“How to Ask for More Financial-Aid"
“Abigail Seldin, along with a company called FormSwift, has created a free offering called SwiftStudent that helps users draft a formal financial aid appeal letter and coaches them through writing one efficiently and effectively.”
View the full article in The New York Times.
"As colleges brace for financial aid appeals, there’s a new tool to help students file them"
Whether they’ve just been accepted or are heading into another year, college students may soon have trouble paying for school, as the novel coronavirus takes a toll on family finances. Colleges and universities can adjust financial aid awards, but few students are aware of the option, and the process can be daunting.
A digital platform unveiled Wednesday by the Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation aims to take the guesswork out of financial aid appeals. The free tool, dubbed SwiftStudent, guides students through requesting more funding, explaining eligibility, the documents applicants need and the kinds of appeals. It provides templates, powered by software company FormSwift, that let users plug in their information to generate a letter for submission to their school’s financial aid office.
“Students are going to be receiving financial aid offers from schools based on pre-pandemic data. It’s hard to imagine that data reflect their current financial situation,” said Abigail Seldin, who heads the foundation. “There’s a process in place to go back to the school and say, ‘I’m a single parent and lost my job, but I want to continue next semester. How can you help me?’ We’re trying to make it easier.”
By now, most students have already filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, which the government and colleges use to determine need-based and some merit-based aid. But a lot could have changed since they submitted the form, which relies on tax data from two years ago.
Read more in The Washington Post.
"Students Need More Financial Aid Than What They Applied for. A Free New Tool Can Help."
Whether they’ve just been accepted or are heading into another year, college students may soon have trouble paying for school, as the novel coronavirus takes a toll on family finances. Colleges and universities can adjust financial aid awards, but few students are aware of the option, and the process can be daunting.
A digital platform unveiled Wednesday by the Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation aims to take the guesswork out of financial aid appeals. The free tool, dubbed SwiftStudent, guides students through requesting more funding, explaining eligibility, the documents applicants need and the kinds of appeals. It provides templates, powered by software company FormSwift, that let users plug in their information to generate a letter for submission to their school’s financial aid office.
“Students are going to be receiving financial aid offers from schools based on pre-pandemic data. It’s hard to imagine that data reflect their current financial situation,” said Abigail Seldin, who heads the foundation. “There’s a process in place to go back to the school and say, ‘I’m a single parent and lost my job, but I want to continue next semester. How can you help me?’ We’re trying to make it easier.”
By now, most students have already filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, which the government and colleges use to determine need-based and some merit-based aid. But a lot could have changed since they submitted the form, which relies on tax data from two years ago.
Read more in The Washington Post.