MASFAA 2013 October 6 th – 9 th, 2013 Indianapolis, Indiana Building Student Cost of Attendance: Issues and Ideas Diane Fleming, Financial Aid Professional Emerita Sarah Soper, Director of Financial Aid, Indiana University East

AGENDA 2  Overview of Cost of Attendance Components  Professional Judgment – Could ‘ya? Would ‘ya? Should ‘ya?  Scenarios: What some schools do – and questions some schools have

COA: the 2 nd component of FM to determine financial aid eligibility  COA: Determined by law (HEA, Sec. 472); not subject to regulation by ED  FAA must determine what is reasonable & appropriate  FM uses the COA – EFC to determine eligibility for various need-based financial aid programs  FAAs must create a systematic method of developing COAs  COA must be included in the institution’s Consumer Information publications

COA Components  Allowable costs in general ◊ Same for all FSA programs Based on enrollment status Sum of the following: Tuition & fees Books & supplies Transportation Room & board Miscellaneous/personal expenses Loan fees 4

ADDITIONAL ALLOWABLE COA  Dependent care  Study abroad expenses  One time cost for professional license or certificate  Student disability expenses  Employment expenses for co-op study  Less than half-time enrollment, room and board for a limited duration  Independent student or dependent student living with parent who receives BAH – COA can only include board – not room & board 5

TUITION AND FEES  Average vs. individual enrollment  Separate averages for various categories of students, e.g., undergraduate vs. graduate, in-state vs. out-of-state, program of study, dependent vs. independent, etc.  Fees: Must be required for student’s course of study OR be required of all students, e.g. equipment rental, required health insurance 6

BOOKS & SUPPLIES  FAA must determine a book allowance; can differentiate between undergraduate vs. graduate, academic discipline, etc.  Supplies: Incudes a reasonable amount as determined by your institution for documented rental/purchase of a computer; mandatory expenses associated with an academic program, e.g., musical instrument, medical supplies, mechanic’s tools, cosmetology kits/supplies, etc. 7

TRANSPORTATION  Different costs for residential, off-campus, commuter or on-line only students  Payment for purchase/lease of a car is not allowed  Study-abroad costs 8

ROOM & BOARD  Categorize student’s (without dependents) place of residence: ◊ Living with parent(s) ◊ Living in institutionally-owned housing ◊ Living off-campus, must be based on reasonable expenses for student’s room & board: cannot exclude R&B for student’s enrolled in on-line only programs (Sec. 472 (10) ◊ Living in on-base military housing (must exclude allowance for room) 9

PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS  Personal: includes clothing, laundry & cleaning, personal hygiene/grooming and recreation necessary to maintain living at a reasonable standard  Miscellaneous: ◊ One-time purchase of a computer/musical instrument ◊ Dependent care costs ◊ Disability-related expenses 10

LOAN FEES  Must be included if student actually borrows a Direct Loan  Can be an actual loan fee amount or an average based on the same type of loan borrowed for attendance at the school  Optional to include loan fees for nonfederal conventional alternative or private student loan 11

COA RESTRICTIONS  Incarcerated students: tuition, fees, books & supplies only  Correspondence study: Actual tuition, fees, book, supplies; transportation, room & board costs incurred specifically while fulfilling a required period of residential training  Less than half-time students: tuition, fees, books, supplies, transportation, dependent care expenses, room & board (but for not more than 3 semesters, of which not more than 2 semesters may be consecutive 12

PJ: COULD ‘YA, WOULD ‘YA, SHOULD ‘YA?  Sec. 479A(a): Discretion of Student FAAs with adequate documentation: Ability to make adjustments on a case-by- case basis to the COA….can include, but not limited to: ◊ Unusually high child care or dependent care costs ◊ Professional wardrobe ◊ Study-abroad costs ◊ Enrollment “overloads” ◊ Unusual transportation costs for emergency travel, e.g. death of immediate family member ◊ Increased R&B for internships, medical rotations, study abroad, cooperative education, etc. ◊ Special dietary needs ◊ Student mortgage and other expenses associated with home ownership 13

SCENARIOS: WHAT SOME SCHOOLS DO AND QUESTIONS SOME SCHOOLS HAVE  Establish the COA but only package to direct costs  Exclude additional unsub eligibility  Delay disbursement until academic activity has been initiated  Prorate disbursement in modular programs  Delay disbursement and adjust COA to actual enrollment at census date  Make no PJ adjustments to COA  Exclude R&B for on-line programs – NOT PERMISSIBLE!!  Establish a national R&B rate for on-line programs  Other scenarios?? 14

SCHOOL QUESTIONS  Can you do PJ for: X,Y, or Z??  What can you do with COA to help improve the institutions cohort default rate?  Is there a minimum R&B COA for on-line only programs?  Must you include transportation for on-line only programs?  Other questions?? 15