Policy for Award Process
PURPOSE:
To set forth the policy and procedures for making awards to eligible students.
POLICY:
It is the policy of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore through the Office of Student Financial Aid to offer financial assistance to eligible students demonstrating need on a first-come, first-served basis until funds have been exhausted.
PROCEDURES:
- Files that are complete and for which the Verification Review Check Sheet has been completed will be identified for packaging. These files have been appropriately reviewed for the following items:
- Verification issues (see Verification Policies and Procedures, SA-V-406)
- Low or no reported income (note: students with parents on AFDC or with low income (under $12,000 annually) with an earned income credit (EIC), or low or no income will not be offered a Parent PLUS loan.
- Significant changes in eligibility
- Determine if the student has indicated that he or she is expecting any other grants and/or scholarships
- Review any other relevant notes (i.e. – request for change in circumstance, previous acceptance of loans, etc.)
- The file will be noted as “Ready to Package” (RP) by changing appropriate flags on the Packaging Status Summary screen (either manually or through SQL process).
- Auto-packaging is run via PeopleSoft following the appropriate business process guide.
- Award Notification letters are assigned to each awarded student and mailed with appropriate enclosures.