The application process for almost all federal, state, local and college financial aid programs begins with the filing of a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) application. It is through filing the FAFSA that you will receive consideration for Pell Grant, campus-based aid and cause a TAP application to be sent to you.

You can obtain a FAFSA and help in filling it out by coming to our Office of Financial Aid in Shuster Hall, Room 136, Monday ­ Friday, 9am ­ 4pm. During the Fall and Spring semesters (when classes are in session), the Financial Aid Office reopens on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 5:00 p.m. ­ 6:30 p.m. You can also get a FAFSA from:

• your high school guidance office
• your local library
• by calling 1-800-4-FEDAID.

Lehman College mails a FAFSA to each newly admitted student. Continuing students, with a current year FAFSA on file, are mailed the following year's Renewal FAFSA by the beginning of the calendar year. Continued eligibility for financial aid requires the refilling of a FAFSA yearly.

• Mailing a completed paper FAFSA in the self-addressed envelope found in the FAFSA application booklet

• Filling out an electronic FAFSA at: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. This allows the transmission your information directly to the federal government and bypass the need for a paper FAFSA.

Be sure to enter the Lehman College federal Title IV code, 007022, in the appropriate boxes. This will guarantee that Lehman College will receive your application information.

While it is possible to submit a FAFSA throughout the academic year, you should file the FAFSA at least eight weeks before the start of the registration period. This way, you will be able to use awarded financial aid funds at registration (rather than pay all of your tuition from your own funds and wait for reimbursement). However, sooner is always better than later, because requests for clarification, "Verification", and/or correction can lengthen the time needed to complete the process and delay the availability funds. Students requesting College Work-Study funds and/or Perkins Loans should file their applications as soon as possible. These aids are awarded on a first come, first served basis and funds are limited.

The U.S. Department of Education will respond to the submission of your FAFSA by mailing a SAR or Student Aid Report (in approximately 4 weeks if you filed via paper, in 2 weeks if you filed electronically). Read all of the SAR. Give close attention to page 3 (for 2000-2001, read Part 1). Page 3 will alert you to the possibility of having to submit documentation to the Financial Aid Office. Some of the phrases that will indicate that you need to submit appropriate documentation to the Financial Aid Office are:

"Your school will ask you to provide certain financial documents..."
"The name you reported on your application doesn't match..."
"The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) did not confirm..."
"The Social Security Administration (SSA) did not comfirm..."
"Your parent's total income appears to be unusually low."

If any of the preceding phrases appear on your SAR, review the definition of documentation in this web site's glossary in order to determine which document(s) best prove(s) the accuracy of the SAR information. Take the appropriate document(s) to the Lehman College Financial Aid Office as soon as possible. The Financial Aid Office will do SAR correction(s) electronically. Feel free to visit the Financial Aid Office whenever questions arise regarding incorrect answers on your SAR and/or SAR processing in general.

If you filed an on-line FAFSA, take note of the first page that occurs after you submit your completed FAFSA (i.e., "FAFSA on the Web Submission Confirmation"). Find the section on the page entitled "New York Residents". Click that link and you will be taken to the website of the New York Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC). The HESC website will invite you to complete an on-line TAP application.

If, you did not file an online FAFSA or if you forgot to "click", the link for New York State Residents, do not worry; a paper TAP application will be mailed to you within two weeks.

Regardless of the type TAP Application to be filed, read the application carefully. The application has been pre-printed or filled-out with information and assumptions based on the answers you submitted on your FAFSA. Complete your TAP application by answering unanswered questions and/or changing incorrect answers. Make all changes in appropriate column ("The Answer Should Be", for the paper application or "Modify Your Answer" for the on-line application.

The TAP application uses a different school code than the FAFSA does. Be sure to enter Lehman's code, 1412, in the appropriate boxes. This will insure that your TAP award will be sent to Lehman.

If you did an on-line TAP Application, no further signature will be required. If you are completing a paper TAP Application be sure to sign the application and if necessary obtain the appropriate signature(s) [yours, your spouse's, or your parent(s)]. Mail the completed TAP/APTS application in the self-addressed envelope provided.

The primary purpose of the FAFSA is to determine Financial Need. A formula called Federal Methodology is applied to the information submitted on your FAFSA. The formula takes into account your family's income and some types of assets. The formula result is called the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). It indicates how much money you and your family are expected to contribute toward your cost of attendance. If your EFC is below a certain amount, you will be eligible for a federal Pell Grant (assuming you meet all other eligibility requirements).

Concerning eligibility for other Title IV federal student aid programs, your EFC, the Pell Grant you are eligible for, and any other aid you may get from other sources are subtracted from your cost of attendance. The result is your remaining financial need.

Cost of Attendance - EFC - Federal Pell Grant Eligibility - Aid from Other Sources =

Remaining financial need can be met through a variety of federal Title IV (SEOG, College work-study and loans) and NY State student aid programs (TAP, APTS, SEEK, etc.). Keep in mind that TAP, APTS and other non-federal aid programs may use a different need analysis formula than does the family of federal aid programs.

You may obtain an accurate estimate of what your EFC and/or TAP award will be by clicking on the following: http://www.hesc.com/tools/default.htm

Financial need is merely one of the criteria used to determine eligibility for U.S. federal and New York State Need Based Aid. In general, students must also meet the following criteria:

1) Have a high school diploma or a General Education Development (GED) certificate,
2) Be working toward a degree or certificate (be a matriculated student),
3) Be enrolled in an eligible program,
4) Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen,
5) Have a valid Social Security Number,
6) Register with the Selective Service if required (you can use the paper or electronic FAFSA to register) and
7) Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress and Enrollment status once in school.

Students, who drop or withdraw from classes, may lose part or all of that semester's financial aid and should consult a financial aid counselor before changing enrollment status. Changes in enrollment status can have consequences beyond the loss of a semester's worth of financial aid. A change in enrollment status can result in:

1) Increased "out of pocket" payments towards tuition,
2) Having to repay (or "Refund ") received funds back to U.S. Department of Education,
3) The loss of part or all of the following semester's financial aid,
4) A student loan being forced into repayment.

After the processing of your SAR and TAP/APTS application, you will receive the following additional documents:

A TAP Award Certificate will notify you of your eligibility for TAP funds. Review this carefully for your name, Social Security Number, college and academic period of award. If the certificate has an error, come to the Financial Aid Office for correction instructions. If the award certificate is correct, keep it for your records and do not submit it to the Financial Aid Office. Your TAP award will be sent directly to our computer file. You may, want to bring the TAP Award Certificate to registration (in case our computer systems go off-line).

A CUNY Financial Aid Award Letter is the final response to the filing any FAFSA that includes a request for Work-Study and/or student loans. The letter will indicate how much Work-Study, Perkins Loan, and/or other campus-based aid that you are being offered. It may also include estimates of your TAP and/or PELL awards. A Check Distribution Calendar will accompany the award letter.

To visit the FAFSA on the WEB website now click: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.