<p>I am really dismayed. I understand being asked to provide verification to one school - the school my child ultimately chooses to attend - but we are required to provide verification to three out of the 9 colleges my son applied to. (He also applied to an early college last year and was selected for verification then, as well).</p>
<p>The odds of these statistics, four times out ten total applications, seem out of whack.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any additional information about this or has anyone else been selected for verification like this?</p>
<p>Our taxes are not all that complicated, nor do we make oodles of money. Just a bit frustrated by bureaucracy and all the printing and mailing.</p>
<p>Each school needs copies of our 2010 taxes – all forms, signed plus w2s, etc. – to verify information supplied on the FAFSA. It’s just a lot of paperwork and mailing and keeping track of who needs what, where and when. That’s what we get for applying to so many schools. But if you apply to the elite colleges with low admit rates or need awareness, it’s what you have to do :).</p>
<p>We haven’t filed our taxes yet. Getting ready to do this week so I meet the March 1st deadlines for all financial app info. Most of the schools already have tax returns from 2009, those W2s as well as FAFSA (estimate) and CSS Profile (estimate).</p>
<p>I know we are seeking financial aid and need to do whatever is required. This just seems in excess.</p>
<p>Yes it is a pain but this is the only year you will have to verify with multiple schools. When S1 was a high school senior his FAFSA was selected to be verified at every school he applied to and we had to send all that paperwork into every school. My understanding is schools have to verify a minimum of 30% of the fafsas, how they select which 30% is up to the school and some schools do verify all fafsas.</p>
<p>In my experience, CSS schools very often verify all students. They want to see more than the AGI and taxes paid. The tax returns and schedules provide a lot of insight into the financial picture that schools find useful when allocating institutional aid.</p>
<p>This year none of my kids’ schools used IDOC. They wanted the tax forms sent directly to them. This included Cornell, RPI, Lehigh, and Smith - all of which use the CSS Profile.</p>
<p>You just have to check each school’s requirements.</p>
<p>Look at it this way: Colleges want you to be fully informed about finaid when you child is accepted so you can make a decision. The only way for the college to make you a credible offer, is if they have all the documentation that they require. If the college waited until late March to ask for the documents — after acceptances – there would be no way to provide you, and the thousands of other acceptees, with a financial aid award prior to May 1.</p>
<p>Thank you to all for the responses. I was unaware that 30% of all applications are verified. It just seems a bit redundant to me given we complete one FAFSA form but then supply the verification documents individually to different schools even though they are verifying the exact same information from an original source. Seems to me FAFSA should have a computerized system (like IDOC) to subsequently submit the required verification online. Then those schools who need it, download it. </p>
<p>I just thought four times out of ten possibilities seemed high. I guess it’s not. Thanks!</p>
<p>When I completed my FAFSA, there was some blurb that I can’t seem to find now that said “you have been selected for a review process called verification”…“school has the authority to request certain documents from you”…So, I’m thinking that maybe you were selected when you filled out the FAFSA and then only 3 out of the 9 schools actually are following through. I was selected last year and again this year! I’m wondering if there is a trigger, and perhaps I’ll get “selected” every year! So far, 2 schools have asked for verification and 1 sent in an award without verification. Still waiting on the other 3.</p>
<p>Ask the financial aid folks at each of those colleges if there are any flags in your app. That will help you in the future. Sometimes it can be some innocuous thing that has a trigger effect. It may simply be the luck of the draw too. Also are the schools giving out PELL or SEOGH money or state money? I always suspected that increases the chances. If you are just going for a PLUS or non sub loan, the chances of an audit are low, I know.</p>
<p>No…not ALL schools that use the Profile use IDOC.</p>
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<p>Only the schools that contract to use IDOC will receive documents sent via IDOC…not EVERY Profile school…only the IDOC ones.</p>
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<p>The only “computerized” thing about IDOC is that once you submit to IDOC, all the schools that participate with IDOC will get your documents. There is NOTHING computerized for you, the parent/student. You still need to copy and send the required documentation to IDOC via mail…unless something has changed and they now do email submissions…but I don’t think they do.</p>