Contact: Starr Fain:
1.800.351.4040 Ext 7523 or
334.387.7523 Louise Hicks:
1.800.351.4040 Ext 7525 or
334.387.7525 Lisa Byrd:
1.800.351.4040 Ext 7527 or
334.387.7527
A period of time schools use to measure a quantity of study. Amridge’s
School Year consists of (30) weeks of instructional time broken out
into a fall, spring, and summer semester.
A school must have accreditation from an accrediting body recognized
by the U.S. Department of Education to be eligible to participate in
the administration of federal student aid programs. Accreditation
means that the school meets certain minimum academic standards, as
defined by the accrediting body.
An audit course yields no academic credit. Enrollment as an audit
student is encouraged for those who wish to learn more about a subject
but do not wish to earn a degree. Applications for admission as well
as the application fee are required for students who take audit
courses. A fee is assessed for each audit course. The registration fee
is waived for students who are taking only audit courses. Students
over the age of 65 are not required to pay an audit fee
A document provided by the school, informing the applicant of the
amount of assistance the student is eligible; this offer could include
loans, scholarships, grants, and federal work-study. The student must
indicate to the school which he/she wishes to accept. The award letter
is valid only for the upcoming year unless otherwise noted by the
Financial Aid Office of the school.
With certain loans, such as subsidized, the U.S. Department of Education pays the interest that
accrues on these loans while the student is enrolled at least
half-time and during periods of deferment. However, with subsidized
loans in forbearance, unsubsidized loans or PLUS (Parent Loans for
Undergraduate Students), the student is responsible for paying
interest as it accrues on these loans. When the interest is not paid,
it is capitalized or added to the principal balance, which increases
the outstanding principal amount due on this loan.
Undergraduate Course Load
The minimum full-time course load for an undergraduate student is
twelve semester hours. Undergraduate students must have the prior
approval of the respective advisor to register for an additional
course over full-time.
Graduate Course Load
The minimum full-time course load on the graduate level is nine hours
per semester. Graduate students must have the prior approval of the
respective advisor to register for more than an additional course over
full-time.
Doctoral Course Load
The minimum full-time course load on the doctoral level is six hours
per semester. Doctoral students must have the prior approval of the
dean of the respective Amridge University school or college to
register for an additional course over full-time.
Payment of loan proceeds by the lender. During consolidation, this
term refers to sending payoffs to the loan holders of the underlying
loans being consolidated.
Entrance counseling is an information session for first-time
borrowers. It ensures that students know they are borrowing funds for
their education, and that they are expected to repay the loans.
Exit Counseling is an information session for students leaving Amridge
whether by graduation or withdrawal. The session outlines the amount
of money in loans the student owes, plus repayment options available
to them.
Your Expected Family Contribution is the number that’s used to
determine your eligibility for federal student financial aid. This
number results from the financial information you provided in your
FAFSA application. Your EFC is reported to you on your Student Aid
Report (SAR).
A Federal Pell Grant is Federal money that does not have to be repaid;
based on the EFC and cost of attendance. Generally, Pell Grant is only
awarded to undergraduate students.
The total amount of federal and nonfederal financial aid a student is
offered by a school. The financial aid officer at a postsecondary
institution combines various forms of aid into a “package” to help
meet a student’s education costs. Using available resources to give
each student the best possible package of aid is one of the aid
administrator’s major responsibilities. Because funds are often
limited, an aid package might fall short of the amount a student needs
to cover the full cost of attendance. The amount of federal student
aid in a package is affected by other sources of aid received such as
scholarships, state aid, etc.
This is a certificate students receive if they’ve passed a specific,
approved high school equivalency test. Students who have a General
Educations Development Certificate (GED) may qualify for federal
student aid.
After borrowers graduate, leave school or drop below half-time
enrollment, loans that were made for that period of study have several
months before payments are due. This period is called the "grace
period." During the grace period, no interest accrues on subsidized
loans. Interest accrues on unsubsidized loans during grace periods and
this interest is capitalized when borrowers' loans enter repayment
National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) is our database for federal
student financial aid where you can find out about the aid you’ve
received. If you’ve only just applied for aid, you won’t find any
information on NSLDS yet. NSLDS receives data from schools, guaranty
agencies and U.S. Department of Education programs. The NSLDS Web site
is generally available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. By using
your PIN, you can get information on federal loan and Pell Grant
amounts, outstanding balances, the status of your loans and
disbursements made. You can access NSLDS at
www.nslds.ed.gov.
The process of analyzing a student´s financial need, known as need
analysis, focuses on determining how much can be expected to
contribute towards the student´s education. Traditionally,
determination of an applicant´s need is achieved by collecting
information about the income, assets and living expenses. For federal
student aid programs, the law specifies a need analysis formula that
produces the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC and the
college´s cost of attendance are used by the postsecondary school to
establish the student´s need as well as to award grants and subsidized
loans.
A promissory note is a binding legal document you sign when you get a
student loan. It lists the conditions under which you’re borrowing and
the terms under which you agree to pay back the loan. It will include
information on how interest is calculated and what deferment and
cancellation provisions are available to the borrower. Save this
document because you’ll need to refer to it later when you begin
repaying your loan or at other times when you need information about
provisions of the loan, such as deferments or forbearances.
To be eligible to receive federal student financial aid, you must meet
and maintain your school’s standards of satisfactory academic progress
toward a degree or certificate offered by that institution.
A report sent to the student from the Department of Education that
contains: the EFC calculation, a summary of the
information the student submitted on the FAFSA, results of matches
with other federal agency databases, and the student's financial aid
history. It also defines any issues that the Department of Education
requires the student to resolve before financial aid can be processed.
A loan for which a borrower is not responsible for the interest while
in an in-school, grace or deferment status. Subsidized loans include
Direct Subsidized, Direct Subsidized Consolidation Loans, and Federal Subsidized Consolidation Loans.
An unsubsidized loan is a loan for which the borrower is fully
responsible for paying the interest regardless of the loan status.
Interest on unsubsidized loans accrues from the date of disbursement
and continues throughout the life of the loan. Unsubsidized loans
include: Direct Unsubsidized Loans, Direct PLUS (Parent Loans for
Undergraduate Students), Direct Unsubsidized Consolidation Loans,
Federal PLUS (Parent Loans for
Undergraduate Students) and Federal Unsubsidized Consolidation Loans.
Verification is a process where your school confirms the data reported
on your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). Your school
has the authority to contact you for documentation that supports
income and other information that you reported.
Contact:
Fax:
334.387.3878
Email:
