If a student believes that the financial and/or other data reported on the FAFSA or used to determine the student’s eligibility for financial aid, is not an accurate reflection of the student’s/family’s financial situation, the student may request consideration for a Professional Judgement through the Bellin College financial aid office.
1. Complete the Request for Financial Aid Professional Judgement form which is available from the financial aid office. The form identifies the type of change(s) the student is seeking. The form also clearly states the process flow. The completed form must be submitted to the Director of Financial Aid (DFA). It is recommended that the student set up a meeting with the DFA prior to completing the form.
2. Within ten (10) business days of receipt of the form, the DFA will perform an initial review of the form to assess the type and extent of the request and determine acceptable documentation to support the student’s request(s). Acceptable documentation will be based on guidelines set by the US Department of Education, as available, as well as other criteria on a case-by-case basis. The student will then be notified via e-mail of the required documentation.
3. The student must submit all supporting documentation within 21 days of the date the notification e-mail was sent from the DFA. Failure to comply with this deadline will result in a denial of the request for professional judgement.
4. The DFA will perform the final review/determination of the request within ten (10) business days of receiving all supporting documentation.
- If the request is denied, the student will be notified via e-mail of the denial as well as the basis for the decision immediately upon conclusion of the review.
- If the review results in approved changes to the student’s FAFSA data, the DFA will access the FAFSA Partner Portal and make the corrections directly to the student’s FAFSA. This will result in a corrected FAFSA output (ISIR) which will be received from the DOE usually within three (3) business days. Once this is received and uploaded into the SIS system, the student’s financial aid will be adjusted accordingly.
- If the review results in approved adjustments to the student’s COA, the DFA will adjust the affected elements in the SIS and recalculate the student’s financial need and aid eligibility.
5. For approved Professional Judgement requests, the student will be notified via e-mail within ten (10) business days after the corrections/adjustments have been made. This will ensure enough time for the corrected FAFSA data to be received from the DOE and proper adjustments to aid to be made. An adjusted financial aid offer letter will be uploaded to the student’s Document Tracking record in the SIS and the student will be sent a detailed e-mail outlining the approved changes as well as the impact on financial aid eligibility.
6. Per DOE regulations, the original Request for Financial Aid Professional Judgement form as well as all supporting documentation and communications will be maintained in the student’s file (paper or electronic) for a minimum of three (3) years after the student is no longer enrolled at Bellin College.
7. Student’s who have received an approved dependency override through Professional Judgement will be considered independent in subsequent academic years. Additional documentation will not be required provided no conflicting information is received by the DFA.
The decision of the DFA is final. A student may not submit another request for Professional Judgement for the same academic year unless the student’s circumstances change.
Students who believe their financial or family situations may qualify for a Professional Judgement review, must contact the Director of Financial Aid (lena.goodman@bellincollege.edu) to obtain the Request for Financial Aid Professional