Professional Judgement is a process a student can apply for when they feel the information reported on the FAFSA no longer accurately reflects their financial situation. If your financial circumstances have changed, there are situations where the Office of Student Financial Services can review and update your FAFSA to better reflect a student’s situation. These changes may, or may not, have an impact on your financial aid.
Choose one of the SAI options below for next steps. Please note that your Student Aid Index (SAI) is determined by your FAFSA and can be found on the top right side of your FAFSA Submission Summary which is emailed to you from Federal Student Aid after you submit your FAFSA.
My SAI is -1500
If your SAI is “-1500” you have already been offered the maximum amount of Federal and State aid.
My SAI is greater than -1500
If your SAI is greater than “-1500” please read the information below about the conditions which do/do not qualify for a Professional Judgement. The process is a way for us to ensure you are receiving the maximum amount of aid possible based on changes in your financial circumstances. If your SAI is greater than -1500 and you have experienced these circumstances, please completely fill out the Pre-Screen for Professional Judgement form below.
The following conditions may be considered but are not limited to:
- Loss or reduction of income for greater than 6 months
- Death of spouse or parent that was reported on the FAFSA
- Excess Medical or dental expenses paid out of pocket
- Parent reported on the FAFSA has retired
- Marital Status Change for parent or student
The following conditions may not be considered:
- Information on the FAFSA resulted in a -1500 Student Aid Index (SAI)
- Loss of overtime or bonus
- Consumer debt (credit cards, car payments, loans, etc.)
- Payments on back taxes owed to the IRS
- Lottery or gambling winnings or losses
- One-time income used for non-life essential items (e.g. family vacation)
- When an adjustment to the FAFSA will not produce a low enough SAI to become eligible for additional subsidized loans, the federal Pell grant, or Indiana state aid.
- Example: SAI is 50,000 and one of the parents lost their income for 9 months but the financial impact reduced their SAI to 30,000. This would not gain a student any additional financial aid.
The Professional Judgement Process
If the student qualifies to begin the Special Circumstance Review process they will be contacted and be asked to submit the following:
- Special Circumstance petition
- All required supporting documentation of the special circumstance
Possible Outcomes from a Professional Judgement
- No change: The change in circumstances did not impact your Student Aid Index (SAI)
- Reduced SAI but no change in financial aid offer: The change in circumstances reduced the SAI but did not change it enough to impact your financial aid eligibility.
- Reduced SAI and adjustments made to federal loans: The change in circumstances reduced the SAI and qualified you for some subsidized loan funding to replace the equivalent unsubsidized loan funding.
- Reduced SAI and adjustments made to federal and/or Indiana state grants: The change in circumstances reduced the SAI and qualified you for additional federal and/or Indiana state grants.
- Reduced SAI and adjustments made to federal and/or state grants and federal loans: The change in circumstances reduced the SAI and qualified you for additional federal and/or Indiana state grants as well as qualifying for some subsidized loan funding to replace the equivalent unsubsidized loan funding.
Contact Us
For additional questions regarding the Professional Judgement for Special Circumstance process please contact our office.
Office of Student Financial Services
Office Hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. EST
Phone: 1-800-213-2178
Email: financialservices@hanover.edu
Pre-Screen for Professional Judgements
The Professional Judgement recalculation process allows the Office of Student Financial Services to look at additional financial information not captured on the FAFSA to better assess a family’s ability to pay for the upcoming year. This form will assist us in determining if a student and family could possibly benefit from the Professional Judgment process. Once the pre-screen form is received, someone from our office will contact you via email to request documentation if a recalculation could increase financial aid eligibility.
