Admissions Updates

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report

Aju Cherian — Tue, 11 Jan 2022 00:45:23 +0000

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report Aju Cherian Mon, 01/10/2022 - 19:45

January 10, 2022

To the Mason Community:

The table below lists the award distributions made during the calendar quarter ended December 31, 2021, along with information on previous distributions for reference.

ARPA – HEERF III Awards

	Prior Quarters	10/1/2021– 12/31/2021	Grand Total
Total amount of HEERF grants distributed to students	$14,597,933	$1,354,983	$15,952,916
Total number of students who received a HEERF grant	13,161	1,253	14,414

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University Closed - December 18, 2021 - January 2, 2022

Aju Cherian — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 13:53:17 +0000

University Closed - December 18, 2021 - January 2, 2022 Aju Cherian Wed, 12/15/2021 - 08:53

The Office of Admissions and the Office of Student Financial Aid will be closing for the winter break on Friday, December 17. 2021 at 5:00 p.m. ET, and will reopen on Monday, January 3, 2022 at 8:30 a.m. ET. If you need assistance while our offices are closed, you can reach us virtually via our Admissions and Financial Aid webforms. Happy Holidays!

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Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report

Aju Cherian — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 18:05:37 +0000

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report Aju Cherian Fri, 10/08/2021 - 14:05

To the Mason Community:

For the HEERF III awards, Mason is continuing to use a multi-prong approach which includes proactive awards to students with existing FAFSA data in our Financial Aid system and application-based awards utilizing our existing Student Emergency Assistance grant process. Students were identified for proactive awards based on a combination of factors including (but not limited to) estimated family contribution (EFC), unmet need, student level, and residency status. Application-based awards are provided to eligible students experiencing adverse financial impacts of the pandemic based on information provided in their applications. We anticipate that these funds will be fully disbursed during the 2021-2022 academic year.

The table below lists the award distributions made during the calendar quarter ended September 30, 2021. This was the first calendar quarter in which HEERF III awards were made.

ARPA – HEERF III Awards

	7/1/2021 – 9/30/2021
Total amount of HEERF grants distributed to students	$14,597,933
Total number of students who received a HEERF grant	13,159

Students experiencing on-going financial hardships are encouraged to apply for emergency assistance available from the HEERF funds, and can submit applications for assistance at: https://ulife.gmu.edu/student-emergency-assistance-funding-fall-2021/. The application is updated for each new semester.

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Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report/FINAL

Aju Cherian — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 17:44:07 +0000

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report/FINAL Aju Cherian Fri, 10/08/2021 - 13:44

To the Mason Community:

On February 16, 2021, ��AV received a $10,427,512 supplemental allocation of funding for student emergency grants under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) as authorized under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) signed into law on December 27, 2020. This second round of funding is commonly referred to as “HEERF II”.

The Department of Education has established eligibility and prioritization requirements for students to receive grants from the HEERF programs. Recent updates to the eligibility guidelines have expanded the population of eligible students beyond those eligible for earlier rounds of HEERF awards. Mason estimates that approximately 23,600 students were eligible to receive HEERF II grants based on the guidelines. Within those guidelines, Mason has the discretion to determine individual award amounts provided to eligible students.

For the HEERF II awards, Mason used a multi-prong approach which included proactive awards to students with existing FAFSA data in our Financial Aid system and application-based awards utilizing our existing Student Emergency Assistance grant process. Students were identified for proactive awards based on a combination of factors including (but not limited to) estimated family contribution (EFC), unmet need, student level, and residency status. Application-based awards were provided to eligible students experiencing adverse financial impacts of the pandemic based on information provided in their applications. The majority of the HEERF II awards were disbursed to students during the Spring 2021 semester. Emergency awards continued to be awarded during the summer 2021 term.

The table below lists the award distributions made during the calendar quarter ended September 30, 2021, along with information on previous distributions for reference.

CRRSAA – HEERF II Awards

	Prior quarters	7/1/2021 - 9/30/2021	Grand Total
Amount of HEERF II grants distributed to students	$10,265,892	$113,012	$10,378,904
Total number of students who received a HEERF grant	9,748	64	9,812

The remaining unallocated HEERF II funds, along with any amounts from adjustments or uncashed checks from previously issued awards have been rolled over into the funds available for distribution under HEERF III grants (funded by the American Rescue Plan Act). As such, this is the final quarterly report for Mason’s emergency student awards under HEERF II.

Students experiencing on-going financial hardships are encouraged to apply for emergency assistance available from the HEERF funds, and can submit applications for assistance at: https://ulife.gmu.edu/student-emergency-assistance-funding-fall-2021/. The application is updated for each new semester.

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Enrollment Freeze

Aju Cherian — Wed, 18 Aug 2021 13:52:54 +0000

Enrollment Freeze Aju Cherian Wed, 08/18/2021 - 09:52

At the "enrollment freeze date", the Office of Student Financial Aid (OSFA) will verify your enrollment. If you increase or decrease your enrollment between the disbursement date and the enrollment freeze date, your financial aid will be adjusted accordingly to ensure that it is the appropriate amount for your enrollment on the freeze date.

The enrollment freeze date for the Fall 2021 semester is September 14, 2021. After this date, no adjustments or increases will be made to your financial aid and all financial aid payments will be final (with the exception of any Part of Term classes that begin later in the semester. Dropping a Part of Term course that begins later may result in a reduction of your aid.) If you completely drop or withdraw from all your classes at ANY point, the Financial Aid Office will determine how much aid you can keep and how much has to be returned to the US Department of Education. This is called a Return to Title IV calculation.

Students who withdraw from a full semester course after the enrollment freeze date will have a "W" appear on their transcript and will not get a partial refund of tuition paid for the course. The "W" grade will be included when determining Satisfactory Academic Progress.

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Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report

Aju Cherian — Wed, 11 Aug 2021 14:44:29 +0000

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report Aju Cherian Wed, 08/11/2021 - 10:44

To the Mason Community:

��AV received supplemental allocations of funding for student emergency grants under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) as authorized under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) signed into law on December 27, 2020 as listed in the table below.

The Department of Education has established eligibility and prioritization requirements for students to receive grants from these programs. Recent updates to the eligibility guidelines have expanded the population of eligible students beyond those eligible for earlier rounds of HEERF awards. Within those guidelines, Mason has the discretion to determine individual award amounts provided to eligible students.

January 1, 2021 – March 31, 2021	CRRSAA – HEERF II
Date of award notice	February 16, 2021
Total amount of funds that the institution will receive for grants to students	$10,427,512
Total amount of HEERF grants distributed to students during this quarter	8,124,080
Estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to receive HEERF grants	23,601
Total number of students who received a HEERF grant during this quarter	7,802

For the HEERF II awards, Mason used a multi-prong approach which included proactive awards to students with existing FAFSA data in our Financial Aid system and application-based awards utilizing our existing Student Emergency Assistance grant process. Students were identified for proactive awards based on a combination of factors including (but not limited to) estimated family contribution (EFC), unmet need, student level, and residency status. Application-based awards were provided to eligible students experiencing adverse financial impacts of the pandemic based on information provided in their applications. The majority of the HEERF II awards were disbursed to students during the Spring 2021 semester. The remaining funds are still being used for Emergency awards for the summer 2021 term.

Students experiencing on-going financial hardships are encouraged to apply for emergency assistance available from the HEERF funds, and can submit applications for assistance at: https://ulife.gmu.edu/student-emergency-assistance-funding-summer-2021/. The application is updated for each new semester.

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Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report

Aju Cherian — Wed, 11 Aug 2021 14:39:59 +0000

Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Student Report Aju Cherian Wed, 08/11/2021 - 10:39

To the Mason Community:

April 1, 2021 – June 30, 2021	CRRSAA – HEERF II
Date of award notice	February 16, 2021
Total amount of funds that the institution will receive for grants to students	$10,427,512
Total amount of HEERF grants distributed to students during this quarter	2,141,813
Estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to receive HEERF grants	23,601
Total number of students who received a HEERF grant during this quarter	2,018

Click HERE to access the January - March 2021 report.

For the HEERF II awards, Mason used a multi-prong approach which included proactive awards to students with existing FAFSA data in our Financial Aid system and application-based awards utilizing our existing Student Emergency Assistance grant process. Students were identified for proactive awards based on a combination of factors including (but not limited to) estimated family contribution (EFC), unmet need, student level, and residency status. Application-based awards were provided to eligible students experiencing adverse financial impacts of the pandemic based on information provided in their applications. The majority of the HEERF II awards were disbursed to students during the Spring 2021 semester. The remaining funds are still being used for Emergency awards for the summer 2021 term.

Students experiencing on-going financial hardships are encouraged to apply for emergency assistance available from the HEERF funds, and can submit applications for assistance at: https://ulife.gmu.edu/student-emergency-assistance-funding-summer-2021/. The application is updated for each new semester.

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Internet Service Discounts

Aju Cherian — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 17:37:23 +0000

Internet Service Discounts Aju Cherian Wed, 07/28/2021 - 13:37

Lower prices for high-speed internet are available to eligible individuals. The benefit is a discount of up to $50/month, and a one-time discount of up to $100 for a qualifying device. The service provider will offer the discount to the customer. Find out if you qualify for the limited-time Emergency Broadband Service program.

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Verification Process Update

Aju Cherian — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 13:52:25 +0000

Verification Process Update Aju Cherian Thu, 07/22/2021 - 09:52

The U. S. Department of Education has new guidance regarding FAFSA verification requirements. Based on the recent guidance, please DO NOT SUBMIT any V1 Verification Documents or Tax Return information to us for the 21-22 aid year until further notice. (Information on the 22-23 aid year verification requirements has not been released by the Department of Education at this time.)

Any documents we currently have on file MUST BE REVIEWED for conflicting information under the federal guidelines. If we find any conflicting information on documents that you have already submitted, we will reach out to you to let you know what we require to resolve that conflict.

The verification team will be reviewing all documents currently submitted. Please allow 2-4 weeks for processing.

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