Financial Aid Portal - Understanding Disbursement Information

What does "FINANCIAL AID APPLIED TO CHARGES" mean and how do I know what quarter has been applied?

• You will see this when financial aid has been applied automatically (by our system) towards your tuition and relevant fees. (Note: in cases where your financial aid was manually applied, you may not see this posting).
  
  
• For each quarter that financial aid is automatically applied, you will see one transaction posted – the most recent one for that quarter.
  
  
• The posted date will assist you in knowing which quarter and the amount applied.
  
  
• If you have multiple transactions in a quarter, refunds, or payments made for prior quarters, only the dates and amounts for the most recent transaction will show in the portal. 
   
• If you have questions or do not understand which payments apply to which quarter, contact the financial aid office for assistance.

What does "CHECK CALC PROCESS" mean and how do I know what quarter it applies to?

• You will see this once the check process has begun for any given quarter. It does NOT necessarily mean your check has been printed or mailed, only that the calculating process began on that date. There can be several days between the start of the process and the time the check is printed and mailed.  Please note that the financial aid system does not show the printing or mailing status and dates, as these processes are not done in our office.
  
  
• For each quarter's check calculation process, you will see one posting – the most recent one for that quarter (see sample above).
  • The posted date will assist you in knowing which quarter the disbursement is for, and the amount of the check.
  • Because you will see only one posting per quarter, if you have multiple transactions in a quarter, refunds, or payments made for prior quarters, the dates and amounts may not reflect the actual total amount disbursed.
  • If you have questions regarding your check, contact the financial aid office for assistance.

• Checks Calculated PRIOR to the quarter start: We usually start the check calculation process several days in advance of the quarter, and prior to the time that checks are printed and mailed.  If your check calculation process shows a date prior to the quarter start, you will usually receive your check during the first week of the quarter, unless there is a hold on your account for some reason. If this is the case, contact the financial aid office at 509-682-6810.

• Checks Calculated AFTER the quarter starts: The check calculation process takes between 1-7 days from the start of the process to the mailing of your check.  If more than 15 days have passed since the "Check Calc" date showing in the FAM Student Portal, and you have not yet received your check, first make sure your address in admissions is accurate and then contact the financial aid office to find out if there is a hold on your check for any reason.

• Check Calculation process Blocked/On Hold: The code that shows the check calculation process has begun is the same code used to halt the process. If the process is Blocked or on Hold for some reason, you should see a note to that affect in the comment field. There can be many reasons for a hold, most are nothing to be alarmed about, just a reminder to our office staff that there are tasks that the financial aid office needs to do prior to the disbursement process. Some reasons for this include, but are not limited to:
  
  
  • The types of awards you have may require manual intervention by staff to disburse one type of funding before another.
  
  
  • If you have restricted awards or a restricted Education Plan, financial aid staff may need to check first to make sure you are in the correct classes. We usually do this check just prior to the time we begin disbursing aid at the beginning of the quarter.
  
  
  • We may need to have current quarter funds manually applied to a prior debt before we can allow the automated system to process the rest of your aid.
  
  
  • We may have placed your awards on hold while waiting for documents, or an action on your part or ours.
  
  If you see a note that your check calculation process is blocked or your check is on hold, and the note does not make sense to you, or you believe your check process should have already begun for the quarter in question, you can contact the financial aid office for more detailed information.

Common reasons for your disbursement being held up, that will not show in the FAM Portal:

• Enrollment level mismatch: Your enrollment level must match your financial aid award level for disbursements to occur. We award your financial at a full time level (12 or more credits). If you decide to take less than 12 credits, you just need to let us know prior to the time we begin disbursements, or as soon as you know how many credits you will be in. If you don't inform us, your aid will not be disbursed until we run reports to adjust them. Those reports run after the 10th day. Enrollment adjustment forms can be found on our forms webpage.
  
  
• Outstanding prior balances:  Parking tickets, library fines, tuition owed from a previous quarter, and other outstanding payments owed to the college will block financial aid from disbursing, but you will not see that in the FAM portal. 

If it is past the date the financial aid office has begun disbursement for the quarter you are enrolled for, you have a current year award letter, and are unsure of the reason your disbursement has not been processed, contact the financial aid office for assistance. 

Wenatchi Hall, 1st Floor         financialaid@wvc.edu              509-682-6810