Financial aid professionals have a goal of helping students get funding for college. But right along with that goal is the objective of doing so in compliance with laws and regulations.
Ensuring compliance with federal financial aid regulations is essential and a Policies and Procedures (P&P) manual is one of the key documents for doing so.
Whether faced with a manual that is outdated or non-existent or it is time for an annual review, the process doesn’t have to feel overwhelming.
Some tips that can help streamline efforts when creating or updating a P&P include:
- Review your P&P on an annual basis, if not more often.
- Set aside a couple of days for the entire office to review the manual. There isn’t a lot of down time in a financial aid office, so taking a couple of days when students aren’t around, such as spring break, might be the ideal time. Going to an off-site location will make it less distracting.
- Create a “Table of Contents” and share with staff to obtain ideas of additional topics that should be addressed.
- Create a standard format or template so that things are uniform.
- Be concise in writing policies and procedures.
- Maintain a revision history throughout the document. This may prove to be useful if auditors or program reviewers look at your P&P or question when something changed.
- Maintain a running list of items that need to be added and/or updated. This will be especially helpful with the upcoming changes from the Budget Reconciliation Bill.
- Use titles, not names, throughout the document. That way you don’t have to make updates if a staff member leaves.
- Use office names, rather than buildings, just in case an office on campus would relocate.
- Include screenshots from your Student Information System, especially for new staff or student workers, but make sure they are up to date and don’t include any student data.
