Welcome to the Office of Student Financial Assistance

The Office of Student Financial Assistance Mission Statement

The Office of Student Financial Assistance plays a major role in providing access to post-secondary education for students by assisting them in receiving grants, work, loans and scholarships to finance their higher education. The Office of Student Financial Assistance serves as a student advocate while also advancing institutional policy and objectives within the framework of rules and regulations governing State, Federal and Private funding sources of aid to whom it must account for the expenditure of funds. Excelsior Scholarship - Free Fall 2017 tuition for eligible students

Important Dates

05/01/2020 Priority deadline for fall 2020 semester 10/31/2019 Priority deadline for spring 2020 semester FAFSA 2020-2021 application available on line

Ability to Benefit Financial Aid Exam Review Material

CLICK HERE

Financial Aid Workshop

Financial Aid Workshop Schedule

Important Information

Pell grants for Students in Career Pathways Programs Alert: To order tax transcript, the online Get Transcript service is currently unavailable. You may still order transcripts using the Get Transcript by Mail service at http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Get-Transcript

• FSA ID replaces Federal PIN for all Federal Student Aid websites. Click the link, Create An FSA ID, at https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm.
• How to Create An FSA ID Step by Step (PDF)
• All federal student and parent loans will be processed under the Federal Direct effective with the Fall 09 semester. For more information, please click on one of the following links: Loan Programs
  • Student Federal Direct Loan Process
  • Parent Federal Plus Direct Loan Process
• Tutorial Guide to complete FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
• How to check Financial aid Status on the Web
• How to View Your Financial Aid

Accepting Your Financial Aid Award $

Students are required to accept their Financial Aid award on the MyWCC portal, Student Center page.

• Log-on to MyWCC.SUNYWCC.edu
• Click the word “Student Center”
• Under the “Finances” tab select (Accept/Decline Award) Located under “View Financial Aid”
• Accept the award and SUBMIT

What Is Financial Aid and Cost of Attendance?

Codes, Government Websites and Telephone Numbers

Financial Hold/Student Loan Exit Counseling

Contact Us

Administration Building, Room 120 Phone: 914-606-6773 Fax: 914-606-7807 finaid@sunywcc.edu

Financial Aid Office Hours

Monday – 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Tuesday – 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Wednesday – 9 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Thursday – 9 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Friday – 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Financial literacy courses are available through SUNY Smart Track Financial Literacy where you can learn about a wide variety of financial matters such as budgeting, smart borrowing, and identify theft. First time users will need to create an account.

When Do I Apply

To ensure timely processing of your financial aid, all applications should be submitted at least three months prior to the date you intend to register. We urge all students to apply for aid soon after April 15 or earlier, after their taxes have been filed. The recommended Priority Packaging Date for the fall semester is May 1. For the spring semester it is October 30. Priority is given to students who not only successfully completed their FAFSA but also submitted all necessary information to the college by the respective priority processing dates.

How Do I Apply

• Federal aid
• Federal Loans
• Federal Direct PLUS Loan
• TAP (New York State Residents Only)
• APTS (Aid for Part Time Study)
• Scholarship

Video

7 Easy Steps to Complete FAFSA  

Who is Eligible?

Types of Financial Aid

Ability to Benefit

How Federal Verification Works

Around 30% of all students who file a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form are selected by the US Department of Education to confirm the accuracy of the information submitted.

FAFSA Verification Selection Process & How to Respond

WCC has no control over either the selection process or the extent of data required for Federal Verification. Please go to MYWCC, Student Center to check your status 3-4 business days after successfully submitting your FAFSA. You will also receive notification that you have been selected for Federal Verification and you will need to read through the documentation requests, gather and complete the required paperwork within a short period of receiving your notification. Students who are selected will not receive their award until all verification documents have been submitted and reviewed.

The priority deadline for fall semesters is May 1st, for spring semesters is October 30. All required forms for verification purposes are downloadable from our web site.

What needs to be verified?

Here's a list of the 2014-2015 information may be required to be verified for students and parents. In order to verify the financial data supplied on your FAFSA we must receive confirmation of your tax data directly from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Due to changes implemented by the federal government, we are now required to collect tax transcripts and can no longer accept copies of tax returns.

• Adjusted gross income and taxes paid
• Deductible IRA and SEP payments
• Tax-exempt interest income
• Untaxed portions of IRAs & pensions
 (excluding rollovers)
• Number of members in the household
• Number attending college
• Child support paid
• Receipt of Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP)
• Statement of education purpose

In addition, you may be required to verify your social security number, alien registration number, citizenship status or veteran status if not verified by the central processor. Males may be required to provide documentation of their Selective Service status. You may be asked to provide further documentation such as passport, birth certificate, naturalization form, legal Resident Alien Card (green card) or I-94 form. All supporting documentation required to verify your eligibility status must be provided no later than 45 days from the date of request, or you may lose your eligibility for aid.

How to Provide Tax Information-Data Retrieval or Tax Transcript?

The choice is yours. The Department of Education requires the information you supplied on your application to be confirmed with the actual tax return you and your parents filed with the Internal Revenue Service. You can do this in one of two ways.

• IRS Data Retrieval Tool

If you did not use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when you originally filed your FAFSA, we encourage you to go back into your FAFSA and do so now. The tax information will be transmitted to the Financial Aid office within 2-3 business days. This is the fastest way to complete the verification of your tax information. Click here for instructions. This tool allows you to link your FAFSA directly to your filed tax return with the Internal Revenue Service. We highly recommend you use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool option on the FAFSA if you are eligible.

• IRS Tax Transcript

There are several ways to obtain a copy of your transcript from the IRS, but there could be significant delays so please plan ahead. Option 1: Online request at http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Get-Transcrip. You may order transcripts online using the Get Transcript by Mail service. Click here for instructions of getting transcript online Option 2: Telephone Request: 1-800-908-9946, or, 1-800-829-1040 and have them mailed to you Option 3: Visit your local IRS Office at 210 East Post Road, White Plains, New York, 10601. Be sure to request a Tax Return Transcript NOT an Account Transcript. The wrong transcript will further delay the verification process. Other Tax Circumstances Victim of IRS Identity Theft

• Contact the Identity Protection Specialized Unit (IPSU) toll free number at 800-908-4490 to request an alternate paper tax return transcript known as TRDBV (Tax Return DataBase View) transcript. Submit the TRDBV in place of the tax return transcript for each parent, as appropriate.
• submit a statement signed and dated by the tax filer indicating that he or she was a victim of IRS tax-related identity theft and that the IRS has been made aware of the tax-related identity theft.

Filed an Amended IRS Tax Returns please submit all the following:

• A signed copy of the original tax return that was filed with the IRS;
• An IRS Tax return Transcript (which does not have to be signed), or acceptable IRS alternative, such as Record of Account Transcript, a Return Transcript for Taxpayer (RTFTP), or an Information Returns Processing Transcript Request--Wages (IRPTR-W); and
• A signed copy of the IRS Form 1040X that was filed with the IRS.

Filed a Foreign Tax Return

• Submit signed copy of that income tax return-with income converted into U.S. dollars for each parent, as appropriate.

Sending Verification Documents to Our Office

We strongly recommend that you submit all documents within 14 days of your notification. Make photocopies for your records. Print your name and WCC student ID number on each page of the documents you submit.

Submit all documents in person, fax, or mail

Fax: (914) 606-7807

Mail:
Westchester Community College
Office of Student Financial Assistance
Administration Building, Room 120
75 Grasslands Road
Valhalla, NY 10595

Students receiving financial aid must make satisfactory academic progress (SAP) in order to continue to receive assistance. In other words, you have to get good grades and complete enough credit hours to keep you moving toward the successful completion of your degree in an acceptable time period. The standards for financial aid eligibility are not necessarily the same as the College’s requirements for Academic Standing. It is possible to be on probation for academics but not for financial aid (and vice versa).

Financial aid rules and regulations are subject to change. Students are strongly urged to meet with a Financial Aid Counselor to discuss any concerns regarding eligibility for aid.

Federal and state aid each have different progress requirements. It is possible to be eligible for one and not the other.

TAP Academic Progress Requirements

Federal Aid Academic Requirements

Aid for Part-Time Study (APTS) Progress Standards

How is Withdrawals, Incompletes, Failures,Repeated Courses and Transfer credits affect my SAP?

Appeal

 

See SUNY Smart Track for Details

 

Scholarship Eligibility

In order to be eligible for scholarship, students must file for either FAFSA, TAP, or the NYS Dream ACT to be automatically eligible for Westchester Community College Foundation scholarships.

1. US Citizens and Permanent Residents: FAFSA: www.fafsa.ed.gov or TAP: www.tapweb.org
2. Dreamers, DACA or Undocumented: NYS DREAM Act: www.hesc.ny.gov/dream/
3. International Students: Click Here

Awards for the fall will be for the entire academic year and in the spring, they will be for one semester. Awards will be automatically renewed for a second year as long as student continues to meet academic criteria. Students with questions about the new scholarship procedures should email ESC@sunywcc.edu or stop by the Student Services Desk located in the lobby of the Administration Building Lobby.

To Fill Out the FAFSA For Fall 2019 and Spring 2020

Please Note: Workshops start PROMPTLY, NO LATE ENTRIES. Times indicated and may last two hours. Report to the Administration Building, Office of Student Financial Assistance, Room 120 at least 10 minutes before the workshop begins. Children WILL NOT be admitted to the workshop. Bring a pen/pencil, eraser. These will not be supplied.

Here is what you need to do:

1. You MUST apply for a FSA ID at fsaid.ed.gov for you and your parents, if applicable, before you attend a workshop.
2. Bring complete 2017 income tax and W2 forms for you, your spouse and your parents, if applicable, and make copies of these forms.
3. Collect proof of all non-taxable income received by you and your family members for 2017 (e.g. budget sheets, workman’s compensation, child support, social security SSA1099, unemployment, etc.)
4. Bring copies of 2017 income tax forms and proof of non-taxable income received in 2017 to one of the following Financial Aid Workshops:

Financial Aid Workshop Schedule

Check with the Office of Student Financial Assistance for additional workshop dates. 914-606-6773.

Video Gallery

7 Easy Steps to Complete FAFSA

See Financial Aid Videos Here

Net Price Cost Calculator

See Visit the Net Price Calculator Here

Important Policies Affecting Financial Aid

FERPA (The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)

Return of Title IV Policy/Withdrawing from Classes

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

Student’s Financial Aid Rights and Responsibilities

Financial Aid Code of Conduct

Other Important Campus Policies