Starting this week, UB students will be able to have individual questions answered about their financial aid through the use of new personal advisers.
Jennifer Pollard, UB's interim director of financial aid since May 2011, put the new program in place to assist and advise students and parents on any questions they have about financial aid applications and decisions. In a press release to UB, Pollard said that she has spearheaded these same financial aid programs at major universities like Northeastern, Columbia, and Jacksonville University.
Pollard was unavailable for comment at the time of press.
UB spokesman John Della Contrada said that, in general, there will be about 1,000 to 1,200 students per adviser. Students are divided by academic program in some cases, and by alphabet in others. There are about 12 advisers plus support staff.
"Jennifer Pollard successfully implemented similar programs at other universities." Della Contrada said in an email. "She feels strongly that this approach will better meet the needs of students and their families because it will enable advisers to build a stronger relationship with students and more efficiently understand and respond to their needs."
Advisers will be assigned to students and become familiar with their students' cases, instead of the previous rotating first-come first-serve procedure. Students will start receiving introductory emails from their assigned advisers throughout the weeks following Feb. 20, explaining what students can expect from them, and what advisers will expect from students to make sure financial aid advisement will be received and handled in an efficient way. Students will then be able to view their adviser's name and contact information in the HUB Student Center.
Advisers will start reminding students of important deadlines and help them through the financial aid process. There will be a coordinated approach to handling advisement, which will be done in a more organized and personal way. The HUB Student Center enables the university to assign advisers to all aid recipients and process the information.
"The Office of Financial Aid has been developing this new way to advise students over the past several months," Pollard said in a press release. "With a university of UB's size, it is very important that students have a personal point of contact for their financial aid needs and that they feel the service and information they receive is efficient and accurate."
The Spectrum reported on Aug. 31, 2011 that financial aid disbursement, including loans, were being distributed approximately three weeks later than in previous years. The Student Response Center had employed 21 staff members in the financial aid department during the Fall 2011 semester. These staff members handle the roughly 29,000 students at UB.
In the fall semester, because financial aid was disbursed roughly three weeks late, students were scrambling to find money to pay for things like rent, books, tuition, and food. In the same article that ran in The Spectrum on Aug. 31, 2011, the financial aid office suggested that students go out and find part-time jobs to pay for their student expenses while waiting for their financial aid checks.
Pollard said in the press release that the new program is modeled after financial aid services and best practices offered at other major universities. She believes that there will be a period of transtition as students and advisers "learn to interact in this new way," but she thinks students and parents will be happy with this new approach to advisement.
Next semester, the financial aid office hopes to offer additional programs to students – this includes programs on managing finances while in school and best practices for paying off student loans after graduation.
"The Office of Financial Aid is very excited to provide students with better service, better communication and an overall financial aid experience," Pollard said in the press release.
Email: news@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
