CSU Financial Aid 2007-2008 Award Notification

1) you recently submitted a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to the national processing agency and Chicago State University (CSU) has received a copy of your Student Aid Report (SAR) and, as a result, has prepared a financial aid award package for you, which you need to review, or

2) you have recently submitted information to either the national processing agency, or the CSU Office of Student Financial Aid, which has brought about a recalculation of your financial aid eligibility and, possibly, an adjustment in the amount(s) of your award(s), or

3) there has been a change in the amount(s) of your financial aid award(s) due to a change in Federal, State or CSU policy and/ or availability of funds, or

4) we have recently processed your loan request and the results are now posted to your account for your review, or

5) there are certain “student requirements” which you need to fulfill before we can either prepare a financial aid award package for you or finalize the awards that were established for you based upon the information you provided on your FAFSA.

To review your status and properly respond (if required) to this offer of financial assistance, please click on the link provided at the bottom of this web page to be taken to CSU X-Press.

When you arrive at CSU X-Press click on Enter Secure Area.

If this is your first time entering the CSU X-Press web site . . .

. . . . . your User ID will be your Social Security Number, and . . .

. . . . .your Personal Access Code (PAC) will be your date-of-birth.

If you have yet to be admitted to the university and have been assigned a Temporary ID beginning with the @ character (listed at the top of the e-mail/letter notification that brought you to this web site), please use that as your User ID.

If you have a Temporary ID listed at the beginning of your e-mail/letter notification, and you have been admitted since the notification was sent, please use your Social Security Number . . . OR . . . if you cannot gain access using the Temporary ID please try using your Social Security Number.

Once you have accessed the web site, you will be prompted to change the PAC.

You will need your PAC to access the web site in the future.

PLEASE, DON’T FORGET IT!

After entering the site:

. . . Click on the Student Services & Financial Aid link.

. . . On the next screen click on the Financial Aid link.

. . . On the next screen click on the My Overall Status of Financial Aid.

. . . Select the Aid Year referenced in the e-mail/letter we sent you.

If, when you go to the next screen, you see the following statement: “You have unsatisfied student requirements for this aid year.” (in the middle of the screen) please click on “student requirements” and review what is required from you before your financial aid package can be finalized. Please try and fulfill all requirements as soon as possible. Your financial aid package will not be finalized until you have done so.

If you have no unsatisfied student requirements (or after you have reviewed what you need to do) please back up to the Financial Aid page and click on My Award Information.

. . . Review and accept any awards in an Offered Status.

If there are no awards with an Offered Status, please review those awards that are accepted. Again, please note that some awards may have been adjusted to reflect recent adjustments/corrections to your SAR or because of a change in your enrollment status or enrolled hours.

FEDERAL PELL GRANTS, FEDERAL AC GRANTS, FEDERAL SMART GRANTS, STATE OF ILLINOIS MAP GRANTS AND STATE OF ILLINOIS SILAS PURNELL ILLINOIS INCENTIVE FOR ACCESS (IIA) GRANTS ARE AUTOMATICALLY ACCEPTED IN OUR SYSTEM. IF YOU HAVE BEEN AWARDED PELL AND/OR AC AND/OR SMART AND/OR MAP AND/OR IIA YOU DO NOT NEED TO ACCEPT THESE AWARDS.

While you are in the CSU X-Press web site please take a few minutes to look at all the information available to you in addition to financial aid information.

If you have a problem entering the CSU X-Press web site please call 773-995-2304 (during normal business hours of 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday – Friday and until 7:00 PM on Thursday), to have your Personal Access Code (PAC) re-set.

Awards are based on full time attendance (except as otherwise noted) and your anticipated academic status, based upon current information, for the 2007-2008 school year. If you do not attend full time, or your anticipated academic status should change, your awards can be increased, reduced or denied/eliminated. If you change your enrollment status (e.g., add or drop a course), contact the Office of Student Financial Aid promptly. Awards may be estimated. They will not be official until you have accepted the awards (with the exception of Pell, AC, Smart, MAP and IIA which are automatically accepted) and a Financial Aid Advisor and/or Satisfactory Academic Progress Counselor has completed a review of your status. If you have been selected for Verification by the United States Department of Education (USDE) the amount of your awards may change as a result of the completion of the Verification process. If any funds are increased, decreased, or eliminated, you will be notified by e-mail that there has been activity on your account and that you should review your award status on CSU X-Press.

FEDERAL SUPPLEMENTAL OPPORTUNITY GRANT (SEOG) AND FEDERAL COLLEGE WORK-STUDY (CWS)

Funding for both of these programs is limited. If you have been offered either/both of these awards you must accept them by June 1, 2007. If you do not accept them by that date we will assume you do not wish to receive these awards. We will remove any unaccepted SEOG and CWS after June 1, 2007 and re-award any available funds to other eligible students. If you are or become the recipient of "re-awarded" SEOG or CWS you will have 14 days from the date of notification to accept or decline either or both award. If you do not accept an award it will be removed from your award package at the end of the 14 day period and again "re-awarded" to other eligible students. The "re-awarding" process will continue, if necessary, until both funds are exhausted.

Eligibility, and continuing eligibility, for these grants are based upon (in part) academic level, enrollment status and GPA. Both grants were first introduced during the 2006-2007 academic year. For more information concerning these grants please visit the “The Financial Aid Process” web page of the Office of Student Financial Aid web site

By applying for financial aid (FAFSA) and agreeing to share that information with the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) you have been considered for the State of Illinois (IL) Monetary Award Program (MAP) Grant. If you were determined to meet the eligibility criteria for the MAP grant, an award is included in your Financial Aid Package. This award may be an estimate made by the Office of Student Financial Aid and if so is identified as a "State of IL MAP Grant (Est)." MAP grants are limited based on the number of applicants and funding levels appropriated by the Illinois General Assembly. Please be aware that in light of state funding constraints, reductions to estimated or actual MAP grants are possible. If a "State of IL MAP Grant (Est)" is not included in your Financial Aid Package, you are not eligible for the grant at CSU.

Starting with the 2004-2005 academic year, eligibility for a MAP grant began being tracked by the equivalent number of semester hours of MAP benefits paid on your behalf. This is called MAP Paid Credit Hours. Payment for each term is being made according to the equivalent number of credit hours eligible for MAP payment, with a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 15 MAP Paid Credit Hours.

There is a limit on the number of MAP Paid Credit Hours that can be paid while you are classified by your school as a freshman and sophomore. This limit is the equivalent of 75 MAP Paid Credit Hours. If this maximum is reached, you must attain junior status for your MAP grant eligibility to resume. The maximum number of MAP Paid Credit Hours that can be received is capped at 135.

The purpose of the Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program is to improve access and retention for students who have limited ability to pay for college, and possibility to reduce the amount of loan dollars borrowed by these students. To be eligible for IIA, a student must be a freshman with an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of zero, who is attending an ISAC-approved school. Currently, the IIA Program provides a grant of up to $500 delivered in two disbursements of $250 per term.

Who is eligible to get an IIA grant? . . . Students classified as freshman by their college who have a zero (0) expected family contribution (EFC) on their Federal Student Aid Report (SAR) or Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR). In addition, students must be Illinois residents, and meet the other Monetary Award Program (MAP) eligibility requirements.

How do I apply for the IIA Program? . . . By completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), you applied for an IIA grant. After you enroll and are attending school, the Office of Student Financial Aid at CSU will verify your eligibility. If you meet all eligibility requirements [freshman status, zero (0) EFC, etc.] the school will request an IIA payment(s) on your behalf.

Do I receive the funds directly from ISAC?. . . No. The IIA grant is paid to the school on your behalf. The school will notify you when funds are available to you or funds have been credited to your student account.

What can the IIA grant be used for? . . . For any expense that is included in your cost of attendance at the school. It is not limited to tuition and fees.

If the school verifies my eligibility for an IIA grant, how will it impact my other financial aid? How will I know if I receive the IIA Grant? . . . The Office of Student Financial Aid at CSU has its own financial aid packaging policy. The Office of Student Financial Aid at CSU will inform you if you will receive the IIA grant. Most schools will usually list it on your Financial Aid Package.

If I am at the freshman class level with a zero (0) EFC, meet all the other eligibility requirements and received some IIA grant funds last school year, am I still eligible to receive an IIA grant this year? . . . The IIA grant is an award up to $500. If you received the full $500 IIA grant in a previous school year, you cannot get additional IIA grant funds. If you received only part of the IIA grant (i.e., $250) in a previous school year, you would be eligible for the other $250.

If I transfer schools, can I use the IIA grant at the new school? . . . You can receive the grant at the new school if:

CSU's Satisfactory Academic Progress Policies (Undergraduate and Graduate) measure whether students are progressing at a reasonable rate toward the completion of their educational objective. Students must be in compliance with these policies in order to maintain continued financial aid eligibility. The basic requirements students must meet are set forth below. The entire Satisfactory Academic Progress Policies are published in the CSU Undergraduate Catalog and the CSU Graduate Catalog. Copies of the policies are also available from the Office of Student Financial Aid.

BASIC SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS REQUIREMENTS

UNDERGRADUATE
GPA: 2.0 or higher
Attempted and Completed: 67% of hours enrolled
Maximum Eligibility: 180 attempted hours (including transfer hours)

GPA: 3.0 or higher
Attempted and Completed: 67% of hours enrolled
Maximum Eligibility: One and one-half times (150%) the number
of hours needed for degree completion (including all hours attempted)

If your Financial Aid Package indicates that you, and/or your parent(s), may be eligible for a loan(s) (Subsidized Federal Stafford, Unsubsidized Federal Stafford, Federal Parent PLUS or Federal Graduate PLUS) you must accept any “Offered” loan(s) by accessing your financial aid profile through CSU X-Press. You may, of course, decline any "Offered" loan or accept a reduced amount. Should you decide to accept any loan, in whole or in part, you must complete the appropriate Loan Request Form and submit it to our office. The Forms will be available for download from the Office of Student Financial Aid web site according to the following schedule:

Once your loan(s) has been processed you will be notified that you need to access CSU X-Press to review the results. Remember, your loan(s) will show in an Accepted status.

Note: Any “Offered” loans are based, in part, upon your anticipated academic status as provided by you on your 2007-2008 FAFSA, as well as your financial status as reflected on said FAFSA or corrections thereto, your student budget (cost of education/attendance based upon your anticipated academic level/program) and other financial aid awards for which you may be eligible.

Offered loan amounts reflected in your Financial Aid Package are based upon enrollment status as follows:

Should you enroll for hours other than noted above, or the hours that you indicate that you will enroll for on the Loan Request Form that you submit to our office, the amount of your loan(s) may have to be adjusted.

DEPENDENT STUDENTS PLEASE NOTE: Your financial aid package may show that you are eligible for an Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan. If this is the case please be aware that while the dollar amount of your eligibility is accurate the process to secure an Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan has several steps that must be taken in addition to accepting the award on-line and then submitting a Federal Stafford Loan Request Form. For more information please go to our Apply for Loans web page and review the process.

Once you have submitted Loan Request Form, and it has been processed, you will receive notification from both our office and your lender. You may access CSU X-Press to review the final approved amount(s) of the loan(s) for which you are eligible.

If your grade level changes after the fall, or any, semester (either to the next undergraduate level, such as sophomore to junior, or into a different academic program, such as Certification or Master's) your current loan(s) will not be automatically adjusted based on you new status. In fact, your loan(s) may be canceled if you should move from undergraduate to graduate status, or Master's to Certification. You must submit a new loan application if you require, and are eligible for, additional loan funds at your new academic level.

REMEMBER: AWARDS ARE BASED UPON FULL-TIME ATTENDENCE (except as otherwise noted such as in the case of loans) IN AN ELIGIBLE ACADEMIC PROGRAM AND THE INFORMATION CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON YOUR SAR. SHOULD YOU ENROLL AT A LESS THAN FULL-TIME STATUS, CHANGE ACADEMIC PROGRAMS OR ENROLLED HOURS, OR IF THE INFORMATION ON YOUR SAR SHOULD CHANGE (EITHER THROUGH THE VERIFICATION PROCESS OR CHANGES YOU MAKE TO YOUR SAR) THE AMOUNT(S) OF ANY AWARD(S) MAY DECREASE, INCREASE OR BE ELIMINATED INTIRELY.

To review and properly respond to this offer of financial assistance please click here to go to CSU X-Press, or access CSU X-Press through the main Chicago State University web site or the Office of Student Financial Aid web site