SSC NEWSLETTER Student Service Center Newsletter: Issue 5 June/July 2017 Happy Summer! The staff of the Student Service Center is looking forward to the fun in the sun this long-awaited season bringsand to working with you to ensure the summer semester sails by smoothly. In this edition, we provide important information on financial aid, paying your bill, class registration, and summer commencement. As always, we ve included a list of important dates and deadlines to keep you on track. Please reach out with any questions- we re here to help! What is the Student Service Center? The Student Service Center, located on the ground floor of Williston Hall, is an important destination for both students and parents. It s a one-stop shop that is home to the Financial Aid Office, Student Financial Services, the Registrar s Office, and International Student Services. The team of professionals in the SSC is committed to providing a single point of friendly, professional service for students and parents with questions concerning student accounts, financial aid, billing, registration, or other administrative issues. Our frontline staff, the Student Service Representatives (SSRs), are cross-trained in the key functions of each department, can assist with general questions, can resolve many account issues, or can point you in the right direction to find your answers. In This Issue Summer 2017 Commencement Graduation requirements FERPA/Parent Proxy Health Insurance 2017/2018 Tuition, Room and Board Costs TMS Monthly Payment Plan International Student Services FA Verification FA-TV SALT Stafford Loans
The Office of the Registrar Welcome to summer! For those students just joining our community, we re looking forward to working with you! The Registrar s Office acts as a behind the scenes facilitator for faculty, students and staff as they pursue the academic goals of the university. We assist students with the registration process after they have worked with their faculty advisor to select the appropriate courses for their program(s) of study. In addition, our staff provides many services, including maintaining student academic records, planning graduation, creating course schedules, generating transcripts, enrollment verifications, and transfer evaluations, setting final exam schedules, processing withdrawals, and recording final grades. We are committed to providing each student with the resources and information they need to make enrolling for each academic and co-op semester as easy as possible. Important dates regarding upcoming registration periods are posted both on the SSC website at https://wit.edu/ssc and sent to students via their WIT email. We look forward to partnering with you throughout your pursuit of your degree program! Graduation Students who believe they are ready to receive their degree from Wentworth and have a grade point average of 2.0 or higher are required to complete a formal graduation application. Graduation applications will not be accepted from students with a grade point average below 2.0. Graduation applications are submitted via LeopardWeb and are required to ensure the Registrar has received all student credentials. Degrees conferred will reflect the graduation date that follows the student s successful completion of all degree requirements; degrees are conferred in April, August and December. For general information related to graduation requirements, please visit our website at www.wit.edu/graduation. Commencement The Summer 2017 Commencement will be held on Sunday, August 20, at 2:00 p.m. at the Blue Hills Bank Pavilion. Due to limited space, only ticketed guests will be admitted. Each graduate will receive six guest tickets. For all information related to the commencement ceremony on August 20, 2017, please visit our website at: www.wit.edu/commencement.
Important SSC Dates! June 28th Midterm Grades Posted July 1st July 5th July 4th Recess (No Classes) July 7th Verification/Financial Aid Requirements Due July 25th Last Day to Withdraw from Class with W Grade August 3rd Fall Bill and Health Insurance Waiver Due August 8th Last day of Summer Classes August 20th Summer Commencement August 23rd Final Grades Posted International Student Services International Student Services (ISS) is responsible for assisting the over 300 non-immigrant students at Wentworth Institute of Technology who have joined our community from over 50 countries around the world. Services offered by ISS include providing information to students regarding maintenance of legal status in the U.S., work authorizations, travel to the U.S., and other related topics. Staff members also provide programming relevant to the international student experience and act as resources and liaisons for international students adjusting to a new culture and academic system. Key programs include International Student Orientation, International Student Career Workshop, and Around the World, an inter-cultural celebration for international students and the entire Wentworth community. ISS Walk-In Hours Monday 2:00pm to 3:00pm Wednesday 1:30pm to 3:00pm Friday 10:30am - 12:00 pm Jeanmarie Ambrose, Director Phone: (617)989-4391 Email: ambrosej@wit.edu Dena Reuben, Assistant Director Phone: (617)989-4680 Email: reubend@wit.edu Important Reminder for International Students! All F-1 visa Students are required to update International Student Services with any changes to Their U.S. Address or their home country address within 10 days of the change. To fulfill this requirement, log into Lconnect account and change your address online. Please inform International Student Services of the address change with an email to ISS@wit.edu from you Wentworth email or visit the Student Service Center and complete the International Student Information Update form.
Office of Financial Aid Verification If you have been selected for FAFSA verification, there is corresponding documentation you must submit to the school before your financial aid award can be finalized. Each year, the Department of Education randomly selects a population to undergo the verification process. Students selected for verification are placed in different groups, referred to as V1-V4 groups, depending on what information the government would like to confirm. Each group has specific documentation requirements. If you are selected for verification, these additional documentation requirements will be listed on your LConnect account under unsatisfied requirements. We encourage students to check their LConnect accounts weekly to see if any new changes or requirements have been added. Any Wentworth forms required for verification can be accessed at https://wit.edu/student-life/ssc/student-service-center-forms. Please note that you cannot receive financial aid until the verification process is complete. It is your responsibility to make sure that your verification documentation has been submitted accurately and on time. Failure to do so may result in your aid being canceled. If you have any questions about verification, just ask! We are here to help. FATV We are pleased to offer Financial Aid TV (FATV) GetAnswers! This exciting video service is available for the entire Wentworth Community. GetAnswers is an online library of short video clips that communicate complex financial aid information on demand in an easy to understand style. This great resource will cover a wide array of topics including: financial aid, financial literacy, loans, grants, veterans and more! The site also offers video playlist available in Spanish. The site can be accessed anytime at http://wit.financialaidtv.com/. We are very excited about this service for students, parents, and the Wentworth Community at large. SALT Wentworth has teamed up with SALT, a membership program that helps you manage your student loans and money. SALT offers tools and guidance to help students, alumni, and families make proactive, informed decisions about planning for- and paying for- their higher education, including advice on managing and repaying loans. SALT is free to WIT students and alumni, and offers: Well-timed financial education resources, advice, and self-paced courses designed from the students point of view. Salt Courses a structured program that offers detailed reporting at the student level. Live one-on-one counseling by trained advisors who answer student s questions objectively and advocate on their behalf. Easy-to-use tools that help students and alumni monitor and manage their loans and payments online. Help finding jobs, internships, and scholarships. Visit saltmoney.org to learn more!
Entrance Counseling/Master Promissory Note (MPN) If you are accepting Direct Subsidized and/or Unsubsidized Stafford Loans you are required to complete Entrance Counseling and sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN) at www.studentloans.gov. Please note that by completing these items, you are accepting the terms and conditions associated with borrowing the Stafford Loans. Should you need assistance on completing these items, we highly recommend checking out the informational videos from FATV at http://wit.financialaidtv.com/ Current Interest Rates on Federal Loans Please note that there is an origination fee associated with Direct Loans. For Undergraduate Direct Loans the origination fee is 1.066% and 4.264% for Graduate and Parent Direct Loans. Direct Subsidized Loans (Undergraduate) Direct Unsubsidized Loans (Undergraduate) Direct Unsubsidized Loans (Graduate) Direct PLUS Loans (Graduate and Parents) 4.45% 4.45% 6.00% 7.00% Student Service Center Hours Monday - Friday 8:15am - 4:45pm
Student Financial Services 2017-2018 TUITION, ROOM AND BOARD COSTS Tuition... $32,954.00 Average Room & Board... $16,924.00 Health Insurance Fee... $2,023.00 E-Bill *Detailed rates for 2017-2018 can be found on the Student Service Center website. The fall 2017 E-Bill is now available to view on LConnect and is due August 3rd, 2017. To view the E-Bill and make payments online, please follow the steps below: Log into LConnect at http://lconnect.wit.edu Click on Leopardweb Click on the Student tab Click on E-Bill Select Fall 2017 from the drop-down box and click Go to E-Bill TUITION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS MONTHLY PAYMENT PLAN Wentworth partners with Tuition Management Systems (TMS) to offer an interest-free monthly payment plan. The 10 month payment plan starts in June, and the 9 month plan starts in July. For more information please visit the Student Service Center website. To enroll in a TMS plan, please go to https://wit.afford.com/ HEALTH INSURANCE All students registered for 9 or more credits are charged for health insurance as required by MA state law. Students covered under a family s plan must provide proof of health insurance coverage by completing the online waiver form by August 3, 2017. To access the online waiver form, please follow the steps to access the E-Bill above. Then, click on the Enroll in or waive health insurance button. Enrollment into the Wentworth health insurance plan is not yet available. We are awaiting finalization of plan details from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Once the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has approved the plan, the link to the enrollment form will be found on: https://studentcenter.uhcsr.com/wentworth. Details about the school s coverage can be found on the United Healthcare Student Resources website at https://www.uhcsr.com/.
FERPA AND PARENT PROXY FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records and applies to all schools that receive funds from the federal government. If a parent or anyone other than the student would like to discuss the bill, financial aid or any part of the student record, the student needs to complete an online FERPA release form authorizing what Wentworth can discuss, and with whom we can discuss it. Students can complete an online FERPA form by following these steps: 1. Log into LConnect at: https://lconnect.wit.edu/ 2. Click on the Leopardweb link 3. Click on the Student tab 4. Click on FERPA Authorization 5. Enter the name and contact information into the FERPA release form. Include a passphrase 6. Select the topics we can discuss with this person 7. Click Save and Update The student also has the option to set up view-only proxy access. Proxy access allows parents (or anyone the student chooses) access to view their bill, financial aid award, and other student records. Once the FERPA form is completed, students can grant proxy access by selecting which items they wish parents to view and/or discuss with Wentworth staff. The access can be updated or revoked at any time by the student. More information on parent proxy can be found on the Student Service Center website.
Contact Us Wentworth Institute of Technology Student Service Center 550 Huntington Avenue Boston, MA 02115 (617) 989-4020 ssc@wit.edu Visit us on the web at www.wit.edu/ssc witfinaid.wordpress.com WIT_SSC @WIT_SSC