Apply for Financial Aid

To be considered for some scholarships, you will be required to complete the parental information.

You may complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the upcoming academic year beginning October 1. The PNWU school code, OPEID#, is G41305.

Financial Aid for Graduate and Professional Degree Students provides an overview of federal aid programs and how to apply for them. PNWU only participates in the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program.

Specific documents will be requested, if there is a mismatch on one of the FAFSA database flags:

• Selective Service
• Citizenship
• Social Security Administration
• Veterans status
• Drug abuse hold
• NSLDS

Discrepancy of Information

PNWU will identify and resolve discrepancies in all Federal Student Aid (FSA) related information received by any school office. Discrepancies must be resolved for all students, not just those selected for verification. Changes in an application due to resolution of a discrepancy of information will be returned to the FAFSA processor.

Resolution includes:

• Determining what information is correct
• Documenting the findings in the student’s file

Review

1. All student aid applications, need analysis documents, statements of educational purpose, statements of registration status, and eligibility notification documents presented by or on behalf of each FSA applicant; even if previously verified, all information on subsequent ISIRs must be reviewed and discrepancies resolved.
2. Any documents, including any copies of state and federal income tax returns (Publication 17 of the IRS is a useful resource), that are normally collected by the school to verify information received from the student or other sources.
3. Any other information submitted or normally available to the school regarding a student’s citizenship, previous educational experience, documentation of the student’s social security number, or other factors relating to the student’s eligibility for funds under FSA programs.

Exceptions

If the processing year has ended, we must continue to resolve conflicting information unless:

• All aid for period of enrollment has been disbursed
• At the time of disbursement, there was no conflicting information
• Student is no longer enrolled at the school (and is not intending to re-enroll)
• Student passes away during the award year

We may not ignore a document in the file unless a student is no longer enrolled. If we have conflicting information in the file, we must resolve it as expeditiously as possible. If we become aware of conflicting information for a student who is no longer enrolled, and there is aid to be disbursed, we must resolve the conflict before making the late or post-withdrawal disbursement.

If aid (that the school was unaware of) is received after the end of a period of enrollment for a student who is intending to re-enroll, assuming the student re-enrolls in the next award year that aid must be treated as resource/EFA for the subsequent period of enrollment.

Referral to Office of Inspector General

Any credible information indicating that an applicant for Title IV, HEA program assistance may have engaged in fraud or other criminal misconduct in connection with his or her application will be referred to the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Education for investigation. The type of information that an institution must refer is that which is relevant to the eligibility of the applicant for Title IV, HEA program assistance, or the amount of the assistance. Examples of this type of information are:

• False claims of independent student status
• False claims of citizenship
• Use of false identities
• Forgery of signatures or certifications
• False statements of income

An institution must also refer any credible information indicating that any employee, third-party servicer, or other agent of the institution that acts in a capacity that involves the administration of the Title IV, HEA programs, or the receipt of funds under those programs, may have engaged in fraud, misrepresentation, conversion or breach of fiduciary responsibility, or other illegal conduct involving the Title IV, HEA programs. The type of information that an institution must refer is that which is relevant to the eligibility and funding of the institution and its students through the Title IV, HEA programs.