Financial Aid Process

Good afternoon everyone,

I’m currently attempting to go back to school, and since my previous college won’t release my transcripts, I left it out of my application to my new college. I submitted FAFSA, and accepted my entire award letter, there are no holds on my account, and everything looks good, so I assumed that I am good to go. Is there any additional processing after you accept your award letter? Have they already seen my old school when they processed the award, or is it possible they will find out? I just don’t want to quit my job to do this, go for a few weeks, and find out that I won’t get the financial aid.

If you owe money to your prior school, there will be a problem. The new school will require you to provide all prior transcripts before awarding FA.

Most colleges REQUIRE all transcripts from previous colleges, and applicants are required to list all previous colleges attended. If you didn’t do so, you did not complete your application honesty. Colleges really frown on dishonesty.

It is very possible your new college will find out about your old college…and this is especially true if you used a dime of federally funded money like a Direct Loan, work study, or a Pell Grant.

You know…being dishonest isn’t ever the best plan.

And you WILL need to pay your debt to college number one…if that is the reason they are holding your transcript. Is it?

Don’t quit your job!

Soon your school will use the national education clearinghouse and learn that you went to another school. Your school will then demand to see the transcript. If your FA gets released, and you can’t get the old transcript, your aid will be canceled and you’ll also owe this school.

Pay what you owe so that your former college can release your transcript.
The national Clearinghouse will warn both our old and your new college and all will be put on hold until your debt has been paid.

As others stated, if yu have received any federal /state aid or loans it is going to show up… this will present a real problem including the new school rescinding your admission due to misrepresentation. Should you start school knowingly defrauding the state/fed govt, you are only going to end up owing 2 schools money and still not able to get a degree.

You can check your own record to see what is going to show up: how much pell you used, how much state aid you used and any loans you received.