| Publication Date: March 20, 2008 Author: William Leith, Acting General Manager, Application, Operations and Delivery Services, Federal Student Aid Summary: Redesign of SAR for 2008-2009 Resulted in Removal of Text for Certain Comment Codes on the Printed ISIR Posted on 03-20-2008 Federal Student Aid has received several inquiries about what appears to be "deleted" or "missing" comment code text on the 2008-2009 Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR). We believe this perception is due to our redesign of the first page of the paper Student Aid Report (SAR) for 2008-2009, which led to the removal of text for certain comment code numbers on the printed ISIR, although the comment code numbers themselves still print on the ISIR. Background Prior to 2008-2009, the SAR had three sections on the first page. The student was directed to read the information on page two, and then go to page three for guidance on what he or she had to do next. For 2008-2009, our intent was to provide a more user-friendly document to the applicant and to be more precise about the status of the application and what the student must do next. The first page was redesigned to have only two sections: the Application Status section and the Federal Student Aid Eligibility section, with checkboxes for the items in each section. In the process of redesigning the SAR for 2008-2009, the decision was made to remove the text for comment codes 047, 050, 112, 149, 158, 159, 170, and 171 from the SAR comments section on page three and to present the information contained in these comments as variable text in the appropriate section on the first page. Printed ISIR From EDExpress Because the text for these comments was replaced with variable text on the SAR and SAR Acknowledgement, we decided not to display or print the text on an ISIR printed from the EDExpress for Windows 2008-2009 software. Please note, however, that the comment code numbers are included in the ISIR file and display in the FAA Information section of the printed ISIR. Schools using EDExpress still have the ability to query their database using these comment code numbers. Printed ISIR From the Web When viewing or printing an ISIR using FAA Access to CPS Online, or when a student is viewing or printing his or her SAR information on the Web, the text for the affected comments will print. See the section "Web Text For the Affected Comment Codes" below for the Web comment code text. Printed ISIR From a Third-Party System ISIRs printed from third-party software may or may not print the text for comments codes 047, 050, 112, 149, 158, 159, 170, and 171, depending on how the software was programmed. We recommend consulting with your software vendor for more information. Web Text For the Affected Comment Codes The comment code text below will print on the ISIR if you print from FAA Access to CPS Online and will display to the student on the Web. As explained above, the information contained in these comments is now provided as variable text on page one of the paper SAR and SAR Acknowledgment, and no longer prints in the comments section on page three of the paper SAR. -
047: There are issues with your FAFSA information that need to be resolved before your eligibility can be determined. Be sure to review the items marked with an h and make any corrections if necessary by selecting the ‘Make Corrections’ button at the bottom of the page. 050: There are issues with your FAFSA information that need to be resolved before your eligibility can be determined. Carefully review any items marked with an h. If you need to make corrections, select the ‘Make Corrections’ button at the bottom of the page. 112: Based on the information we have on record for you, your EFC is <EFC>. You are not eligible for a Federal Pell Grant but you may be eligible for other aid. Your school will use your EFC to determine your financial aid eligibility for other federal grants, loans, and work study, and possible funding from your state and school. 149: Based on the information we have on record for you, your EFC is <EFC>. You may be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant and other federal student aid. Your school will use your EFC to determine your financial aid eligibility for federal grants, loans, and work study, and possible funding from your state and school. 158: You are not eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant because you reported that you have a bachelor's degree (Item 28) or you are working on a degree beyond a bachelor's degree (Item 49). Your Financial Aid Administrator will determine what types of federal student aid you are eligible to receive. 159: You MAY not be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant because you reported that you have a bachelor's degree (Item 28) or you are working on a degree beyond a bachelor’s degree (Item 49). Your Financial Aid Administrator will determine what types of federal student aid you are eligible to receive. 170: Your FAFSA has been selected for a review process called verification. Your school has the authority to request copies of certain financial documents from you and your parent(s). 171: Your FAFSA has been selected for a review process called verification. Your school has the authority to request copies of certain financial documents from you (and your spouse).
SAR/ISIR Comment Code Text Removed From EDExpress The comment code text below was removed from EDExpress. Schools using their own software and third-party software providers may, at their discretion, program their systems to include the text on printed ISIRs. In some cases, the text removed from EDExpress is the same as the Web comment code text above. 047: There are issues with your FAFSA information that need to be resolved before your eligibility can be determined. Read this letter carefully and review any items printed in bold type on this SAR. If you need to make corrections on this SAR, you and your parent must sign the certification at the end before you send it back to us. 050: There are issues with your FAFSA information that need to be resolved before your eligibility can be determined. Read this letter carefully and review any items printed in bold type on this SAR. If you need to make corrections on this SAR, you must sign the certification at the end before you send it back to us. 112: Based on the information we have on record for you, your EFC is <EFC>. You are not eligible for a Federal Pell Grant but you may be eligible for other aid. Your school will use your EFC to determine your financial aid eligibility for other federal grants, loans, and work study, and possible funding from your state and school. 149: Based on the information we have on record for you, your EFC is <EFC>. You may be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant and other federal student aid. Your school will use your EFC to determine your financial aid eligibility for federal grants, loans, and work study, and possible funding from your state and school. 158: You are not eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant because you reported that you have a bachelor’s degree (Item 28) or you are working on a degree beyond a bachelor’s degree (Item 49). Your Financial Aid Administrator will determine what types of federal student aid you are eligible to receive. 159: You MAY not be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant because you reported that you have a bachelor’s degree (Item 28) or you are working on a degree beyond a bachelor’s degree (Item 49). Your Financial Aid Administrator will determine what types of federal student aid you are eligible to receive. 170: Your FAFSA has been selected for a review process called verification. Your school has the authority to request copies of certain financial documents from you and your parent(s). 171: Your FAFSA has been selected for a review process called verification. Your school has the authority to request copies of certain financial documents from you (and your spouse).
Contact Information For more information about the 2008-2009 SAR redesign, refer to the Electronic Announcement posted on August 14, 2007 to the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) Web site, located at http://ifap.ed.gov. If you have any questions regarding this message, contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 800/330-5947 (TDD/TTY 800/511-5806) or by e-mail at CPSSAIG@ed.gov. |