CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE
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Is the CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE on your mind? The PROFILE is a financial aid application required by over 400 colleges, universities, and scholarship programs, so if you have a child applying to college, there’s a good chance you’ll need to complete it. Like the FAFSA, the PROFILE asks questions about family income, assets, and household members. It requires more details than the FAFSA, and has its own registration process.
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CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE
- 1. MASSACHUSETTS EDUCATIONAL FINANCING AUTHORITY CSS/FINANCIAL AID PROFILE®
- 2. •College Board’s online financial aid application •Required by almost 400 colleges/universities and scholarship programs •Used to award non-federal financial aid funds •Opens October 1st each year •Customized to each student: each student’s PROFILE application is based on answers given during registration •Available for both domestic and international students What is the CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE?
- 3. •Collects more detailed information than the FAFSA •Allows schools to ask their own supplemental questions to anyone applying to that institution •Includes a space for you to provide a note to the financial aid offices regarding special circumstances Why Do Institutions Use the PROFILE?
- 4. Start Here: student.collegeboard.org/profile For high school seniors List of colleges that use the PROFILE Create College Board account
- 5. Participating Institutions and Programs The list of participating institutions shows if the school uses the PROFILE for international students, or uses the Noncustodial PROFILE or IDOC.
- 6. •Registration is a list of 21 questions about the student and family •Must complete in one sitting •Student Social Security number is not required but recommended •Use a valid email address •Report intended enrollment status, parent marital status, citizenship • Info reported determines PROFILE application questions •Select colleges to receive the PROFILE data •Save your CSS ID •Customized Pre-Application Worksheet shows a list of the questions you’ll receive on the PROFILE Registration
- 7. •Select “Save & Exit” anytime to save your data and complete later •Use buttons in the application, not the web browser, to navigate •You cannot leave numeric questions blank: you must enter a zero •Estimate income figures for questions about 2016 & 2017 •Select “Print/Review Application” anytime •Select “Add/Remove Colleges” anytime during the application process •Parent section: green & white; Student section: blue & white Application Process: General Tips
- 8. •Parent Income (2015) and Assets (Current) • Reported by the custodial parent and current spouse • Unlike the FAFSA, a Legal Guardian is considered a parent if the legal relationship will continue after 6/30/17 (or if the college requires the guardian’s information) •Student Income and Assets •Household Information •Number of children in college General Main Information Requested
- 9. The PROFILE asks questions not found on the FAFSA to give schools additional data to help determine financial aid eligibility. You will report: •Parent Income –Three years (2015, estimated 2016, & projected 2017) –Untaxed Social Security Benefits, Earned Income Credit, Additional Child Tax Credit, Foreign Income Exclusion •Parent Assets –Value and debt of primary home –Value of all businesses and farms –Parent assets held in siblings’ names –Retirement value (asked for, though not often used) •Parent expenses –Medical/dental –Private elementary/secondary school tuition –Education loan repayments More Questions = Better Estimate of Ability to Pay
- 10. •Family data –Ages of siblings –Colleges that siblings attend •Student data –Expected-year income –Private scholarships earned –Employee tuition benefits •Explanation of special circumstances More Questions = Better Estimate of Ability to Pay
- 11. The Noncustodial PROFILE (NCP) •For families w/ divorced or separated parents, or never married parents, living separately •Separate online application for the noncustodial parent and spouse •Located here: ncprofile.collegeboard.com •Only required by certain schools (check with the financial aid office) •Requests same information as collected from custodial parent •Student can request the noncustodial parent to receive the application via email OR can send an application code to the noncustodial parent
- 12. PROFILE Fees •$25 for the application and submitting it to one school •$16 to send the PROFILE to each additional school •Payment options: Credit card or debit card •Noncustodial PROFILE: $25 one-time fee
- 13. Fee Waivers •Automatically granted if family meets one of the following: • Has income within the USDA reduced price lunch standards (~$40K for family of 4) • Family receives SNAP or TANF • Student received an SAT fee waiver •Not available for international students •Available to first-time applicants whose parents live in the U.S. •Orphans/wards of the court under age 24 are automatically eligible •Notified at the time of submission •Covers sending the PROFILE to 8 institutions •Same fee waiver rules apply to the Noncustodial PROFILE except the SAT fee waiver
- 14. Fee Payment Codes •Purchased by colleges/universities/organizations for use by students •Each code pays for one college submission •Students may use up to 16
- 15. Submitting the PROFILE •Once submitted, cannot make online edits or delete schools •Student will have the chance to save the PROFILE Acknowledgment –Summarizes all of the information reported –Can edit the form by hand & send to colleges if there are changes to the data •Select “Add Colleges to Submitted Application” anytime to send the PROFILE to additional schools •“Check Status”: date submitted & date sent to each school •On time = by midnight ET of earliest priority deadline set by the school
- 16. What is IDOC? •College Board’s Institutional Documentation Service •Collects family documents (such as tax returns) on an institution’s behalf •Families can take pictures of documents and upload them into IDOC •IDOC student dashboard tells students of incomplete submissions •Opens Nov 1st •Student will be notified if required to use IDOC •Customer Service: (866) 897-9881 •idoc.collegeboard.com •The online tutorial provides more details
- 17. PROFILE Customer Service •Phone: (844) 202-0524 –M to F, 9am-6pm, ET; 8am-10pm Jan-Apr •Email: help@cssprofile.org •Contact Us button: provides phone & email •Click ? Icon or Help Code (such as SI-100F) next to each question •Help Desk button: FAQs, estimating tips, special audience instructions •2017-18 PROFILE Student Guide on the PROFILE homepage
- 18. Interactive Presentation css.collegeboard.org Further instructions on different components of completing the PROFILE:
- 19. Connect with MEFA Contact us with questions: info@mefa.org (800) 449-MEFA (6332) mefa.org
Editor's Notes
- Not connected to the FAFSA at all – totally separate application – FAFSA is for federal/state funds Does not have to be submitted early (before the FAFSA) unless required earlier (usually for Early Decision/Action). Should submit it 2 weeks before the earliest priority deadline. Check the deadlines at each college! Customized to student based on Registration questions and skip logic Customized to school – specific questions requested by each college included on application – schools can add Supplemental Questions (SQ) – only the colleges who asked these questions will receive the answers. Used for both domestic and international students Some schools require the PROFILE every year. Some only want it the first year.
- Information is used in Institutional Methodology, a detailed analysis of family household and financial data used by many colleges and organizations in order to award institutional funds October 1st start helps institutions reach students earlier for EA/ED/rolling admissions Schools are doing their best to distribute their own funds fairly, which is why they require the additional info on the PROFILE.
- URL at the top to get to the PROFILE. Can also go to CollegeBoard.org, click on College Planning, and under the Pay for College tab, you’ll find the PROFILE CB account: set up a username & password. Can use the student’s CB account from the SAT, or the parent can create an account. Must use student account if stu received SAT fee waiver and wants to receive PROFILE fee waiver automatically as a result. Each account can only be tied to one application per year. If the parent wants to keep financial/household information from the student, the parent should create a CB account; otherwise the student will be able to access the PROFILE. If there is more than one child needing a PROFILE, the parent will need to create more than one account. Can use the same username & password from year to year. Participating schools list – Pretty accurate, though some have chosen not to be on this list! Definitely still check each financial aid office’s website
- For each school/organization, details are listed: CSS Code, state, and if PROFILE/PROFILE for int’l students/NCP/IDOC used/required
- Before you get to the Registration page, a page will appear that provides guidance on the Registration and application process. An option to “Click here before you begin” brings you to a page that provides instructions, documents to gather, navigation tips, and cost information. You can print this page. 21 questions Must register in one sitting or info will not be saved Student name MUST match name on the SS card SSN is optional but include it – colleges often use as the main identifier and to link PROFILE to student record Email – make it valid and one that is checked – CB only communicates via email. Many families create a family email address. Info determines later questions asked: parent marital status prompts the Noncust Par PROFILE if par are divorced/separated, par country of residence determines if student is provided domestic or int’l PROFILE (Canadians get domestic PROFILE) Select never attended college if still in high school, even if taking college courses for credit Marital status: par can now report single, adoptive par, or single par of donor-conceived child Citizenship: select U.S. citizen if have dual citizenship Parent country of residence will also be asked. This is DIFFERENT from a parent’s country of citizenship. Parents who reside outside the U.S. will be asked different questions. CSS ID – colleges may use it, so it’s good to have it – will be emailed to you after Registration There is no listing of the PROFILE questions anywhere online. Families need to first complete Registration and can then download the Pre-Application Worksheet Customized Pre-App Worksheet & Instructions: can print for use in completing the PROFILE – Can help speed up the PROFILE process Summary of Registration is provided at the end Make sure one person at a time on one computer is completing Registration & the Application There is no auto independent status, like there is on the FAFSA. Though similar questions will be asked during Registration to the FAFSA questions that determine a student’s dependency status. Users will have the opportunity to review all of the Registration answers that have been entered before finishing Registration
- You will receive pop-up warning messages to review your answer in the PROFILE if the PROFILE thinks a response you gave might be wrong Can save data and leave anytime “Save & Exit” Application will be customized based on Registration questions Use buttons in PROFILE application (such as “GO TO SECTION”) to navigate (not the forward and back buttons in web browser) Use “Save & Continue” at the end of each page Cannot leave numeric questions blank (others can be blank) Also, do not include any extra characters in numeric questions such as dollar signs, commas, or hyphens Round to the nearest dollar for each question Print/Review Application anytime for an application summary Application takes 45 minutes – 2 hours to complete Have on hand: 2 yrs of tax returns, W-2s, untaxed income information, bank statements, investments information
- If the student has a legal guardian, all of the parent questions apply to the legal guardian (!) Custodial parent: the parent with whom the student lived the most over the past 12 months The schools selected in the Registration process will determine if parent info is collected for independent students – if required by any school, the parent data will be displayed. Independent students are: 24 or older as of Jan 1 in academic yr, married, grad students, have legal dependents other than spouse, veterans, and orphans/wards of the court Report both parents if you live with them Income earned from work = wages, salaries, & tips from the federal income tax return Most colleges/universities assume a certain amount of student contribution from income, even if income = $0 Include other children in hh if parents will provide more than half their support during the upcoming academic year Don’t include people that the parents support who are NOT in the household (e.g. grandparents living elsewhere)
- 3 years of inc (prior, expected, & current year) allows colleges to determine if base-year income is accurate Provides a heads-up when parent income may drop in the next tax year Untaxed Social Security Benefits collected for parents and siblings (not on the FAFSA at all). Any SS benefits received by parents on student’s behalf should not be reported ANYWHERE on the PROFILE. Parents who are self-employed and don’t own a business will receive a warning message asking if they’re sure that they don’t own a business (because many self-employed people DO own a business). If the parent does indeed NOT own a business, the parent can ignore the warning message. Why home equity? Measure of family financial strength & advantage in tax system Give the fair market value of your home (what would you get if you sold it today?) instead of the tax assessed value. You can use zillow.com. Home debt includes any mortgage plus any home equity line of credit being used. Parent expenses collected – these listed are viewed as non-discretionary. Discretionary expenses like credit card debt are not considered/collected Medical/dental – includes expenses not covered by insurance AND amounts paid for insurance. Can use amount from line 1 of Schedule A if you itemize med/dental expenses
- Ages of siblings: list whomever receives > half of the parents’ support and lives in the household. Some colleges may remove siblings/other family members 24 and older (or some other age) Sibling colleges: lower-cost colleges may result in a larger EFC. Some colleges don’t count grad siblings in the household/in college Student expected-year income: summer + academic year
- Basic info on the noncustodial parent is reported by the custodial parent on the PROFILE (name, address, yr of divorce/separation, who last claimed child on taxes) If noncust parent passed away after divorce, cust parent should report himself/herself as widowed, even though this is not accurate. If the cust parent has already reported herself/himself as divorced and the NCP has been requested, contact each school and explain. Students can request that the College Board email the noncust parent directly with sign-in information for the NCP (given option to “click here” and provide the noncust parent’s email address). This option is only given during the Registration process Can click the “Help Desk” button for tips for divorced/separated parents
- College Board accepts VISA, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover cards Noncustodial PROFILE: $25, regardless of number of schools
- Does not include Earned Income Credit in the Total Parent Income but includes all other taxable and untaxable income For family of 4, fee waiver given if parent income is $40K or less; for family of 3, $35K or less; for family of 2, $27K or less USDA same as National School Lunch Program Business owners and self-employed do not get fee waivers If a school pays for all of its students to take the SAT, that isn’t the same as the student receiving an SAT fee waiver Those who receive a PROFILE fee waiver do NOT automatically receive an SAT fee waiver (doesn’t work both ways) Noncust fee wavier is calculated totally separately from the regular PROFILE fee waiver. One does not impact the other.
- Most fee payment codes actually go to international students who are from countries that are prevented from using credit cards in U.S. transactions
- Double check your answers before submitting. Once submitted, you cannot make online edits. Can print out the Acknowledgement - Can also log in later to view it: Select “Check Status of Application” on the PROFILE homepage At any time, you may add a college or program by going to the PROFILE home page and clicking “Add Colleges to Submitted Application.” You will be charged $16 for each college or program you add. Any unused fee-waiver eligibility will be automatically applied to your charges. You may not delete any recipients once you have submitted your application. The Acknowledgment no longer tells students if a college will use IDOC to collect documents If ADDING an additional college after the initial submission, you can edit your answers. Those edits will only go to the new college(s). Does NOT provide the EFC like the FAFSA No PIN required – you agree to a certification at the end Can select “Check Status of Application” anytime to see where PROFILE has been sent.
- College Board's Institutional Documentation Service (IDOC) If a PROFILE school is using IDOC, the student will receive an email after submitting the PROFILE with instructions on uploading documents for IDOC If a student’s submission is incomplete, rather than receiving an email or letter, the student will receive a message on the IDOC student dashboard
- Help Desk includes tips, draft tax forms, and tax line reference table Click on each question Help Code or question mark icon for instructions or answers to FAQs Use Help Code to refer back to the question if calling/emailing Customer Service Can type in a topic and click “SEARCH” at the top of each page to search for an answer
- New resource this year online: Interactive Presentation: Tips to Help you Apply for CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE Not exactly interactive. Instead it’s similar to watching a webinar. 8 sections. Can play each one separately or play all in a row by selecting “Play All”