Postbac Policies

For federal aid purposes, your answers to certain questions on the FAFSA will determine your dependency status.

If you're considered dependent, your parents' income and assets as well as your own must be reported on the FAFSA. If you're independent, you'll report only your own income and assets and, if married, those of your spouse.

Living apart from your parents does not necessarily qualify you as independent for federal aid purposes. The U.S. Department of Education defines an independent student as someone who meets at least one of the following criteria: at least 24 years old, married, a veteran or member of the U.S. armed forces, an orphan, a ward of the court or someone with legal dependents other than a spouse. More information can be found here.

You must answer “No” to pursuing a graduate degree program.

Funds can only be disbursed if you have accepted your loans and completed the Master Promissory Note and Loan Entrance Counseling by logging in with your FSA ID username and password at www.studentaid.gov. Even if you borrowed Federal Direct Loans for your undergraduate degree, you must fill out the forms with Bryn Mawr College listed as the school of attendance.

Loan funds are disbursed (credited) to your student account on the first day of class. For summer/fall borrowers one-half is disbursed in the summer and one-half in the fall. For fall/spring borrowers, one-half is disbursed in the fall and one-half in the spring. For students who are eligible to borrow the full amount of the Stafford Loan for the spring term, the full amount of the loan is disbursed on the first day of classes in the spring.

Tuition is due the first day of class. You should verify that you have completed all the necessary steps for your Federal Direct Loans. You should follow up with your lender regarding your Private Alternative Loans. After 30 days, a financial hold is put on your account which will restrict registration for the next term and block transcript requests.

The College bills tuition and fees by semester through NelNet Campus Commerce. For more information about payment plans and payment dates please visit the Office of Student Accounts.

The Department of Education may send notification that the student’s FAFSA was selected for verification by the federal processor. Verification confirms the accuracy of the information submitted on the FAFSA. The College is required to complete verification for selected students and to resolve any conflicting information. To comply with these regulations, follow the instructions on the verification worksheet provided by the College Board/IDOC. Be sure the worksheet contains all required signatures before returning the form to the Office of Financial Aid.

IRS Data Retrieval: The Office of Financial Aid encourages students to complete their FAFSA online at www.studentaid.gov, using IRS Data Retrieval; an easier, faster way to enter federal income tax information on the FAFSA. The process allows electronically submitted tax information to complete specific elements of the FAFSA, simplifying the verification process. Data successfully transferred through the IRS Data Retrieval tool cannot be modified. Students and parents may not be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool if:

• Tax filing status is “married filing separately”
• Tax status is “head of household”
• Filed a foreign tax return
• Filed paper taxes within the last 8 weeks

Federal Direct Loans will not be disbursed to the student account until verification is complete. 

First-time borrowers or students without prior loan balances who received a loan on or after July 1, 2013 are subject to a limit on the maximum period of time (measured in academic years) they can receive a Direct Subsidized Loan. Students cannot receive more than 150% of their “maximum eligibility period.” The maximum eligibility period is based on the published length of the student’s current program. For example, for a four-year bachelor’s degree program, the maximum period for which a student can receive Direct Subsidized Loans is six years (150% of 4 years = 6 years).

Dependent - $31,000 (No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.)
Independent - $57,500 (No more than $23,000 of this amount may be in subsidized loans.)

These limits are the total lifetime limits for students, which will include the amounts borrowed as an undergraduate student.

You must be enrolled at least half-time in preparatory courses necessary for medical school admission to borrow a Federal Direct Loan.

You are enrolled in preparatory classes which do not lead to a degree or certificate. You may receive a "certificate" of attendance and completion of preparatory courses.

Students have the right to know:

• The Office of Financial Aid’s location, hours, and counseling procedures.
• The financial aid programs available at Bryn Mawr College. 
• The application procedures and deadlines.
• The criteria for selecting financial aid recipients.
• The criteria for determining need.
• The method for determining the amounts and types of aid awarded.
• The costs that were considered in determining eligibility for aid.
• The method and timing of financial aid payments.
• The basis for determining satisfactory academic progress to continue to receive financial aid and what happens when progress is not made.
• The portion of aid that must be repaid, the portion that is grant, and the portion that must be earned through employment.
• If offered a Federal Work-Study award, the nature of the job, the required number of work hours, job duties, the pay, and the method and timing of payments.

Financial aid applications are confidential. Information concerning financial aid applicants will be released only to agencies that require the information for scholarship consideration and only when authorized by the student and family.

Students are responsible for:

• Completing all application forms accurately and submitting them on time to the appropriate location.
• Providing all documentation, verification, corrections, and/or other scholarship information requested by the Office of Financial Aid or other scholarship agencies.
• Reporting any changes in enrollment and housing to the Office of Financial Aid.
• Reading and understanding all forms that are distributed and retaining student copies.
• Performing the work that is agreed upon in accepting a work-study position.
• Reporting name and address changes directly to the Registrar and lenders of all education loans that have been received.
• When filing U.S. taxes, include as taxable income all grant aid that exceeds the cost of tuition, fees, books, and supplies.

The Selective Service System (SSS) is a government agency that maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription, commonly known as the draft. Most male U.S. citizens and male immigrant non-citizens ages of 18-25 are required by law to have registered within 30 days of their 18th birthdays. Any man required to register with Selective Service must have done so to receive federal student aid. Male students may register by answering the question on the FAFSA; online at the Selective Service website; or by filling out a form available at the post office. Students who cannot confirm registration must either register or provide proof of exemption.

Students who have questions about Selective Service registration may contact the Selective Service at 1-847-688-6888 or at https://www.sss.gov/.