Glossary of Financial Aid Terms

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Acronyms

Electronic Data Exchange (EDE): Program used by participating schools to electronically receive Student Aid Reports (SARs) from the federal processor. At some schools EDE allows students to electronically file their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Educational Testing Service (ETS): Company that produces and administers the SAT and other educational achievement tests.

Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT): Used by some schools and lenders to wire funds for Stafford and PLUS loans directly to participating schools without requiring an intermediate check for the student to endorse. The money is transferred electronically instead of using paper, and hence is available to the student sooner. If you have a choice of funds transfer methods, use EFT.

Electronic Student Aid Report (ESAR): An electronic form of the Student Aid Report (SAR).

Eligible Non-Citizen: Someone who is not a US citizen but is nevertheless eligible for Federal student aid. Eligible non-citizens include US permanent residents who are holders of valid green cards, US nationals, holders of form I-94 who have been granted refugee or asylum status and certain other non-citizens. Non-citizens who hold a student visa or an exchange visitor visa are not eligible for Federal student aid.

Emancipated: To release a child from the control of a parent or guardian. Declaring a child to be legally emancipated is not sufficient to release the parents or legal guardians from being responsible for providing for the child's education. If this were the case, then every parent would "divorce" their children before sending them to college. The criteria for a child to be found independent are much stricter. See Dependency Status.

Endowment Funds: owned by an institution and invested to produce income to support the operation of the institution. Many educational institutions use a portion of their endowment income for financial aid.

Enrollment Status: An indication of whether you are a full-time or part-time student. Generally you must be enrolled at least half-time (and in some cases full-time) to qualify for financial aid.

Entitlement: Entitlement programs award funds to all qualified applicants. The Pell Grant is an example of such a program.

Entrance Interview: See Loan Interviews.

Equity: The dollar value of your ownership in a piece of property.

Exit Interview: See Loan Interviews.

Expected Family Contribution (EFC): The amount of money that the family is expected to be able to contribute to the student's education, as determined by the Federal Methodology need analysis formula approved by Congress. The EFC includes the parent contribution and the student contribution, and depends on the student's dependency status, family size, number of family members in school, taxable and nontaxable income and assets. The difference between the Cost Of Attendance (COA)and the EFC is the student's financial need, and is used in determining the student's eligibility for need-based financial aid. If you have unusual financial circumstances (such as high medical expenses, loss of employment or death of a parent) that may affect your ability to pay for your education, tell your financial aid administrator (FAA).