The CSS Profile application is used to determine eligibility for Haverford Grant funds. The FAFSA is used to apply for all Federal grant and loan programs, including the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG), the Federal Direct Stafford Loan Program, and the Federal Parent PLUS Loan program. The FAFSA is also used to determine eligibly for work-study funds, and most states use it as the primary application for state grant consideration.

Students should only complete the CSS Profile if they are seeking Haverford College aid.

Make sure that social security numbers are correct and consistent on both the FAFSA and the CSS Profile.

Both forms will require the student’s and parents’ income information from Calendar Year 2020. Asset information requested on the forms should be reported as of the date the applications are completed and signed.

If the student’s parents are divorced or separated, the custodial parent shares the CSS Profile with the student, and the noncustodial parent files a separate Profile. The College Board provides instructions for separated parents.

Financial Aid awards are contingent upon the accuracy of information provided in the application forms. Students and parents are obliged to report to the Financial Aid Office any changes in personal or family finances (such as changes in income, assets, siblings in college) and any subsequent award of aid from sources other than the College.

Applying for financial aid is a joint venture of both applicants and their parents; please be sure that all parties have read and understood the instructions.

Special Circumstances

If you believe that the questions on the CSS Profile do not adequately reflect your financial circumstances, you can inform the Financial Aid Office by describing your situation in the Comments section of the Profile.

All emails are reviewed by staff, but not all special circumstances can be accepted. Students must file each year for financial aid, and annual variances in income are accounted for by that practice. In general the FA Office is looking for changes in financial circumstances that were not expected by the family, such as an unplanned loss of employment.

Submitting Supporting Documents to the College Board IDOC service

After the CSS Profile is submitted, students will receive instructions from the College Board on how to submit tax returns and other supplementary forms using the Institutional Documentation Service (IDOC). No tax forms should be sent directly to Haverford.

The College Board will collect all forms at no cost to students’ families, and forward them via a secure server to Haverford College and any other college the student is applying to which has also contracted for the IDOC service. The College Board will provide instructions for students to use to send the documents to IDOC. If students have questions about the IDOC service, including the status of their account, they should call IDOC at (866) 897-9881.

What to Send to the College Board's IDOC Service

1. A signed copy of all pages and schedules of your parents' and your 2020 U.S., Puerto Rico, or foreign tax return*
2. A signed copy of all pages and schedules of your parents’ and your 2020 U.S., Puerto Rico, or foreign tax return.
3. All parent and student W-2 forms for 2020.
4. If you or your parents did not file a Federal tax return for 2020, this must be indicated by completing a Non-Tax Filer Statement.
5. If you or your parents paid income tax to Puerto Rico or any other U.S. territory or paid a comparable tax to any foreign central government, these taxes should be treated as U.S. income taxes paid when filing the CSS Profile and FAFSA. You or your parents should use the information on the tax return of the territory or foreign government as though a U.S. Federal tax return had been filed. This means that the box(es) on the CSS Profile and FAFSA which would indicate that an IRS 1040 has been or will be filed should be checked.
6. Non-Custodial Parent Profile and associated 2020 federal tax documents, if appropriate.

Notes:

• You do not need to send state tax returns.
• Do not send your tax returns to Haverford College.  All forms go to IDOC.
• Make sure the tax returns are complete (all pages, schedules and W-2’s), signed and dated.
• Always keep copies of important documents including tax returns.

For help from the College Board for the Profile Application, contact the Financial Aid Office or go to College Board Customer Support.

Rights & Responsibilities of Students Receiving Financial Aid

• You have the right to expect equitable treatment in the consideration of your aid application within the College's existing policies.
• You have the right to access financial aid policies.
• You have the right to know what aid is available, what the deadlines are, the costs, the criteria for selecting recipients, the breakdown of how we calculate how you will be able to meet the costs, and what the requirements are for keeping your aid.
• You must complete all forms correctly and by existing deadlines, read and understand all forms or statements you receive, accept responsibility for all agreements you sign, notify us in writing if any circumstances upon which your aid was based (including addresses) should change, and keep copies of all documents you submit or receive.

Lending Code of Conduct (PDF)