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Financial Aid
Use Financial Aid for AmeriSpan Programs
The Higher Education Act permits schools to release
Federal Financial Aid for payment towards a study abroad program if
the student is receiving credit by their home university. This aid is not
predicated on the foreign school or domestic
study abroad organization (i.e. AmeriSpan) being a Title IV institution.
That means you can apply your Pell
Grants, as well as, Stafford, PLUS &
Perkins loans to study abroad programs
offered by AmeriSpan. However,
state aid or aid granted by your
institution is determined by each
university.
Understanding Financial Aid
AmeriSpan
is a study abroad organization which
represents many foreign schools and
foreign universities. It is
important to understand that neither
AmeriSpan nor the foreign institution
(also known as the host school)
processes financial aid. The home
school (school in the USA where you
attend) processes all financial aid.
Financial Aid Office Issues
If
your financial aid office is unsure how
this process works, refer them to the
chapter in IFAP's Student Financial Aid
Handbook on Written Agreements (Chapter
7 in the 2003-2004 edition).
Click
here to download a PDF version of this
chapter
Generally,
your financial aid office will send us a
written agreement, sometimes called a
consortium agreement, which we will
complete and return. This
agreement specifies the enrollment
period, credits to be received and
estimated cost (including round-trip transportation,
tuition, books, housing and other living
costs).
What AmeriSpan Programs Are EligibleAny
AmeriSpan program where your home school
will be issuing credit for your abroad
experience is eligible for financial
aid. Each home school requires
something different from a foreign
transcript to submitting a term
paper. However, sometimes your
study abroad office is reluctant to
approve an AmeriSpan program for credit
for a variety of reasons. In these
cases, we recommend an AmeriSpan program
where a US transcript is issued.
Usually, the credit transfer approval
process for US transcripts will be
handled through your registrar's
office.
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