Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
Financial Aid Counselor Duties & Responsibilities
To write an effective financial aid counselor job description, begin by listing detailed duties, responsibilities and expectations. We have included financial aid counselor job description templates that you can modify and use.
Sample responsibilities for this position include:
Financial Aid Counselor Qualifications
Qualifications for a job description may include education, certification, and experience.
Education for Financial Aid Counselor
Typically a job would require a certain level of education.
Employers hiring for the financial aid counselor job most commonly would prefer for their future employee to have a relevant degree such as Bachelor's and Collage Degree in Education, Business, Counseling, Communication, Humanities, Public Administration, Communications, Management, Military, Faculty
Skills for Financial Aid Counselor
Desired skills for financial aid counselor include:
Desired experience for financial aid counselor includes:
Financial Aid Counselor Examples
Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
- Manage the successful origination and delivery of Federal Direct Loans
- Award new summer students with appropriate federal aid
- Assists in aid eligibility assessment, funds disbursement, and aid reconciliation procedures
- Reviews Florida Residency documentation and verifies eligibility for state aid
- Advises students and their families on all aspects of financial aid including application procedures, processes, eligibility, appeals, costs and resources
- Make appropriate revisions to student eligibly, cost of attendance or financial aid to accommodate the circumstances that are within the law and institutional policy and funding guidelines and defensible
- Communicates complex financial information and application procedures to prospective students, current students, and their families in a clear, timely and professional manner
- Program Management – Financial Literacy and Social Media
- Responds promptly to financial aid questions from prospective and current students including walk-ins, scheduled appointments, telephone and emails
- Attends conferences, seminars and lectures to keep abreast of current trends in financial aid
- Candidates should expect in-depth contact with students and families via e-mail, telephone and in-person
- Prior Financial Aid/Federal Loan program experience preferred
- Respond to a high volume of requests for information via email
- Serve as main point of contact for walk-in and phone traffic to the Financial Aid Office
- Documents student interactions when appropriate
- Occasionally assist with data updates
Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
- Financial aid Counselors must understand federal, state and institutional financial aid rules and regulations related to aid eligibility, awarding and disbursement
- Counsel students and families on federal, state and institutional aid sources, loan and other financing options, such as private educational loans and the Extended Payment Plan
- Calculate financial need and construct financial aid packages in accordance with federal and institutional guidelines
- Perform Verification of applicant data and use Professional Judgment to adjust federal aid applicants’ eligibility
- Respond to inquiries with accurate information and high quality of customer service
- Serve as “on-call” counselor when necessary
- Provide financial aid information at campus open houses and prospective student weekends, and at area schools/events
- Assists in other activities to support the continued improvement of the office's customer engagement goals
- Answer questions, inquiries or requests from students, parents, high school counselors, or guardians on phone, in person or via email regarding scholarship programs and eligibility
- Work queries and complete other processes relevant to the eligibility and disbursement of merit/financial aid
- Coordinate Scholarship Appeals Process
- Implement recruitment strategies as outlined in the admissions Key Result Area (KRA) goal plan in the assigned territory to include high school and/or community college visits
- Attend college fairs, area receptions, and events
- Handle the resolution of rejected loan originations and/or disbursements from the U.S. Department of Education
- Oversee the processing of Direct PLUS Loans
- Proven administrative, financial and problem-solving skills
Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
- Assist in other activities to support the continued improvement of the office's customer service goals
- Revise financial award packages based on changes in enrollment status, professional judgment, making sure corrections to a student’s status are noted
- Develop skills and knowledge to become a subject matter expert in critical financial aid processes
- Completes verification for students selected by the Department of Education institutionally selected students
- Resolves SAR C-flags and confirms student eligibility when FAFSA confirmations fail
- Posts, processes and originates/certifies Direct Stafford, Parent and Graduate PLUS
- Processes Private loans and ensures receipt of MPNs, Entrance Counseling and certification records
- Monitors and adjusts student's borrower based aid year information
- Coordinates with Athletics, Resident Life, and other university departments in awarding grants, scholarships, GSA and GRA awards
- Assist families in the review of cases for special conditions and/or professional judgment
- During peak enrollment and processing periods must be able to handle high volume of phone calls and student inquiries
- Duties require extended periods of sitting, standing, talking, listening and computer usage
- Three years of responsible financial aid processing experience
- Experience with computerized financial aid management systems
- Ability to utilize BANNER, CAMPUS Logic or a similar relational database
- At least one year’s related higher education experience in a large volume, multi-program office
Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
- Perform review of information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and other file review processes based on federal Title IV regulations
- Assign appropriate Cost of Attendance to students and award federal, state and institutional aid to financial aid recipients to ensure aid is paid in a timely manner
- Assist in researching rules and regulations concerning Title IV funding eligibility issues and participate in determining OSFA policy and procedures
- Complete federal verification processes and making necessary corrections to students’ financial aid application
- Must possess working knowledge of Federal Systems in which the individual will interact with regularly (EDConnect, COD, CPS, NSLDS)
- Assists with the loading and review of CSS Profile and IDOC files
- Assists with external communications including aid notifications, missing information notices, website updates, and social media
- Assists with graduate student financial aid awarding and loan counseling
- Maintains confidentiality of student records in compliance with Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
- Assists with projects and special assignments
- Knowledge of federal, state, university and private assistance programs and payment options
- Understand financial aid professional judgment with the ability to interpret and apply regulations to allow for non-standard exceptions over a range of situations including overriding standard policy and procedure in need analysis, the establishment of the cost of attendance and approving modification of awards in order to facilitate educational objectives of providing financial assistance for student to continue in school
- In-depth knowledge of regulations in interpreting and administering of federal Title IV (FFELP, Grad PLUS, Work Study, Perkins), Title VII (SDS, LDS, HPSL) and university financial aid programs to ensure compliance which includes researching, reading, interpreting, evaluating and applying complex rules and laws, writing and presenting concise findings with recommended course of action
- A bachelor’s degree granted by the date expected to begin employment
- One year of professional experience in counseling and working with students or two years of experience working with students as a part-time or student employee at an institution of higher learning (one year of part-time or student employment counts for 6 months of professional experience)
- 2-3 years relevant experience in a financial aid office preferred
Financial Aid Counselor Job Description
- Determine financial aid eligibility based on institutional policy and state/federal guidelines
- Requires knowledge, understanding and interpretation of federal aid regulations
- Package incoming students with institutional aid and state/federal aid
- Under the direct supervision of the Financial Aid Lead Counselor, performs professional student service work in the areas of university wide review of confidential financial aid applications for eligibility, correctness and completeness
- Under the direct supervision of the Financial Aid Lead Counselor, advises students individually and in groups on financial aid issues
- Under the direct supervision of the Financial Aid Lead Counselor, provides telephone and counter receptions, answers inquiries from students, parents, and other campus staff and faculty covering a variety of financial aid concerns
- Conduct financial aid presentations in the community and on campus regularly
- Collaborate with the Admissions Office, Student Accounts and the Registrar’s Office to ensure student successful registration and retention
- Continually update working knowledge of all aid programs
- Assist with documents, files, projects and phone calls as needed
- Knowledge of all aspects of scholarship/financial aid and billing programs, policies, procedures, and practices
- Additional knowledge specific to focus area
- Work experience demonstrating attention to detail
- In accordance with Federal regulatory requirements, the incumbent must be in good standing on any outstanding Federal Title IV loans
- Each counselor with in this unit may manage a student aid program, in accordance with interest and skill set
- Ability to explain financial aid issues to students and parents in detail