Recent Changes to the Student Aid Programs
Financial Aid has Gone Paperless
Financial Aid has made a change to go paperless. We will no longer send any paper documents to our students. We are informing all students through email and text messages to set up their MOBILE FINANCIAL AID ACCOUNT. A student must set up an account with five steps to get the process started.
- Go To MyBucks FinAid Self Service
(Log in with Bucks Username and Password) - Click on Missing Electronic Documents
- Enter/Confirm your student information
- Create your account
- Submit all documents
Repeat Course Policy
Please note there is new regulation that limits the number of times you can repeat a course to obtain a better grade. Please review this new policy at Repeated Coursework
FSA ID/PIN Replacement
The FSA ID was implemented on May 10, 2015. The FSA ID replaces the Federal Student Aid PIN as the credential with which students, parents, and borrowers authenticate their identity to access their federal student aid information online and electronically sign Federal Student Aid documents. Information about the transition to the FSA ID is available at StudentAid.gov/fsaid. Below is a link to a one-page resource for students, parents, and borrowers. The guide explains the need for creating an FSA ID and describes how to create an FSA ID.
FSA ID/PIN Replacement - How to Create an FSA ID Guide in PDF Format, 2MB, 1 Page
PELL Grant Program - Duration of Eligibility
Once you have received a PELL GRANT for 12 semesters, or the equivalent, (if you are part-time) you will no longer be eligible for additional PELL GRANTS.
You may view your Pell Grant used by logging into www.NSLDS.ed.gov.
Year-round Pell Grant available to students
Many of our financial aid students that rely on the PELL Grant to attend college. For those students we have good news. Starting this summer, students will be able to access additional funds for attendance in the summer.
The Department of Education recently passed “Year Round PELL” to help students complete their education.
Year-Round Pell allows Pell Grant recipients the option of using aid for summer classes.
A financial aid eligible student may be receiving PELL and other financial aid for the fall/spring. As a student, you get 50 percent of your award in fall, and you get 50 percent of your award in spring. This means if you come to summer classes, you don’t have any aid remaining, because you already used all of it in fall and spring. Now, you can get additional funds for taking summer classes.
Beginning this summer we are allowed to award an additional 50 percent of PELL grant for summer, if a student is enrolled at least half-time, Students only taking one course are not eligible for these funds, but may be eligible for remaining funds if they attended less than full time for the fall/spring.
A full Pell Grant recipient would get $5920 total for fall and spring. That would be 100 percent. The additional 50 percent would be $2960 that could go towards the cost of summer enrollment.
Using Year-Round Pell would count towards a student’s aid limit. Please note, there is a maximum amount of federal aid that students can receive during their lifetime. Therefore, if a student attends in the summer and they use their PELL grant in the summer, it counts towards their lifetime eligibility,
If interested in attending in the summer, students do have to apply separately for summer aid by filling out a Summer Financial Aid application. The application can be accessed from your Mobile Financial Aid Account.
Students must meet all requirements to receive aid for the summer and enroll in Summer Session 1.
If you have any questions, please contact the Financial Aid Office, email: finaid@bucks.edu, or phone 215 968-8200.
Eligility of Students Without a High School Diploma
If you are enrolling in higher education for the first time on or after July 1, 2012 in order to be eligible for federal student aid, you must have either a high school diploma or a recognized equivalent (such as a GED or have been home schooled). Student will not be permitted to take the Ability to Benefit Test.
Verification
If a student is selected for the verification process, the Financial Aid Office is no longer able to accept paper copies of the students and parents tax returns. If you and your parents have completed their 2015 tax return, you should also change the answer to the tax return questions on the FAFSA to indicate your tax returns have been completed. You and your parents may make corrections online at www.fafsa.gov. If you and your parents filed a federal tax return with the IRS, you may be eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, which is the best and easiest way to provide accurate tax information. With just a few simple steps, you and your parents can view information from your IRS tax return and transfer that information directly to your FAFSA. If you and your parents choose not to use the IRS Data Retrieval you will be required to submit an IRS Tax Return Transcript. The tax transcript is the required document needed for verification and must be requested directly from the IRS office. More detailed information is available in the Financial Aid Office or by reviewing IRS Tax Transcript Request Instructions.
Expected Family Contribution
The lower a student's Expected Family Contribution (EFC), the higher the student's federal student aid eligibility. A change has been made to the income amount that is used to determine if a student qualifies for an automatic EFC of zero. This amount is now $24,000 which has been reduced from $32,000.
Direct Student Loan Changes
Direct SUBSIDIZED LOANS will not be eligible for an interest subsidy during the six month grace period. You will now be responsible for the interest that accrues while your loan is in the grace period.
- All SUBSIDIZED LOANS made to undergraduate students will have a fixed interest rate of 4.5%.
- The U.S. Department of Education can no longer offer borrowers repayment incentives.
- Graduate and professional students are no longer eligible to receive subsidized loans.
ACT 16
On June 28, 2019, Governor Wolf signed into law Act 16 of 2019 (Act 16) which added Article XXVI-K to the Pennsylvania Public School Code of 1949. This new law, known as the Fostering Independence through Education Act, requires postsecondary institutions to award a waiver of tuition and mandatory fees to PA resident students who have been in foster care. Student must meet all eligibility requirements to receive the waiver.
Student Eligibility Requirements:
- Student must be accepted to the postsecondary institution.
- Student must be awarded all grants and scholarships for which the student qualifies.
- Student must be eligible for the PA Chafee Education and Training Grant.
- Student must be a youth who was in foster care after age 16.
- Student must be under age 26.
- Student must be a current PA resident.
- Student must complete the FAFSA Application.
Resources
The College offers robust resources to help students start smart. See the links below for all the student support offerings:
Services and Resources for Students
Food Insecurity Initiative
Points of Contact
For further information, including applying to the College, accessing services, and applying for Financial Aid, please contact:
Nicole Giovetsis
Nicole.Giovetsis@bucks.edu
215-968-8207
Samantha Gross
Samantha.Gross@bucks.edu
215-968-8266