Appealing Your Financial Aid Offer During COVID-19

You certainly can. Not all colleges will be able to offer you additional assistance, and the amount of the additional aid will vary from school to school. But definitely appeal if you need additional financial aid to make attending your top choice school a reality.

Check each college's website to learn about the appeal process. Some may require families to complete a specific appeal form, while others may request certain documentation with a letter of explanation. If you have questions about what to submit, call the financial aid office. You will likely need to submit your 2019 taxes, an estimate of your 2020 income, and any documentation relevant to a change in your income. If you had a change of employment, include the date that your employment ended, and the date it is projected to start again, if you have that information. Submit as much relevant financial data as you can.

Please only submit one appeal per student. Since appeals are primarily based on the family's financial information, it usually isn't appropriate for the counselor to be involved. Most colleges don't care whether the student or parent submits the appeal, but families should know that colleges communicate with the student, so appeal responses, or requests for additional information, will be emailed to the student or posted on the college's student portal. This is another important reason why students should be sure to read their email daily during this time.

Financial aid based on merit (which considers a student's grades, test scores, or some specific skill or talent) is very different than financial aid based on need (which considers a family's finances). Merit-based aid (otherwise known as merit scholarships) are awarded based on a college's specific enrollment goals and funding levels, so schools are less likely to consider (or try to match) the merit-based aid that a student received from another school. However, it doesn't hurt to mention it, so you can certainly include the information when submitting an appeal.

Some colleges have pushed their enrollment deposit deadline to June 1^st, and are prioritizing appeals from current students right now, and plan to review appeals from incoming prospective students in mid-May. Schools who have kept their enrollment deposit deadline of May 1^st are working around the clock to review appeals from prospective incoming students by May 1^st. Many have enlisted the help of the admissions office to review appeals and speak with families. Some colleges are telling families affected by COVID-19 to wait to appeal until the fall semester, though they understand this makes committing to a college much more difficult.

Some schools are providing a one-year grant for freshman year to help families who have had a recent loss in income. Some schools can't provide any additional financial aid funding for the fall semester of freshman year, but may be able to increase funding in the spring semester or for the student's sophomore year.