All posts by Clint Young

2015-16 Application for Participation in the Two-Year College Transfer Grant Program

Established in 2007, the Two-Year College Transfer Grant Program (CTG) provides an incentive for students to first complete an associate degree at a Virginia public two-year college before transferring to a participating Virginia four-year college or university as a means to reduce the overall cost towards completing a bachelor’s degree.
In addition to paying lower tuition charges for their freshman and sophomore years while attending a two-year college, students who qualify may also receive a CTG award once they transfer to the four-year institution.

Click here for more information and to apply: 2YRCollegeTransferGrantApp201516

Breach of Taxpayer Data at IRS Marketing

On Wednesday, May 27, 2015, the IRS announced its “Get Transcript” application had been compromised by cyber criminals. Over 100,000 taxpayers’ accounts were illegally accessed. The “Get Transcript” application has been temporarily disabled. The IRS has taken several additional measures to protect taxpayers and their confidential information.
This impacts students and families who may be requesting tax transcripts to complete their financial aid process. At this time, tax transcripts are only available when requested by mail and take up to ten days for delivery. Students and parents are strongly encouraged to utilize the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) available within fafsa.ed.gov.  Links to a statement from the IRS and a Q & A list are provided below.
IRS’s Full Statement

Get Transcript Q & A

FAS will continue to provide updates on this issue as they become available. If you have specific questions, feel free to submit them via email.
Sincerely,

NOVA Financial Aid Team

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Reference Guide

Want some quick information on financial aid guidelines? Check out the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Reference Guide.

The new Student Aid Reference Sheet for 2015 -16. This guide includes updated information about Stafford Loans, Pell Grant, PLUS Loans, Federal Perkins Loans and more. 

To see the 2015-16 Student Aid Reference Sheet click here

How to Create a FSA ID

The FSA ID – A username and password will replace the Federal Student Aid PIN. It is required to log in to certain U.S. Department of Education websites.

Your FSA ID confirms your identity when you access your financial aid information and electronically sign Federal Student Aid documents.

For instruction to create your FSA ID click here:  FSA ID

The Commonwealth Legacy Scholarship Program

The purpose of the Commonwealth Legacy Scholarship Program is to increase access to higher education and to develop student leadership potential for graduating high school seniors who will be attending a Virginia Community College for the first time  in Fall 2015. One ($3,125) scholarship will be awarded for the fall 2015 and spring 2016 semesters.  The Student Financial Aid Committee will select the recipient in July. The recipient will be notified by August 2015.  The following criteria will be used to award the scholarship:

 

  1. Commonwealth Legacy Scholars will be students attending Northern Virginia Community College for the first time in Fall 2015.
  2. Selections will be based on merit.
  3. Scholars will demonstrate academic excellence during high school.
  4. Scholars will demonstrate a willingness to promote community college education and the Commonwealth Legacy Scholarship Program.
  5. Scholars will demonstrate a willingness to mentor future scholars.
  6. Scholars will demonstrate a commitment to developing leadership potential.
  7. Students must be full-time, associate’s degree seeking students with plans to graduate from a Northern Virginia Community College.
  8. Scholars must agree to an interview with the selecting committee to be considered.
  1. If selected, recipients agree to participate in the annual Student Leadership program.

To apply, Click here Scholarship

Account Access

Have you received federal student loans in the past?  If so, you may wish to consider setting up account access to Account_Access_flyer

Benefits include:

  • Schedule future payments
  • Make a payment
  • Explore repayment options
  • View loan interest for tax filing
  • Update your contact information
  • Get help with your account

If you have student loans currently serviced by FedLoan Servicing you may visit www.MyFedLoan.org to set up online account access.  If you need assistance please call FedLoan Servicing at 1-800-699-2908.

Remember to contact your loan servicer if you ever have any questions about repaying student loans.  Loan servicers can review the loan repayment options with you and possibly reduce or temporarily postpone loan payments.

Students can also review their loan history and look up the contact information for other loan servicers at www.studentaid.ed.gov.  Simply follow the directions to log into your account via the button in the upper right corner.

How to Handle Direct Loan Deferments

The National Student Clearinghouse has learned that a number of Direct Loan recipients, who are currently enrolled, have been contacted by their lenders regarding repayment of their loans. Please instruct your students to request a deferment form from their lender and return the completed form to your school.

The completed deferment form must include the following information:

  1. Student’s full name
  2. Student’s Social Security number
  3. Date of birth
  4. Student’s signature
  5. Your school code
  6. Loan holder or servicer’s address
    This is in the form’s lender section, which is typically found on page 2.

Please forward all completed deferment forms to the Clearinghouse and include a cover sheet containing your school’s full name, school code, branch code, and the academic term in question.

Deferments must be mailed. They CANNOT be faxed because most lenders require the original form and signature.

IMPORTANT: If a student has more than one loan holder, he or she must complete a separate deferment form for each lender/servicer.

Please mail your cover sheet and deferment form(s) to the Clearinghouse at:

National Student Clearinghouse
2300 Dulles Station Blvd, Suite 300
Herndon, VA 20171

The Clearinghouse will complete the deferment forms we receive from you using the enrollment information provided by your school for the term in question.

If you have any questions, please contact your Clearinghouse regional director or service@studentclearinghouse.org.