9.2 Student Services Center (Financial Aid)

Purpose:  Use this document as a reference on how to read the information in the Financial Aid tab of the Student Center in ctcLink.

Audience: Financial Aid staff, college staff.

The Institution/Aid Year section is the top of the page on the Financial Aid tab in Student Center, where a user can view the Institution in which a student has aid, and drills down to information such as their financial aid application status, dependency information, SAP, packaging status, and other related data in the aid year.  Note that the most current aid year displays on the top of the available list of aid years to view.

You must have at least one of these local college managed security roles:

  • ZC CC Personal Info Student
  • ZD CC Personal Info Student
  • ZD CC Super user
  • ZZ CC Pers Info NID Update
  • ZZ CC Personal Info Student
  • ZZ SS Advisor
  • ZZ SS Faculty

If you need assistance with the above security roles, please contact your local college supervisor or IT Admin to request role access.

Student Services Center (Financial Aid)

Please note, many of the access on this tab may be limited to varying security roles.  Work with your supervisor and local security admin to review individual roles if access to specific areas on this tab should be viewable in your specific role.

Institution/Aid Year Section

Navigation:  NavBar > Navigator > Campus Community > Student Services Ctr (Student)

  1. The Student Services Center page displays.
  2. At the Financial Aid tab, note the Institution and Aid Year options.  In the example below, there are two aid years available to view.  The aid year that has a link is the aid year that has the information displaying to the right of the page.
Student Center Financial Aid tab with Aid Years displayed
  1. Review the information on the page.  This example screenshot below is taken in early February of the 20-21 aid year.  Viewing the 21-22 aid year information may be too early to glean any information about the aid package or processing status.
  2. Note the student's EFC Status.  It is determined that the student in this example has applied for a FAFSA, which was imported into ctcLink as indicated by the EFC Status of Official.  If the EFC status was 'unofficial', that would be indicative of the FAFSA/ISIR not yet being loaded into ctcLink.
  3. In the Dependency Status, it is determined that the student in the example below is an Independent student (24 years or older, and/or married, and/or supporting children, and/or a Veteran, and/or has petitioned to apply without parent data).

Occasionally a student's FAFSA dependency status is subject to the determination of the Financial Aid Office, specifically in cases where a student has filed a FAFSA and opted to omit parent data, or apply without parent data.  If the student is McKinney Vento Homeless Youth, or otherwise At Risk for Homelessness, the Dependency Status may reflect as Independent, but official determination on that status is typically made by the Financial Aid Office.  So note the Dependency status may change.

  1. The Package Status is Applied, which indicates the student has applied for aid.
  2. The Review Status is "Incomplete', which means the student may have some financial aid materials to submit to the Financial Aid office to move the file on for Financial Aid staff review.  The student may view any outstanding items to be completed in their To Do list.
  3. Note the Verification Status -- this student has not been selected for federal Verification in the 21-22 aid year.  If the student was selected for verification, the Verification Status would display "Required to be Performed".
  4. Note the SAP Status is 'Undetermined" which means SAP has not yet been calculated for the aid year term.
  5. Finally, review the Prorated EFC status.  In this example, the value is 0.  Which means the student is fully eligible for financial aid, insofar as term COA and aid awarded within need-based and non-need based aid. 
Student Center page on Financial Aid tab with Dependency and FAFSA info displayed
  1. Next, select the 2021 - 2020-2021 Financial Aid Year link, to review the current (or previous year's aid year).  
financial aid tab 2021 financial aid year
  1. In review of the current/previous aid year, note the same information but with different values are listed.  The Dependency Status still indicates the student is Independent.  
  2. The EFC Status is Official, and the date application received is displayed.
  3. Note the Packaging Status displays as Completed.  This status means the student has been awarded Financial Aid.
  4. The Packaging Plan ID in this example is FA-WI-SP, which means aid has been offered for Fall, Winter, and Spring terms.
  5. Note the Review Status, which is Complete.  This means all Financial Aid documents have been reviewed, and the file is moved on for packaging.
  6. Note the Fed Year COA, which is the Federal Aid Year Cost of Attendance.  The number in this example is 19,605, which is the Cost of Attendance for Fall, Winter, and Spring terms.  The value in this row can vary depending on how many terms for which the student has been packaged/awarded aid.
  7. Also note the Prorated EFC, which is 0 for the aid year.  
financial aid tab 2020 - 21 FA year details
Award Summary for Aid Year Section

Scrolling down a little further on the page is the Award Summary for Aid Year 20xx Section.  This section displays the aid offered in the aid year, and also drills down to the award amount by term.

  1. At the Award Summary for Aid Year section, note the Aid Year in which you are reviewing (highlighted).  The example below displays the 2021 (20-21) aid year awards.  
  2. Note the Assign Awards to a Student button.  This button is for Financial Aid Staff (or designees with the required security access) only.  This button takes a Financial Aid staff member (or designee) to the awarding page where awards may be made on the award package.
  3. Next, awards can be viewed.  In this example, the student has Pell grant, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, and Washington College Grant awards.
  4. Note there are columns for Offered/Accepted, and Authorized/Disbursed.  The amounts that display here in the Offered/Accepted typically reflect the annual amount of the award.  The amounts in Authorized/Disbursed typically reflect the amount that has been authorized and disbursed up to the point in the term.  In this example, the aid is being reviewed during Winter '21 term, which means Spring '21 term still has yet to be authorized/disbursed.  
  5. Note the link for Student Award Inquiry.  This link further drills down into how the awards are awarded by term.  Select the Student Award Inquiry link to view how the aid is distributed annually and per term.
Award summary for aid year 2021
  1. The Award Summary Inquiry page displays.
  2. Note how the page displays two tabs -- one for Award Summary (Annual amount) and one for Award Term Summary (Term amount).
  3. In review of the Award Summary tab, select the Award Detail link on an award to view the 'per term' award distribution.
award summary page
  1. The Award Disbursement Detail pagelet displays.
  2. Note the aid is divided up into term award amounts.  In the example below, the Federal Pell grant has been distributed for Fall, Winter, and Spring Term.
  3. Select the Return link.
award disbursement detail
  1. The Award Summary Inquiry page displays.
  2. Select the Award Term Summary tab to review award information by term.
  3. Use the View All link to display all the terms on one page.  
  4. Select the Cancel button to return to the Financial Aid tab.
award term summary tab
Term Summary for Aid Year Section

The last section on this Financial Aid tab in Student Services Center (Financial Aid) is the Term Summary for Aid Year.  It is in this section you can view FA Load (term enrollment value), term budget information, and COA and remaining Need.

  1. At the Term Summary for Aid Year section, note the aid year in which you are reviewing.  In the example below, the review is for the 2021 (20-21) aid year.
  2. Note the Maintain Student FA Term button.  This button is for Financial Aid Staff (or designees with the required security access) only.  This button takes a Financial Aid staff member (or designee) to the Maintain Student FA Term page where Term information may be viewed.
  3. Note the Term breakdown, and the FA Load -- the FA Load describes the student's enrollment level at the time of Census and/or real-time enrollment.  
  4. Also note the Student Budget link.  This link leads to the Maintain Student Budget page.  Select the link to view budget information and other links to Need Summary, etc.
Term Summary for Aid Year section with FA Load and Student Budget link
  1. The Student Budget Maintenance page displays.
  2. Note the Term in which you are reviewing (highlighted).
  3. Use the arrows to toggle back and forth between terms.
  4. Note the Pell Term COA, which displays the entire COA for the term.  The Pell Term COA is to be used, not the Institutional Term COA.  
  5. Select the link for Need Summary.  It is in this link you can view annual:
    • COA,
    • amount of aid,
    • and remaining Unmet Need.
student budget maintenance page
  1. The Need Summary pagelet displays.
  2. It displays the:
    1. Standard Term(s) COA
    2. EFC
    3. Need
    4. Total Aid (Fed)
    5. Unmet Need (Fed)
    6. Unmet COA (Fed) 
  3. ctcLink uses the Federal Calculation, not the Institutional Calculation.  
  4. In the example below, the student still has unmet need for the aid year.  
Need Summary pagelet displaying Federal COA, EFC, Need, Total Aid (Fed), Unmet Need (Fed), and Unmet COA (Fed)
  1. End of review of Financial Aid tab in Student Services Center (Student).

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