Change in Circumstances
The Office of Financial Aid is committed to a thorough and personal review of each family's individual circumstances as the basis of determining a student's financial aid eligibility. We also recognize that family circumstances can change unexpectedly, affecting a family's ability to contribute toward educational expenses.
Your financial aid is based upon income from two years prior to the start of the academic year. If your family's circumstances change after receiving your Financial Aid Notification, you may request a second review of your financial aid by completing the Change in Circumstances Form. The following are examples of changes in circumstances that may be considered:
- Significant loss of income due to termination or change in employment
- One-time/non-recurring income
- Unreimbursed medical expenses
- Extended family support
- Parent educational debt
The following are not considered changes in circumstances:
- Matching financial aid eligibility from other universities or colleges
- Student or parent(s) who does not wish to borrow to cover educational expenses
- Parent(s) refusal to contribute to educational expenses
- Parent(s) payment of student loans for older sibling
- Expenses such as credit card debt, wedding expenses, sports, enrichment activities, home improvement projects, etc.
Additional financial assistance is determined on a case-by-case basis and may be in the form of a loan, employment, or scholarship. Submission of this form does not guarantee an adjustment or increase to your financial assistance.
Change of Circumstances Review
Your federal income taxes, W-2 statements, and documentation of your income from all other sources must be on file with our office before we will do a second review. For loss of income due to termination or change of employment, the earliest we will consider a change in circumstances will be 12 weeks from the date of termination. You may submit the Change in Circumstances form (linked below) and any supporting documentation by using our secure document upload portal. If you are sending documents to us with Personally Identifiable Information (i.e., social security number, driver’s license or state ID number, Alien Registration Number, date of birth), please redact/black out that information or encrypt the message that you are sending.
2023-24 Change in Circumstances Form
Our change in circumstances review for continuing students will begin in mid July. Requests will be reviewed in the order that they were received. While we intend to respond within 3 weeks of receipt, please understand that we may require additional time during the summer months. Notification regarding the outcome of the review will be sent via email upon its completion. If you have not yet received a Financial Aid Notification and have additional information that you wish to make us aware of, you may submit the Change in Circumstances Form and we will review this with the other items that you have already submitted.
It is our expectation that families will use all financial assistance offered, including federal and institutional loans, before requesting a reevaluation for additional aid. Families should plan to use all resources available to them, including current salary, savings, investments, payment plans, and student/parent loans, if necessary.