Financial Aid Glossary
Don't let the jargon get in the way of coming up with a plan. Here is a list of commonly used words in financial aid.
Ability-to-benefit test: one of the ways to determine eligibility for federal aid for students who aren't high school graduates or don't have a GED certificate.
Assets: an item of value, such as home equity, other real estate, stocks, bonds, cash savings, trust funds, money market funds, college savings plans, retirement plans and prepaid tuition plans (the FAFSA does not ask you report home equity or retirement plan assets).
CADAA: the California Dream Act Application. This application is used by undocumented students who meet the eligibility requirements of California Assembly Bill 540 and come from a lower income household or qualify for need-based aid. The California Student Aid Commission process the application and any aid received can be used at eligible California public or private institutions.
Cal Grant extended awards: your Cal Grant may be extended an additional year if you're getting a teaching credential or are attending a mandatory five-year program; see Request for Cal Grants Fifth Year Benefits.
California residency: you're considered a California resident if you're an unmarried student, under 18, and your parents have been legal California residents for one year prior to the year in which you are applying for state financial aid; if you've lived for two years with a legal California resident, other than a parent; or if a parent is in the U.S. Armed Forces, stationed in California and on active duty when you enroll. All married students, regardless of age, and unmarried students 18 or older, must establish their own residency.
Campus-based aid: the two federal programs administered by colleges: Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant and Federal Work-Study.
Capitalization: when interest is added to the principal balance of a loan rather than being paid as it accrues; any future interest is based on the higher loan amount.
Citizen/national: U.S. citizens — those born in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, or abroad to a U.S.citizen — and nationals — citizens of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands and natives of American Samoa and Swain's Island — are eligible for most federal aid; citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the republics of Palau and the Marshall Islands are eligible only for Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants and Federal Work-Study.
Cost of attendance: the total cost of college for the school year as calculated by colleges, including tuition, fees, books, supplies, transportation, food, housing, personal expenses, and sometimes the rental or purchase of a computer; also known as the student budget.
CSS/Financial Aid Profile: the financial aid application administered by the College Board required by some independent colleges and scholarship organizations to award private aid; only available online.
Deadline: the date or time before something must be done or is due; the due date.
Default: failure to make loan payments or otherwise honor a loan's terms.
Eligible noncitizen: a U.S. permanent resident who has a Permanent Resident Card (I-551 or I-151); a conditional permanent resident (I-551C); or a noncitizen who has an Arrival-Departure Record (I-94) from the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services with one of the following designations: Refugee, Asylum Granted, Parolee (the I-94 confirms paroled for a minimum of one year and status has not expired), or Cuban-Haitian Entrant. Those in the U.S. on an F1 or F2 student visa, a J1 or J2 exchange visitor visa, or a G series visa (pertaining to international organizations) are not U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens and so are ineligible for federal aid.
Expected Family Contribution/Student Aid Index (EFC/SAI): the portion of your own and your family's financial resources that should be available to pay for college, based on a federal formula using the information on your FAFSA.
FAFSA: the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the primary application for applying for financial aid from the federal government, states and colleges.
FAFSA Submission Summary: a paper or electronic document from the U.S. Department of Education’s office of Federal Student Aid that lists answers to the questions on the student’s FAFSA form and gives basic estimates about the student’s eligibility for federal student aid.
Federal methodology: the formula the federal government uses to determine a family's ability to contribute toward a college education using the information submitted on the FAFSA to calculate the EFC/SAI (doesn't count home equity and certain other assets); also used by states and some colleges.
Federal processor: the federal government's computer system that analyzes the information on your FAFSA, calculates your EFC/SAI and sends out the FAFSA Submission Summary; also called the central processing system.
Financial aid eligibility: the difference between your EFC/SAI and the college's cost of attendance; also known as your financial need.
Financial aid package: the total amount of financial aid offered, usually a combination of grants, scholarships, loans and work-study.
FSA ID: The FSA ID log-in system replaces the PIN log-in system and is used to complete FAFSA and other financial aid applications. The username and password FSA ID system is from the U.S. Department of Education and serves as your e-signature on the electronic FAFSA; to check on the status of a FAFSA and correct or print a SAR.
GED: General Education Development test/certificate used to measure academic achievement at the high school graduate level.
GPA: grade point average.
Grant: financial aid that doesn't need to be repaid; usually based on financial need.
Home equity: current home value minus the amount still owed.
Independent college: a nonprofit, private college that is not run by a government organization.
Institution-based aid: financial assistance offered and controlled by the individual colleges, such as alumni scholarships and endowments from private donors; also called university or college-based aid.
Institutional methodology: the formula used by some colleges to determine your eligibility for institutional aid; may count home equity and other assets the FAFSA does not.
Interest: the fee lenders charge you for using their money.
Merit-based aid: financial aid that is based on merit — grades, test scores, athletic ability, talents or other criteria — and not income or assets.
Need-based aid: financial aid that is based on your own or your family's income and assets; most financial aid offered by states and the federal government is need-based.
PIN:personal identification number The PIN log-in system was replaced by the FSA ID log-in system in May 2015. The PIN, provided through the U.S. Department of Education, served as the e-signature on an electronic FAFSA; to check the status of a FAFSA and correct or print a Student Aid Report (SAR).
Private career college: a for-profit institution offering a course of study or job skills beyond high school.
Promissory note: a legally binding contract between a borrower and lender listing all terms and conditions of a loan; federal loans have a master promissory note.
Satisfactory academic progress: the progress you must maintain toward obtaining a degree or certificate that's required to receive financial aid as established by your college.
Scholarship: money for college you don't have to repay, awarded based on grades, test scores, major, heritage or other criteria, but usually not financial need.
Selective Service registration: if required, you must register, or arrange to register, with theSelective Service for military draft to receive federal student aid (most males age 18-25, citizens or eligible noncitizens, and not currently on active duty in the Armed Forces).
Student Aid Index (SAI): an eligibility index number that a school’s financial aid office uses to determine how much federal student aid the student would be eligible to receive. This number results from the information provided on the FAFSA form.
Student Aid Report (SAR): the report summarizing the information you provide on the FAFSA (prior to 2024-25 FAFSA)
Student budget: the total costs of attending a college; also known as the cost of attendance.
Undocumented students: students who live in the United States and are not U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents and who don't have an Alien Registration Card, visa or other legal documentation; includes students or their families who entered the country legally on tourist or work visas and chose to stay after their visas expired.
Untaxed income: all income you receive that's not taxed or may not be reported to the IRS, including the untaxed portion of Social Security benefits, Earned Income Credit, welfare payments, interest on tax-free bonds, clergy and military allowances, and others (see FAFSA Worksheets A and B).
Verification: the procedure by which a college checks the information reported on the FAFSA, usually by requesting a copy of your (or your parents') signed tax return and other documentation.
Veteran: a person who has engaged in active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces or is a National Guard or Reserve enlistee called to active duty for purposes other than training, or who was a cadet or midshipman at one of the service academies, and who was released under a condition other than dishonorable; or who'll be a veteran by June 30, 2012.
Vocational school: a school that offers a course of study beyond high school to teach specific job skills; also called a technical or trade school.