How This Office Communicates with Your Student

The Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships sends e-mail notifications to your student at the e-mail address he/she has on record through the SDSU WebPortal.

These messages direct your student to check AidLink for important information concerning his/her financial aid.  If for some reason our e-mail to your student is returned to us as undeliverable (perhaps because the mail box is full or because the WebPortal address is incorrect) we will use the U. S. Postal Service to send a notice to his/her physical mailing address.

Even if your student does not receive an e-mail message from us, he/she should check AidLink often.

Why Documentation is Needed

The OFAS is responsible for awarding and administering state and federal financial aid programs.  Therefore, we are required to make sure that all aid is awarded to students fairly and correctly.

1. The federal Central Processing System forwards the aid application (FAFSA) to this department. 
2. We create a computer record from the information supplied by you and your student on the FAFSA. 
3. Based on the application, we may request documentation to verify the information.
4. If we need documentation, we will send a notice to your student by e-mail (or paper) telling him/her to access AidLink for instructions on how to submit the required documentation to us.
5. In some cases, parents may be asked to send information.  
6. As a result of the information submitted, the award will be determined, adjusted or canceled.

What verification / documentation may be needed:

• Taxable income
• Federal income tax paid
• Untaxed income and benefits received
• Number of family members in the household
• Number of family members enrolled in college
• Citizenship status
• Your and/or your student's name
• Your veteran status and benefits
• Any other information needed to determine your and your student's aid eligibility

Read each form carefully, and be sure to attach any necessary documentation requested such as signed tax returns.  Make sure you sign all forms where required.

You must return all needed documents as quickly as possible to the OFAS in order for us to determine your student's eligibility for aid.

Incomplete or inaccurate responses will cause needless and lengthy delays in the evaluation of your student's financial aid eligibility.

• Mail the completed documents to the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships, or
• Drop documents off in one of the OFAS "Express Drops."

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