Trying Something New – The Estimated Financial Aid Offer
OSFA’s conundrum – the information we need from the Department of Education about the Federal Pell Grant isn’t typically available until February (if we’re lucky!) but we begin to admit the incoming freshmen class in December. These past few years, our team has provided students their financial aid offer in December, but often that original offer changed multiple times as new information was received by our team.
So, for the incoming 2021-22 class, we’re trying something different! Those students admitted in December were sent a new communication called the Estimated Financial Aid Offer.
Although it doesn’t provide a student with a complete breakdown of the financial aid they are eligible to receive, it makes clear if a student has been offered FASTrack, BANNER, Bucky’s Tuition Promise, Bucky’s Tuition Promise PLUS, or Badger Promise and gives solid estimates of both a student’s costs to attend and their grants, scholarships, work-study, or loans. The Estimated Offer also gives us a chance to provide admitted students with some timely reminders and next steps, and of course, encouragement to connect with our team along the way.
The Estimated Financial Aid Offer was sent to students via email and is also accessible in their MyUW Student Center.
We’re aiming and hopeful to send out all financial aid offers to admitted students in February, pending the release of the Federal Pell Grant chart. This also means that students offered admissions during the regular decision timeline will not receive the estimated offer, rather they will just get their Financial Aid Offer.
Admitted students that do not have a FAFSA on file with our office (excluding international students and those with rejected FAFSAs), are also being sent a new communication – but instead with encouragement to submit the FAFSA online.
Please pass along any feedback you hear as our team continues to work to make the costs associated with attending UW–Madison and the financial aid available to our students and their families as clear and transparent as possible.
OSFA’s conundrum – the information we need from the Department of Education about the Federal Pell Grant isn’t typically available until February (if we’re lucky!) but we begin to admit the incoming freshmen class in December. These past few years, our team has provided students their financial aid offer in December, but often that original offer changed multiple times as new information was received by our team.
So, for the incoming 2021-22 class, we’re trying something different! Those students admitted in December were sent a new communication called the Estimated Financial Aid Offer.
Although it doesn’t provide a student with a complete breakdown of the financial aid they are eligible to receive, it makes clear if a student has been offered FASTrack, BANNER, Bucky’s Tuition Promise, Bucky’s Tuition Promise PLUS, or Badger Promise and gives solid estimates of both a student’s costs to attend and their grants, scholarships, work-study, or loans. The Estimated Offer also gives us a chance to provide admitted students with some timely reminders and next steps, and of course, encouragement to connect with our team along the way.
The Estimated Financial Aid Offer was sent to students via email and is also accessible in their MyUW Student Center.
We’re aiming and hopeful to send out all financial aid offers to admitted students in February, pending the release of the Federal Pell Grant chart. This also means that students offered admissions during the regular decision timeline will not receive the estimated offer, rather they will just get their Financial Aid Offer.
Admitted students that do not have a FAFSA on file with our office (excluding international students and those with rejected FAFSAs), are also being sent a new communication – but instead with encouragement to submit the FAFSA online.
Please pass along any feedback you hear as our team continues to work to make the costs associated with attending UW–Madison and the financial aid available to our students and their families as clear and transparent as possible.