Hello, MIAD Parents:
September is moving right along as well as our returning students settling in and our new students adjusting and finding their place at MIAD. As for the Financial Aid office, the financial aid for continuing students has been disbursed and credit releases have been sent to eligible students. Our first-year and transfer students will have their federal loans disbursed the last week in September. The student accounts office will review accounts and process credit releases by October 4th.
REMINDER: If your contract with 252 stated that you were going to use financial aid funds, for example a private loan or a Parent PLUS loan, to pay for the housing charge at 252, it is your responsibility to ensure that your housing charge at 252 is paid.
I also want to take this opportunity to share with you the changes the Department of Education has made to the 2017-18 FAFSA.
Starting with the 2017–18 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), these changes will be in effect:
• You’ll be able to submit your FAFSA® earlier. You can file your 2017–18 FAFSA as early as
Oct. 1, 2016, rather than beginning on Jan. 1, 2017. The earlier submission date will be a permanent change, enabling you to complete and submit a FAFSA as early as October 1 every year.
• You’ll use earlier income and tax information. Beginning with the 2017–18 FAFSA, students will be required to report income and tax information from an earlier tax year. For example, on the 2017–18 FAFSA, you and your parent(s), as appropriate, will report your 2015 income and tax information, rather than your 2016 income and tax information.
The following provides a summary of key dates as we transition to using the early FAFSA submission timeframe and earlier tax information.
Students attending July 1, 2016–June 30, 2017
• Submit a FAFSA: January 1, 2016 – June 30, 2017
• Which year’s income tax info required: 2015
Students attending July 1, 2017–June 30, 2018
• Submit a FAFSA: October 1, 2016–June 30, 2018
• Which year’s income tax info required: 2015
Students attending July 1, 2018–June 30, 2019
• Submit a FAFSA: October 1, 2017–June 30, 2019
• Which year’s income tax info required: 2016
Students attending July 1, 2019-June 30, 2020
• Submit a FAFSA: October 1, 2017 – June 30, 2020
• Which year’s income tax info required: 2017
We expect that you’ll benefit in these ways:
• Because the FAFSA will ask for older income and tax information, you will already have done your taxes by the time you fill out your FAFSA, and you won’t need to estimate your tax information and then go back into the FAFSA later to update it.
• Because you’ll already have done your taxes by the time you fill out your FAFSA, you may be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (IRS DRT) to automatically import your tax information into your FAFSA. (Learn about the IRS DRT at StudentAid.gov/irsdrt.)
• Because the FAFSA is available earlier, you may feel less pressure due to having more time to explore and understand your financial aid options and apply for aid before your state’s and school’s deadlines.
Below are frequently asked questions that you may have:
Since the 2017–18 FAFSA asks for the same tax and income information as the 2016–17 FAFSA, will my 2016–17 FAFSA information automatically be carried over into my 2017–18 renewal FAFSA?
No; too much could have changed since you filed your last FAFSA, and there’s no way to predict what might be different, so you’ll need to enter the information again. However, keep in mind that many people are eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to automatically import their tax information into the FAFSA, making the process of reporting tax information quick and easy.
Can I choose to report 2016 information if my family’s financial situation has changed since our 2015 taxes were filed?
You must report the information the FAFSA asks for. If your family’s income has changed substantially since the 2015 tax year, contact MIAD’s financial aid office
The FAFSA asks for marital status as of the day you fill it out. So if you’re married now but weren’t in 2015 (and therefore didn’t file taxes as married), you’ll need to add your spouse’s income to your FAFSA. Similarly, if you filed your 2015 taxes as married but you’re no longer married when you fill out the FAFSA, you’ll need to subtract your spouse’s income.
Where can I get more information about and help with the FAFSA?
Visit StudentAid.gov/fafsa; and remember, as you fill out your FAFSA at fafsa.gov, you can refer to help text for every question and (during certain times of day) chat online with a customer service representative.
MIAD’s Financial Aid office is available to answer questions as well. Our contact information is below:
Carol Masse Kristina Alvarez
carolmasse@miad.edu kristinaalvarez@miad.edu
414-847-3270 414-847-3270
MIAD fully supports the Department of Education’s decision to make these changes.
Thank you,
Carol Masse
Executive Director of Financial Aid