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Welcome to Teachers College Office of Financial Aid
Message from the Director
The mission of the Financial Aid Office is to help remove financial barriers to assist students in meeting the cost of attendance at the institution. The role of the Financial Aid Office is to try to fill the gap that exists between the cost of attendance and funds available from your family, savings and other resources. The Financial Aid Office provides counseling and assistance in completing the financial aid application, evaluation and determination of need.
For many students, financial aid can greatly affect their decision about whether or not to attend college or which institution to attend. Paying for your education may be one of the biggest challenges you encounter as a student. At first glance, the figures for tuition might seem out of your reach. Because of its importance, the decision to apply for financial aid, as well as which financial aid programs to accept, should be made only with a complete understanding of the process, requirements, benefits and responsibilities. We hope the information provided here will be a valuable resource for you. We wish you the best of luck in preparing for and completing your graduate education!
What is considered financial aid? Financial aid is any loan, college work study, grant or scholarship offered for the express purpose of helping a student pay education-related expenses. Such aid is usually provided by federal, state, institutional or private agencies. If you qualify, you may be offered combinations of these types of aid, depending on your financial need and the funds available.
Teachers College Loan Code of Conduct
Teachers College financial aid office has decided to adopt the following College Loan Code of Conduct:
- Revenue Sharing Prohibition- Teachers College financial aid employees are prohibited from receiving anything of value from any lending institution in exchange for any advantage sought by the lending institution.
- Gift and Trip Prohibition-Teachers College financial aid employees are prohibited from taking anything of more than nominal value from any lending institution. This includes a prohibition on trips for financial aid officers and other college officials paid for by lenders.
- Advisory Board Compensation Rules- Teachers College Financial Aid employees are prohibited from receiving anything of value for serving on the advisory board of any lending institution.
- Preferred Lender Guidelines-Teachers College preferred lender lists are based solely on the best interest of the students or parents who may use the list without regard to financial interests of the College.
- Preferred Lender Disclosure-On all preferred lender lists Teachers College has clearly and fully disclosed the criteria and process used to select preferred lenders. Students must also be told that they have the right ability to select the lender of their choice regardless of the preferred lender list.
- Loan Resale Disclosure-No lender on the Teachers College preferred lender list has an agreement to sell its loans to another lender without disclosing this fact. In addition, no lender may bargain to be a preferred lender with respect to a certain type of loan by providing benefits to a College as to another type of loan.
- Call-Center Prohibition-Teachers College ensures that employees of lenders never identify themselves to students as employees of the colleges. No employee of a lender is working or providing staffing in the Teachers College financial aid office.
Who Should Apply for Aid?
The only way to tell if you are eligible to receive aid is to apply for it. Many factors are taken into account when awarding aid. Therefore, everyone who needs financial assistance to attend college should apply.
Who is Eligible to Apply for Federal Aid?
Eligibility requirements for most financial aid programs at Teachers College are listed here. Some programs will list additional eligibility requirements.
You must:
- Be a U.S. citizen, national or permanent resident alien
- Be enrolled/accepted, at 6 credits/points, in a degree program
- Make satisfactory academic progress towards a degree
- Register with the Selective Service Administration, if you are male
- Not be in default on a loan or owe a payment on a federal loan
