parks, abandoned buildings, bus or train stations, or any public or private place not designed for humans to live in.
- It also includes living in the school dormitory if the student would otherwise be homeless.
- fleeing an abusive parent
A student living in any of the situations above may be considered homeless even if the parent would provide support and a place to live.
Students who do not meet the definition of youth because they are older than 21 (and not yet 24) and who are unaccompanied and homeless or self-supporting and at risk of being homeless will be suitable for a homeless youth determination.
Please contact the Office of Financial Aid for more information or to find out what documentation to turn in.
A student who was an orphan (both of the students’ parents have passed away) when 13 or older is considered independent even if the student was adopted after becoming an orphan.
If one, but not both, of the student’s parents has died, the student answers the parental questions about the surviving biological or adoptive parent and does not report any financial information for the deceased parent.
If both the student’s parents are deceased when the student fills out the FAFSA, they must answer “Yes” to Question 53, making the student independent. Remember that an adoptive parent counts as a parent, but a legal guardian does not.
(will adoptive parent be put as parent if they adopted child before age 13 since after they would be considered independent????)
- Question 53 states, “At any time since you turned age 13, were both your parents deceased, were you in foster care or were you a dependent or ward of the court.
If a student’s parents pass away after the FAFSA has been completed, the student must update their dependency status and report income and assets as an independent student.
Students are independent if they are, or were upon reaching the age of majority, emancipated minors (released from control of their parent or guardian) or in legal guardianship. Both as adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction in the state of the students’ legal residence at the time of the adjudication.
While the basis for emancipation can vary by state, the emancipation must be determined by a court, not by an attorney. The New Mexico emancipation regulations are stated here http://www.bostoncoop.net/lcd/emancipation/new_mexico.html
IF there is no legal documentation that the relative is the student guardian, the student must put their parent’s information on the FAFSA.
If the reason you are living with relatives has anything to do with the reasons under dependency status or homelessness, contact our financial aid office or come in so we can guide you on what needs to be done when filling out the FAFSA.
The student or parent must answer this question according to their marital status at the time the FAFSA is being completed.
If the student or the parent was not married in the tax year the FAFSA is requesting but is married when the application is completed, the student also needs to provide income and asset information for the new spouse.
If the student or the parent was married in the tax year the FAFSA is requesting, but is now separated, divorced, or the spouse has died when the application is completed; the student or parent does not provide income and assets for that spouse even though the information may be on their tax information.
- A w-2 will be needed to separate the earnings.
A student who is only engaged answers as unmarried unless they wait until after the wedding to complete the FAFSA.
A student is considered married if they are not yet legally divorced or are planning to divorce.
A student who was independent only because they was married becomes dependent for the next award year if they are now divorced and has not met the age to become independent or cannot answer yes to any of the dependency questions.
Divorce of the student’s parents
If the student’s parents are divorced, they should report the information of the parent that has provided more of the student’s support, regardless of which parent claimed them on their taxes.
If the student lived equally with each parent or did not live with either one, then the student should provide the information for the parent from whom they received more financial support or the one from whom they received more support the last calendar year for which it was given.
Note: It is not typical that a student will live with or receive support from both parents exactly equally. Usually you can determine that the student lived with one of the parents more than half the year or that he received more than half support from one of the parents.
If biological or adoptive parents who are divorced still live together, their status is unmarried and living together and both would report their information on the FAFSA.
Unmarried and Living Together
If the student’s parents are unmarried but live together, the student must provide both of their wages and tax information on the FAFSA.
If the student is living with a partner (are not legally married), the student only needs to provide their wages and tax information on the FAFSA. The student does not need to provide their partner’s information. In the household portion of the FAFSA, the student will only list their self and any (if any) dependents they have and support more than 50%.
Student Does Not Speak to Parents
If the student did not live with or speak to either parent, then the student should provide the information for the parent from whom they received the most support from within the last calendar year.
If the student has not had contact with their parent for more than a year, the student must contact the financial aid department to see if they may qualify for dependency circumstances.
The following information is only needed if chosen for verification:
If the independent student or parent(s) of a dependent student are unemployed for the tax year information needed on the FAFSA, they must request a verification of non-filing form from the IRS and submit it to the Financial Aid office. IRS website: https://www.irs.gov/ IRS phone number: 1-800-829-1040.
If a dependent student was unemployed for the tax year information needed on the FAFSA, they will need to fill out the dependent student statement of non-filing form located on https://wnmu.edu/ under financial aid.
A dependency override allows the financial aid director to change a student’s status from dependent to independent based on unusual circumstances where students are not able to give parent information.
However, none of the conditions listed below, singly or in combination, qualify as unusual circumstance allowing a dependency override:
- Parents do not want to contribute to the student’s education.
- Parents do not want to provide information on the FAFSA or for verification.
- Parents do not claim the student as a dependent for income tax purposes.
- The student shows total independence.
Unusual circumstances do include:
- Abandonment by parents.
- An abusive family environment that threatens the student’s health or safety.
- The student being unable to locate their parents.
A financial aid administrator (FAA) may, without gathering documentation, use an override that another school granted in the same award year. However, overrides do not carry over from one year to the next. The FAA must confirm each year that the unusual circumstance remains and an override is still fitting.
The FAA needs three sources of proof. The three sources can include a third party that knows the student’s situation—e.g., a teacher, counselor, medical authority, member of the clergy, prison administrator, government agency, or court. The individual writing the letter should establish the unusual circumstances. Evidence can be a signed letter or an official document, such as a court order.
Professional Judgement/Income Reduction allows the financial aid director to make changes to a student or parent’s income if it has changed due to different circumstances listed below. The student or parent’s income will be adjusted if they are no longer currently making the amount of money put on the FAFSA for the tax year the FAFSA is requesting. The change can reduce the students EFC (Estimated Family Contribution) which can allow for qualification of financial aid or a higher amount of financial aid. This has limited impact on graduate financial aid and will more than likely not be necessary.
Circumstances include:
- Loss of job
- Change of job
- Deceased parent or spouse
- One time source of income example: money won gambling.
In order to request a professional judgement/income reduction, the student must start by emailing fadocuments@wnmu.edu explaining their circumstance. The student will then be notified of the documentation needed.