In order to encourage students to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the financial aid office held its annual Financial Aid Awareness Day on March 12. The event was held next to Calvary Chapel and gave students the opportunity to win various prizes and scholarships up to $1000.

To enter the drawing, students had to have completed their FAFSA and an electronic authorization, which is a new requirement this year.

The event was held to offer assistance to students so they are not missing any opportunities that the financial aid office offers, according to Brandon Lee, a financial aid counselor.

Promoting customer service

A large problem students face is waiting too long to complete the financial aid process, which is why the financial aid office uses this event to push students to finish in a timely manner, said financial aid counselor Bethany Jones.

The financial aid office often goes unnoticed, and this event reminds students that it is a resource for them, according to Lee.

“It’s ultimately a thing of extending customer service to others because we care about you guys,” Lee said.

For the most part, students fulfill their financial aid requirements on time, but there are always exceptions, Lee said. The purpose of these events is not only to serve as an incentive to complete the financial aid process, but to educate students on how that process works.

Financial aid process

The speed of the financial aid process depends on a lot of factors, Jones said.
After students submit their FAFSA online, the financial aid office receives the information in a couple of days. It takes a week to build a financial aid package based on that information, and then the office will notify students to fulfill the necessary requirements on my.Biola. The length of the process depends on how accurately a student fills out their FAFSA, Jones said.  

“Every student is different, every file is different,” Jones said.

Prizes and scholarships motivate students

Some students have no problem completing their FAFSA on time, but the prizes offered by the financial aid office were enough incentive to participate in the drawing, despite the long line to enter it.

“[I am here] hopefully to get a free shirt,” said Serena Mapier, a freshman elementary education major.

Students attending the event thought the financial aid office did a good job of promoting Financial Aid Awareness Day.

“I got probably five emails about it … they made sure I knew,” said Rachel Rohm, sophomore journalism major.

Attendees remarked that the offered prizes and scholarships were a good incentive to complete the FAFSA process.

“I can see how it can motivate other people to finish it on time,” said Crystal Brown, a senior psychology major.