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Glossary

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Cost of Attendance
Number that is calculated by combining both the direct and indirect costs of attending college.

Dependency Status
Through a series of questions the FAFSA form will decide whether you are considered independent or dependant.

Direct Cost
Tuition and room and board

Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
This is a government generated number produced by inputting the FAFSA information. It indicates how much money a family should be able to pay for their student to attend college. This number is used as a guide in determining financial aid and need.

Financial Aid Package
Document received by the student indicating the total amount of financial aid received by the student.

Financial Need
This is the difference between the cost of attendance and the EFC. (Cost of attendance-EFC=Financial Need)

Grant
Type of financial aid provided by the government or the institution that is not required to be paid back.

Indirect Cost
Books, personal expenses, transportation..etc.

Loan
Type of financial aid that is required to be paid back.

Merit Based Aid
Type of aid that does not need to be paid back and is based on academic, artistic, athletic, music, art or other criteria.

Student Aid Report (SAR)
Document sent to a student by the federal processor. It contans financial and other information that was reported on the FAFSA.

Verification
This is a review process in which our department will request documentation from a student to verify the accuracy of the application. (About 1/3 of applications are randomly selected for verification.)