Financial Aid

AACRAO Consulting offers a full range of financial aid services, delivered by experts with demonstrated knowledge of leading practices in financial aid packaging and funding strategies, business practices, and compliance. Best of all, our consultants bring a strategic enrollment perspective, ensuring integration of financial aid outcomes with the institution’s overall enrollment plan.

Specific consulting services include:

Strategic Aid Allocation Review
We will review the timing, communications, and amounts of your financial aid awards to ensure that you are achieving the maximum influence on your students’ enrollment decisions. We will recommend improvements that will enable you to improve your recruitment and retention rates. The most impressive results have been achieved when timing adjustments, improved communications, strategic reallocation of funds, and modest increases in funding are combined.

Business Practice Review
Many institutions have increased both operational efficiency and enrollment outcomes by improving business practices in their Financial Aid Office, enabling them to provide the just-in-time services today’s students expect. Drawing from AACRAO’s century-long status as the leading provider of enrollment services, our consultants provide expert analysis of existing business practices and will make recommendations for achieving action-oriented, leading-edge improvements.

Compliance
We offer an in-depth review of the financial aid management, office procedures, staffing and structure, technology systems, process flow and reports, forms and publications. We will determine compliance with federal regulations and identify any areas of non-compliance such as file verification, cash management, award policies and consumer information requirements. A detailed report of recommendations is provided to promote effective change and corrective actions in order to minimize potential financial liabilities, establish improved inter-office coordination for managing student aid, and enhance student service.

Ethics Review
The newest area in the ever-changing rules governing student financial aid deals with institutions’ lender relationships. We will assist schools to ensure adherence to the latest regulations, to avoid conflicts of interest and position the institution for compliance with the highest ethical standards.