Financial Aid

Welcome to the Talladega College Office of Financial Aid Website!

We recognize that the increasing cost of college education can sometimes be overwhelming. Our office wants to assist you in reviewing options to assist you in financing your postsecondary education at Talladega College. Our hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 8 am – 5 pm CST., with the exception of federal, state, or institutional holidays.

What is Financial Aid?

Financial Aid is basically defined as a combination of financial assistance, such as grants, scholarships, loans, work-study, etc., made available to eligible students to help cover the cost of tuition, fees, room, and board during an academic year/period. The funds are used to supplement other funding resources available to the student. Financial aid may or may not cover all educational expenses. Funding resources and availability vary for each student since each student and their families have different financial profiles.

What is the FAFSA and Why Should I Fill It Out?

You need to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form to apply for federal student aid such as federal grants, work-study funds, and loans. Completing and submitting the FAFSA form is free and easier than ever, and it gives you access to the largest source of aid to help you pay for college or career school. The FAFSA application can be completed by visiting www.studentaid.gov. Please indicate our school code, 001046, on your FAFSA application. To be considered for Federal Financial Aid at Talladega College, a student must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This application is needed to review a student’s eligibility for Pell Grant, FSEOG, Stafford Loans, Parent Loans, State Scholarships, and Institutional Scholarships. Detailed information about the Federal Student Aid programs may be found in the Student Guide to Federal Student Aid, an annual publication by the U.S. Department of Education https://studentaid.ed.gov/students/publications/student_guide/

What Happens After I Submit My FAFSA?

Once your FAFSA form is processed, you’ll receive a copy of your Student Aid Report (SAR), which summarizes the information you provided on your FAFSA form. Review your SAR and make sure all of the information is complete and accurate. Talladega College will receive your FAFSA application within 3-5 business days after you have submitted it. The Office of Financial Aid will review your FAFSA to check for accuracy and confirm that no additional documentation is needed. If additional documentation is needed, the Office will email the student to inform them what is needed and how to complete the required information. If no additional documentation is needed, the student’s FAFSA will be reviewed for Financial Aid Packaging.

How Do I Receive Forms Needed to Complete My FAFSA Requirements?

Financial Aid Forms can be located by logging in to your myTalladega (my.talladega.edu) student profile or emailing us at finaid@talladega.edu.

What is a Financial Aid Package and Financial Aid Award Letter?

A financial aid package is the total amount of financial aid (federal and nonfederal) a student is offered by a college or career school. The school’s financial aid staff combines various forms of aid into a “package” to help meet a student’s education costs. The packaged aid offer is then reviewed and presented to the student as a Financial Aid Award Letter. The Financial Aid Award Letter tells the student what financial aid resources can be received at Talladega College.

What is Included in a Typical Financial Aid Award Letter from Talladega College?

A Talladega College financial aid award may include the following:

  • Federal Grants: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), etc.
  • Federal Work-Study: Federal College-Work Study Funding
  • Federal Student Loans: Stafford (Subsidized and Unsubsidized) and PLUS
  • State Grants: Alabama Student Assistance Program (ASAP)
  • State VA Educational Assistance/Tuition Assistance: VA Educational Benefits, Alabama GI Dependent’s Scholarship, Military Tuition Assistance, etc.
  • Institutional Scholarships: Academic, Athletic, Band, Choral, etc.
  • External Scholarships: Lettie Pate Scholarship, Daniel Hand Scholarship, UNCF Scholarship, etc.
 

PLEASE NOTE: Not all students will receive all of the funding resources list. Available funds are awarded based on availability and a review of the financial profile of each student based on the FAFSA application. Funding resources and availability vary for each student since each student and their families have different financial profiles.

What is the Cost of Attendance?

The Cost of Attendance is the total amount that it will cost a student to attend Talladega College during the academic year. PLEASE NOTE: This amount is not what the Business Office will charge to a student. Direct Costs, which are the costs charged by the institution, differ from Indirect Costs, which are costs associated with a student attending college, but are not charged by the institution. The Cost of Attendance varies based on various factors such as the family’s financial profile, housing status, credit hours attending, curriculum/program, etc. The Cost of Attendance (COA) will be detailed on the student’s award letter along with Direct and Indirect costs. Direct Costs (charges from the institution) will be detailed on the student’s bill received from the Business Office.

How Do I Receive My Financial Aid Awards?

After the Office of Financial Aid has confirmed that a student is enrolled, and meets all other eligibility requirements to receive the aid offered on the Financial Aid Award Letter, they began the process of requesting funds on behalf of the student from the Department of Education. Once the Department of Education notifies Talladega College that funding has been released on behalf of a student, The Office of Financial Aid begins processing student financial aid authorizations to the Business Office. Student authorizations are posted throughout each academic semester. Eligible student financial aid authorizations will begin processing approximately 14 days after the 1st day of classes for each academic term. Pell Grants, FSEOG, Alabama Student Grants, and Internal/External Scholarships will be posted first, followed by federal student loans (Subsidized and Unsubsidized Student Loans), then Parent PLUS Loans. Authorizations for financial aid requirements completed or changed after this timeframe will be processed each week throughout the semester.

How Will I Know If I Am Eligible for A Student Refund?

Talladega College delivers your refund with BankMobile Disbursements, a technology solution, powered by BMTX, Inc. Visit this link for more information: bankmobiledisbursements.com/refundchoices/. We encourage students to set up their BankMobile Disbursements profile via the notice that was sent to their student email or by contacting the Business Office (businessoffice@talladega.edu, (256)761-6224). In accordance with federal regulations, Talladega College will disburse any student credit balances posted to the student’s account up to 14 days from when the credit balance was created.

How Does My Parent Receive a Refund from the Parent PLUS Loan?

Once a dependent student’s parent has been approved for a Parent PLUS Loan and completes required Master Promissory Note, the Office of Financial Aid will follow the same aid processing procedures (aid authorizations) to authorize funds to the Business Office for posting to the student’s account. If a credit balance appears from the Parent PLUS funds, refunds to the parent borrower will be processed and mailed via paper check. Parents wishing to change the credit balance election on their Parent PLUS loan will need to complete an updated Parent PLUS application via www.studentaid.gov to change their selection preference. Parent PLUS refunds will only be disbursed based on the credit balance election listed on the application at the time of the disbursement.

 


 

FINANCIAL AID DISCLOSURES

Attendance Policy

Talladega College students are required to attend all of their classes (face-to-face, hybrid, and/or virtual) on time and are responsible for all assigned course content, including assignments. Students are responsible for notifying their professors, the Registrar’s Office, Financial Aid, and/or other required offices should they elect to drop or withdraw from their courses. For more information, please view the following: Talladega College Catalog.

The Office of Financial Aid reserves the right to adjust aid based on set regulatory requirements. Adjustments will be made according to Talladega College’s institutional, federal, and state guidelines.

PLEASE NOTE: If you are not cleared financially, you will not be allowed to move into the residence halls.

Professional Judgement Policy

Students who have completed a FAFSA application and all of its requirements may pursue an adjustment based on special or unusual circumstances. This adjustment or review request is called a Professional Judgement Review. Through a Professional Judgement Review, the Office of Financial Aid will consider a special or unusual circumstance based on the information provided by the student via an interview with the student and the documentation presented by the student. Please contact the Office of Financial Aid at finaid@talladega.edu for more information on this process.

Accepting Your Aid

If you are accepting all your offered Federal Student Loan Options, you will need to complete the required next steps to fully accept your loans.

For Undergraduate Student Loans:

Click here to complete your Master Promissory Note. This is your agreement with the Department of Education to repay your borrowed loans.

Click here to complete your Loan Entrance Counseling. This process explains the types of Federal Loans you are borrowing, Federal loan repayment options, loan default aversion, and managing the amount of loans that you borrow.

For Parents of Undergraduate Dependent Students (Parent PLUS Loans):

If you are the parent of an Undergraduate student and you wish to receive the awarded Parent PLUS loan, you will need to complete a Parent PLUS Application. Your application will need to be approved before the offered funds can be disbursed. Please contact our office after you have completed the application for your next steps. If you elect to decline the Parent PLUS Application, please notify our office. You, or the student, will need to explore other payment options to help cover their remaining educational expenses.

Click here to apply for the Parent Plus Loan (PLUS).

Click here to complete the Parent PLUS MPN (for approved applications only).

For Graduate Student Loans:

If you are a Graduate Student and accept all aid offered, you will need to complete the Grad MPN to receive disbursement of the listed funds. Grad PLUS Applications must receive a credit approval status or approved endorser before they can be distributed. If you do not have enough aid to cover your expenses and you have declined your loans and parent plus loan, please be prepared to make payment to the business office.

Click here to complete the Graduate Student Master Promissory Note. (Select the option that says “I’m a Graduate/Professional Student”)

Click here to apply for a Graduate PLUS loan.

Click here to complete a Graduate PLUS MPN (for approved applications only).

PLEASE NOTE: If you elect to take out Federal Student Loans, the origination fees are charged by the Department of Education may adjust the estimated amounts. Refund amounts and student balances are calculated by the Talladega College Business Office.

Click here to learn more about Federal student loan repayment and managing your student loans.

Federal Work Study and FSEOG

Federal Work Student and FSEOG funds are awarded on a first come first serve basis. If these awards are not accepted within 7 days of being awarded, the award will be reversed and awarded to another eligible student.

Courses/Terms Covered by the Offered Aid

Your award letter identifies which terms are covered (Fall, Spring, Summer, etc.). Standardly, Financial Aid does not cover winter classes. If you are planning on taking winter classes, please notify our office during the Fall 2023 semester so that we can assist you with other aid options.

Scholarships

Any continuation of Academic Institutional Scholarships (Presidential, Provost, Dean’s, and Tornado) requires that you maintain a full-time attendance status (12 credit hours or more) for the Fall & Spring terms of each academic year. If you attend less than full-time status, we reserve the right to remove or adjust your scholarship amount accordingly.

Institutional Scholarships do not cover the additional costs associated with residing in the New Residence Hall. Institutional Scholarships only cover your standard cost of attendance (COA) which is tuition, fees, room & board, if you reside on campus. The total amount of your institutional scholarship and your Pell Grant cannot exceed $22,510.00.

Institutional Scholarships do not cover the winter or summer semester charges.

Institutional Scholarships do not cover course overloads that exceed 18 credit hours. If you enroll in 19 or more credit hours, you are responsible for paying the additional cost with the business office.

If your awarded institutional scholarship(s) are/is over your standard COA, we reserve the right to make the necessary adjustments to reduce your award.

If you lose your academic scholarship, you are not entitled to receive the lesser of any academic scholarship. Institutional academic scholarships are not to be reinstated if the student declines the scholarship for another institutional scholarship offer.

If you are offered an academic scholarship in the fall upon acceptance, this is the scholarship you are eligible for your entire four academic years. It cannot be moved to a higher-level academic scholarship. If you have any questions about your academic scholarships, please view your scholarship offer letter from the admissions office.

Institutional scholarships for Returning students (Academic, band, choir, athletic) will be available after May 15th each academic year provided that a completed FAFSA application is on file, and our office has received notice of a scholarship award.

Institutional scholarships for New students (Academic, band, choir, athletic) will be available after June 15th each academic year, provided that a completed FAFSA application is on file, and our office has received notice of a scholarship award.

All Institutional Scholarships (Academic, Athletic, etc.) are renewed annually. You will need to complete the Scholarship Renewal Form each academic year after your first year of attendance at Talladega College to have your scholarship renewed. You will need to complete all required steps on this form to have your scholarship renewed for the following academic year. Some programs require the approval of the program director before the scholarship can be applied to your account. Students receiving institutional scholarships are still required to meet the set standards for maintaining the scholarship each academic year. All students who receive institutional scholarships are required to complete the Scholarship Renewal Application and UNCF General Scholarship.

The ANGEL Scholarship is NOT RENEWABLE. All students must complete the COMMON SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION to be considered for the scholarship.

External scholarships are operated by the individual agencies offering the scholarships and are not determined by Talladega College.

External scholarships are distributed based on the criteria set by the scholarship donor. According to these criteria, funds may be returned to the donor versus providing a student refund. External scholarships, such as UNCF, do not generate student refunds.

Stipulations from scholarship donors and institutional policies dictate how refunds from scholarships are processed.

Student Refunds & Student Balances

Students cannot generate a refund from ONLY Institutional Scholarships.

Student disbursement and refund procedures will be posted on the Talladega College website. Eligible students will receive a notice via their Bank Mobile account once a student refund is ready for distribution.

If you are eligible for a student refund, you will receive a notice in your student email account requesting you to sign up with BankMobile. Talladega College delivers your refund with BankMobile Disbursements, a technology solution, powered by BMTX, Inc. Visit this link for more information: Bank Mobile Refund Choices.

Click here to view our third-party servicer contract for refund management.

Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (Financial Aid SAP)

Based on federal regulation standards, the Talladega College Office of Financial Aid follows the Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements set by the Department of Education, in conjunction with the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements under the Talladega College’s most recently published standards listed in the College Catalog. For more information about our Financial Aid SAP Policy, please view the following: Talladega College Catalog.

Please email us at finaid@talladega.edu with any questions or concerns.

 


 

OFFICE OF FINANCIAL AID STAFF

Amanda Headen

Amanda Headean, MAEd
Executive Director of Financial Aid, Grants, and Scholarships
256-761-6462 - Fax
aheaden@talladega.edu

Lakecia Taylor

Lakecia Taylor
Associate Director of Financial Aid
256-978-9778
ltaylor@talladega.edu

Ashley Cameron

Ashley Cameron
Assistant Director of Direct Loans
256-761-6237 - Office
256-761-6462 - Fax
acameron@talladega.edu