FINANCING AN EDUCATION

Since the cost of a college degree is most often compared to another major investment in a person’s lifetime, purchasing a house, careful financial planning is needed. The Student Finance Office consists of the areas of financial aid and student accounts. This “blend” of data information and staff provides the whole picture of cost, financial resources, and payment options to students and their parents when meeting the expense of this very important investment. It is the mission of this office to provide the personal counseling that is necessary to make attending Hilbert College an affordable reality. The combined efforts of students and college staff produce the most effective results by acquiring what financial assistance is available.

WHAT IS FINANCIAL AID?

Financial aid, simply defined, is money that is supplied by a source outside of the family to help meet the cost of higher education. There are two basic categories of aid: need- based and non need-based. Need-based aid contributes the major portion of assistance available for higher education. When a student does not have sufficient family resources to pay for college, that student is considered to have financial need. This is determined by collecting financial data about the student and his/her family and then analyzing that data according to a standard set of calculations. This need analysis results in the student aid index (SAI). The SAI represents the amount of resources, in dollars, that the student and his/her family are assumed to have available to contribute towards the cost of attendance which includes the following:

• Tuition and fees

• Housing

• Meals

• Books and supplies

• Transportation

• Personal expenses

After the cost of attendance is calculated by the college, the expected family contribution is subtracted, leaving a remaining sum which is the student’s financial need.

Institutions that participate in federal student aid programs are required to provide student consumer information regarding the cost of attendance so that a prospective student can examine it to make sure that it is realistic and reasonable in view of his/her career goals. This material, as it relates to Hilbert College, is described in the financial policy section of the catalog.

Within each category of financial aid, need-based and non need-based, there are three types of aid: grants, loans, and student employment. Grants are gift aid; they do not have to be repaid, nor do they have to be earned. A loan does have to be repaid, unless it carries a provision that allows all or part of it to be canceled if the student fulfills certain requirements. Employment is a straightforward exchange of money for work performed in a job affiliated with the college. There are four sources of funding for all aid: federal, state, institutional and private.