Financial Aid Counselor

SUMMARY OF POSITION: The Financial Aid Counselor will, through a courteous, helpful, unbiased, and professional manner, serve students, staff, parents and community members through Student Financial Aid, working on a broad array of student service issues, including: student accounts, financial aid, loans, SC state aid programs, payment plans, orientation, admissions and registration. The Financial Aid Counselor works with prospects, students and families to navigate the financial aid process each year from application to awarding to counseling and on financial literacy. The Financial Aid Counselor works directly with the Associate Director of Student Financial Services to provide support with office operations, policy and procedure development, preparing reports, attending meetings, seminars, conferences, and other assigned by the Associate Director of Student Financial Services or the Associate Vice President for Student Financial Services.

The Financial Aid Counselor will perform such duties such as verification of Title IV recipient eligibility, Federal, Federal Direct Loan Administration, , SC Commission for the Blind program administration, and SC Vocational Rehabilitation program administration. The Financial Aid Counselor must remain up-to-date on federal and state regulations to ensure compliance and must be able to communicate well with students, faculty and staff, and outside agencies. The Financial Aid Counselor must be able to organize, control and follow through on major projects. Excellent computer skills are required and the candidate must perform complex computer operations and write reports. Oral and written communication skills are necessary

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/ NON-ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Coordination of the University's Student Employment Program (10%) - Essential

• Coordinate all aspects of the student employment program including federal and casual work study.
• Monitor departmental budgets and expenditures to ensure compliance with budgetary limits.
• Ensure campus supervisors submit the required mid-term and final student performance evaluations.
• Reconcile monthly wages with the payroll department and enter those wages into the PowerFAIDS system.
• Ensure compliance with annual wage reporting of FWS student employees to the Common Origination & Disbursement (COD) system with the US Department of Education.
• Perform final reconciliation in preparation to submit data to the Associate VP for preparation of the FISAP by August 15th of each year.

Supervision of Student Financial Services Student Employees (5%) - Essential

• Supervise office student workers. This includes organizing student employees work schedules to provide optimal support to the office, assigning work and projects, monitoring performance.

Coordinate Vocational Rehabilitation and SC School for the Deaf and Blind Programs (5%) - Marginal

• Coordinates all aspects of the Vocational Rehabilitation and SC School for the Deaf and Blind programs assisting students with all aspects of eligibility, verification, documentation and reconciliation.

Coordinate Alternative Loan Programs (10%) - Essential

• Performs all duties related to the administration of all alternative (private loan programs) to include:

• Student eligibility review
• Common Line origination file transmission via the ELM platform
• Transmit and receive files using the ELM platform
• Monthly reconciliation of the program with a report to the Associate Vice President for Student Financial Services.

Perform all duties related to the SC State Financial Aid Programs (25%) - Essential

• Must remain informed and knowledgeable concerning all SC State Financial Aid Programs to include:
  • South Caroline Tuition Grant
  • SC Life and Enhancement
  • SC Palmetto Fellows and Enhancement
  • SC Hope
  • SC Foster Care Waiver
• Evaluate student application, admission, and other financial aid criteria to determine eligibility.
• Review continuing student eligibility by June 15th of each year.
• Prepare invoices to the SC Commission on Higher Education for payment of scholarship to the University.
• Prepare all statistical reports, enrollment rosters, check requests, and returns in accordance with the policies and procedures manual of the SC Tuition Grants Commission.
• Reconcile all state scholarship programs with the business office.

Performs all duties related to the administration of the Federal Direct Loan Program (23%) - Essential - to include:

• Student eligibility review
• Direct loan record origination
• Federal Direct PLUS (parent loan processing)
• Direct Loan disbursement processing
• Transmit and receive files from the Department of Education via EdConnect
• Monthly reconciliation of the program with a report to the Associate Vice President for Student Financial Services.

Perform Financial Aid Verification (10%) - Essential

• Identify files ready for verification, packaging and/or updates. Review tax forms, Dependent Verification Worksheets, and all other verification documents to ensure federal and state compliance.
• Perform verification of student financial aid files in accordance with all federal rules, regulations, policies and procedures.
• Resolve all conflicting information.
• Transmit correction files via EdConnect as necessary.

Backup NelNet Payment Plan Processing (10%) - Essential

• Assists the Student Accounts Manager will all aspects of NelNet Payment Plans.
• Maintain and Management NelNet System payment plan Ensure timely notification to students/parents when plans are delinquent, terminated, and/or insufficient to satisfy charges.
• Update student subsidiaries as required
• Provide weekly remittance reports to the Student Accounts Manager for disbursement.

Special projects and support work as assigned by the Associate Vice President for Student Financial Services and/or Associate Director of Student Financial Services (2%) - Marginal

• Adheres to Converse College, Conference, and NCAA policies and procedures
• Completes other duties as assigned.

JOB QUALIFICATIONS:

Minimum qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree required

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree preferred.
• Knowledge of Title IV financial aid regulations, rules, policies, and procedures.
• Knowledge of SC state financial aid regulations, rules, policies, and procedures.
• Prior experience in higher education and/or financial aid administration

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

• Good written and oral communication skills
• Must be accurate and detail oriented
• Ability to handle multiple tasks on a daily basis
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office products and core operating systems
• Ability to work with minimal supervision
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, and other Microsoft office
• Organizational skills and ability to prioritize tasks
• Ability to work independently or as a part of a team
• Well-grounded philosophy of honesty, integrity, and respect
• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with various constituents including both internal to the organization and with the public
• Ability to work with and engage a diverse group of people
• Ability to work independently yet value and support a team-based environment
• Demonstrated professionalism and positive attitude
• Ability to exercise good judgment and handle confidential information in a discrete and professional manner.

GUIDELINES AND SUPERVISION: The Student Financial Services Clerk/Cash receipts works under the direct supervision of the Associate Director of Student Financial Services. The Clerk works closely with the financial services times but at times will work independently as this position supports students and student questions. The collaborative setting encourages suggestions and input in processes.

Work Schedule:

• Monday through Thursday-8:00m.-5:00p.m.

• Friday- 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

• Extended hours as deemed appropriate by the Associate VP for Student Financial Services during peak period of operation such as billing due dates, registration, residence check-in, and others.

Licenses: Valid SC Driver's License

DISCLAIMER: The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and essential duties and responsibilities of work performed by employees within this classification. It may not contain a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees to do this job.

We believe that a diverse faculty and staff are essential to achieving academic excellence; thus, we strongly encourage applications from candidates from all racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds.