Although all three are intrinsically important, the most important item in my process is the service. In my years of work, Timeliness and Accuracy will help you to get the job well done; however, a great service will make your job excel all levels of efficiency and will help to keep current students and these bring more by the great marketing tool of "the word of mouth".
Angela
In my opinion the Service is a very important part of my process in the Fiancial Aid Office. We have a small school. I love being able to have a close relationship with the students and their parents. I know this helps in default.
Christina,
Service and that personal touch with students is invaluable in meeting their needs. It is great when your students and parents are comfortable coming to you and working out concerns. Based on your email it sounds as if your service level is extremely high. How do you feel that you and your team does in the otehr areas of FA Administration (i.e. compliance, timeliness, etc.)?
Best wishes in your continued online educational experience.
Sincerely, Chyrl
Service:
By providing great costumer service you will have a better and clear interview with a student. You will gain trust and more likely the information you obtain from the student will be more accurate.
There is nothing better than to have a clean ISIR and complete paperwork so you are able to process their FA timely.
Marlene,
I completely agree with your assessment on a clean ISIR and the ability to expedite the FA process; however, when you do not have a clean ISIR is is good to a solid foundation based on customer service. If your students and parents are comfortable and confident in your ability they will be more willing to assist in the process.
Best wishes in your continued online education in Financial Aid.
Sincerely, Chyrl
All three items are extremely necessary to run a successful and efficient Financial Aid department. But I'm a firm believer in first providing excellent customer service to the student. I do this by first greeting the student (and whomever they've brought with them) with a friendly smile and offering them some water or coffee. Then I get to know them a little by asking a few questions and REALLY listening to their answers. I like to convey humanity - not that they are just a number to us, because they're not. Letting them feel like they matter and that what they're about to embark upon is evidence of their self-worth. I want them to feel that we really do care about their success and that the entire staff is vested in that success. Processing Financial Aid packages is pretty routine, but making the effort to connect with each and every student is anything but routine, because no two people are alike.
Catherine,
I agree that all items are extremely important to running a successful FA Office and each FA Office must find their focus to be successful. It appears taht you and your team focus on the customer service aspect to insure that your students feel confident and satisfied. One of the most important aspects about service is taking care of the customer at all levels and based on your answer you understand this important aspect.
Best wishes in your continued success in FA and online education.
Sincerely, Chyrl
Service:
The moment a student walks into our financial aid offices, we -financial aid officers could either contribute that student's decision of enrolling and not enrolling. When a customer perceives that we make them feel important and valued, they are more likely to do business with us, provide accurate information which allows us to process timely.
Merilyn,
I think your approach is the best when servicing students. The FA staff is a critical to the successful enrollment and education process of each student. Ensuring the student is comfortable and providing accurate information is the "best level of service that can be offered.
Best wishes in your continued pursuit of online educationsl.
Sincerely, Chyrl
I would say that at our school Service would be the most important. I sometimes will spend over 3 months prior to our April or October class start date talking and meeting with potential students before they turn into students. I try to take a very hands on approach with them because in the past a constant complaint has been that the FA office was not very helpful.
I think a positive and friendly approach works best with our school. Accuracy is a close second because everyone deserves the best I can be.
For me the most important is service. If the student feels comfortable with the FA representative, he/she will cooperate and will send all the paperworks on time. If we receive paperworks on time, we can comply with time and accuracy.
Thamee,
Service is critical to insure that students are confident in your ability to meet their needs. The more confident the student is in your ability to address their questions the greater success you should experience working with them. Students need to believe the FA Department will be able to answer questions and process their documentation in a timely and accurate manner.
Best wishes in your continued online educational experience.
Sincerely, Chyrl
For me the most importantante element is the accuracy at all economic assistance process because it is vital that no mistakes are made that lead to a violation of federal regulations. The accuracy are avoided in audit findings and make sure we approve funding students according to their eligibility.
Nydia,
You are absolutely correct that the best measures are to create checks on the front end of the process to insure no errors occur; however, it is good idea to be prepared for the audits by keeping files in a standard and organized to insure quick and accurate review. You might want to consider doing a mini-review prior to any audits just to insure all is accurately reflected.
Best wishes in your continued online educational process.
Sincerely, Chyrl
I believe you need all 3 to succeed. Service is the first and foremost thing ~ without it, you won't have any students to assist in a timely manner or with accuracy. Timeliness is important because of FA deadlines ~ the aid needs to come in to keep the school going! If you miss a deadline, not only could the student not get their aid, but the school will also not get the money. And, accuracy is a definite as well. Audits will make sure accuracy is checked and double-checked. If something is missing, your students could again miss out on funds. Without all 3 going hand-in-hand, it could be very chaotic and a bad outcome for everyone involved!
Tracy,
Your thoughts are extremely accurate on the importance of all three charachteristics of the Financial Aid Office. Each element is important and contributes to the overall success of the college, staff and most importantly - the student. If students and/or parents feel as they are being serviced in a timely and accurate manner, they will feel comfortable. This is very important since students will face obstacles that they have to be able to discuss with Financial Aid.
Best wishes in your continued online education.
Sincerely, Chyrl
It is hard to say which one is more important because they all play an important role in the financial aid process. However, if I have to choose, I would say Service is the most important to me. There are several pros to providing good customer service: Increased Revenue (the more students you get the more revenue you earn), Enhanced Company Reputation (good and bad experiences can generate different opinions of your company), and Customer Loyalty (the customer trust you and puts faith in your ability to perform you job to the best of your ability).
If you provide excellent services, timeliness and accuracy should easily follow.
Megan,
This is a very common and profound comment made by the professionals completing this module. How do you select one element when each one plays a critical role in the success of your students and the institution. Normally, the professional aid administrators select the one that they feel will bring the overall greatest success to the entire process.
Sincerely, Chyrl
That is a hard question because they are all extremely important. I would say accuracy because if you are accurate then you will play a part in timeliness. Unless you drag your heels. I believe Service is very important too. I do not do Title IV yet but I am in the process. My question is what steps do you take to make sure your process is done accurate and on time?
Kelly,
Your questions is also difficult to answer. The answser depends on how your FA Office is structure and the enrollment process for you students. From a timeliness standpoint it is important to set and provide prospective students with time-frames of when documents or online processes are due (i.e. FAFSA on the Web, online MPN and counseling completion) and insure the students adhere to the deadlines. You do not want students in class without knowing how they will pay for their education. Also, it is important to insure all documents are accurately completed within the deadlines. Some campuses have FA processors who are student friendly to collect the documents and more seasoned FA processors to review. Structure of the FA Office and lenght of enrollment time will have a great deal to do with these requirements.
Best wishes in your continued pursuit of FA knowledge in an online setting.
Sincerely, Chyrl Ayers
