College Family Care Center Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

Transcription

1 College Family Care Center Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy College Tuition Solutions, Inc. is referred to as CTS. The party purchasing the services provided by CTS is heretofore referred to as the CLIENT. The purpose of this document is to: 1. Overview the services provided to CLIENT for the service levels of PREMIER PLUS, PREMIER and STANDARD by CTS 2. Disclose the refund policy 3. Describe the privacy policy PREMIER PLUS Service College Admissions Accountability/Careers/Coaching/Selection/Affordability and Forms completion The Premier PLUS level of service that includes: To help the student manage all that is expected of them during the college application process, which has been called by some college freshman, brutal in nature, we employ a unique accountability approach. It is called College Admissions Accountability Coaching. It begins with an interview with the student and parents. We ask the student and parents if they will give their CTS coach permission to hold them accountable to accomplish the steps they need to take and to which they have committed by a specified date and time of their choosing. Students know what they have to do and are often overwhelmed by the thought of the process. Help is limited at the high school. Students can become paralyzed and procrastinate. By allowing them to control and take ownership of their own application process stress of the entire admissions process is minimized. By breaking down each step in the process into simple, single and doable steps, students are empowered and gain confidence. As students narrow their college picks, CTS can look for competing colleges. This is known as 'student leveraging' and may encourage a college to 'sweeten the pot'. An added benefit to the parents, and one that cannot be overstated, is that students are at a time of their lives where they sometimes don t appreciate the parents involvement as much as they accepted it before the onset of adolescence. Parents are kept fully informed of the progress made making unwanted inquires of the student s progress unnecessary. It is not uncommon for students to miss a few self- imposed deadlines and they will set a new date and honor it. Repeated non-compliance of student commitments is rare and as the parent is in the loop ; will be aware of any problems. The Premier PLUS uses Bridges Transitions, a state of the art, on line personality assessment/career/major/college search tool used by many school districts around the country. Parents as well as their student have access and the use of Bridges Transitions for four (4) years. Bridges. Students are required to take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator or MBTI test offered through Bridges. The MBTI is the industry gold standard in personality assessments. Personality type is then matched with specific industries and careers within those industries. Colleges are then selected on the basis of academic, social and financial matches. Students are coached to complete all of the assessment tools. A self-study standardized test preparation program is available through Bridges at no extra cost. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

2 The student will be coached or provided tools for or during these steps: 1. Complete "Do What You Are" on Bridges Transitions 2. Submit a writing sample 3. Sign up for the SAT Question of the Day or ACT Question of the Day 4. Complete the ACT & SAT BrainScan to create personalized online test prep curriculum 5. Begun an independent test prep program or use Bridges testgear 6. Read winning essays via and reply what was learned 7. Activity Resume or Brag Sheet 8. Complete Career Finder + additional assessments if necessary (before college list is created) 9. Discussed college preferences 10. Received their college search results 11. Registered for the spring SAT/ACT 12. Identify and ask teachers for letters of recommendations 13. How to find a summer job 14. Demonstrated interest in colleges: Sign up for Twitter feeds, Facebook, blogs, mailing lists, chats, school newspaper, etc. (more on this later) 15. Taken the SAT/ACT 16. Asked teachers for rewrites of recommendations (if necessary) 17. College web site research 18. JULY & AUGUST are ESSAY MONTHS 19. Register for the Common Application 20. Reviewed essay topics 21. Written essays and fleshed out personal statements 22. Essay edits/reviews 23. Registered for the fall SAT/ACT 24. Registration for November SAT II (if applicable) 25. Fall college visits scheduled 26. Final college list by October 15 th College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

3 27. Common Application Completed (for early decision/early action prior to October 10th) 28. Online and Universal Applications by October 25th for state universities/december 1st for all others 29. Common Application (for regular decision Dec 1st) 30. Interview Prep (if applicable) 31. Instructions or information via covering all aspects of the admissions process This list is subject to change. Financial Aid Administration All parents are strongly encouraged to file for financial aid NO MATTER personal finances. Many schools will not offer merit funds without the forms. And if the parents circumstances should change or they wish to borrow federal funds, the college can respond quickly for a request of aid and the forms must be completed if the parent wants to take advantage of the student and parent loan programs. The Premier Plus service includes all the financial aid services that comprise the STANDARD SERVICE. See the STANDARD SERVICE below for a list of all the items included. Premier Service The Premier level of service College and Career Selection and Forms completion and begins with an interview with the student and parents. We ask the student and parents if they will give their CTS coach permission to hold them accountable to accomplish the steps they need to take and to which they have committed by a specified date and time of their choosing. Students know what they have to do and are often overwhelmed by the thought of the process. Help is limited at the high school. Students can become paralyzed and procrastinate. By allowing them to control and take ownership of their own application process stress of the entire admissions process is minimized. By breaking down each step in the process into simple, single and doable steps, students are empowered and gain confidence. As students narrow their college picks, CTS can look for competing colleges. This is known as 'student leveraging' and may encourage a college to 'sweeten the pot'. An added benefit to the parents, and one that cannot be overstated, is that students are at a time of their lives where they sometimes don t appreciate the parents involvement as much as they accepted it before the onset of adolescence. Parents are kept fully informed of the progress made making unwanted inquires of the student s progress unnecessary. It is not uncommon for students to miss a few self- imposed deadlines and they will set a new date and honor it. Repeated non-compliance of student commitments is rare and as the parent is in the loop ; will be aware of any problems. The Premier uses Bridges Transitions, a state of the art, on line personality assessment/career/major/college search tool used by many school districts around the country. Parents as well as their student have access and the use of Bridges Transitions for four (4) years. Bridges. Students are required to take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator or MBTI test offered through Bridges. The MBTI is the industry gold standard in personality assessments. Personality type is then College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

4 matched with specific industries and careers within those industries. Colleges are then selected on the basis of academic, social and financial matches. Students are coached to complete all of the assessment tools. A self-study standardized test preparation program is available through Bridges at no extra cost. The student will be coached or provided tools for or during these steps: 1. Complete "Do What You Are" on Bridges Transitions 2. Submit a writing sample 3. Sign up for the SAT Question of the Day or ACT Question of the Day 4. Complete the ACT & SAT BrainScan to create personalized online test prep curriculum 5. Begun an independent test prep program or use Bridges testgear 6. Read winning essays via and reply what was learned 7. Complete Career Finder + additional assessments if necessary (before college list is created) 8. Discussed college preferences 9. Received college search results 10. Demonstrated interest in colleges: Sign up for Twitter feeds, Facebook, blogs, mailing lists, chats, school newspaper, etc. (more on this later) 11. College web site research 12. Instructions or information via covering all aspects of the admissions process This list is subject to change. Financial Aid Administration All parents are strongly encouraged to file for financial aid NO MATTER personal finances. Many schools will not offer merit funds without the forms. And if the parents circumstances should change or they wish to borrow federal funds, the college can respond quickly for a request of aid and the forms must be completed if the parent wants to take advantage of the student and parent loan programs. The Premier Plus service includes all the financial aid services that comprise the STANDARD SERVICE. See the STANDARD SERVICE below for a list of all the items included. Standard Service Upon receipt of student and parent(s) social security numbers and dates of birth, Personal Identification Numbers or PINs will be obtained from the Department of Education. CTS will take every measure to resolve any PIN issues arising from the application. CTS will review all CLIENT data and obtain electronic or other agreed method of approval before filing of the FAFSA and CSS/Financial Aid Profile. For example, if interest or dividends appear on the parents income tax return and there is no asset to support it, CTS will contact the CLIENT regarding the liquidation or repositioning of assets or if an error was made. Changes to a College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

5 CLIENTS financial situation after the CLIENT data has already been approved, sent and received by CTS, CLIENT must notify CTS via the CTS web site, by fax, calling and speaking directly with CTS or notifying CTS via that a change has taken place. As soon as CTS is notified by the CLIENT S CTS web account that a college/university requires the CSS/Financial Aid Profile, the student will be asked for their user name and password they created for the College Board s SAT and post them on the College Information page of their CTS web account. If the student has not registered with the College Board, CTS will create a user name and password that will be posted on their CTS web account, and register the student for the CSS/Financial Aid Profile. At that time, the CLIENT will be contacted regarding any supplemental questions and/or specific forms, i.e. Non Custodial Parent Statement, Business/Farm Supplement, etc. Colleges/universities that require the CSS/Financial Aid Profile that are added to the CTS web account after the filing of the CSS/Financial Aid Profile, will automatically be submitted to the College Board by CTS. The CLIENT S credit card information will be used to pay for charges assessed by the College Board which are currently $16.00 to register and 9.00 per college, minimum charge of $ A receipt will be electronically provided to the CLIENT. Although supplemental forms are listed and available on the CTS web site for most institutions that require them; not all forms are available at the time CTS periodically posts them nor or all institutional forms listed. Not all supplemental forms are required to initially file for financial aid. Often, the college will ask that other forms be completed. While CTS makes every effort to keep current with the ever changing requirements of as many colleges and universities as possible, CTS cannot be held responsible for each form that a college requests. It is in this vein that parents are asked to follow up with each schools financial aid office or log into their student s secure college web account that is created after the admission applications are received by the college s admissions office. This site will have the student s financial aid status. This is the CLIENTS responsibility because as a practical matter CTS cannot accept perform this action. While CTS is happy to complete all forms free of charge save the Business/Farm Supplement and Non-Custodial Profile. However, more often than not, most additional forms aren t financial in nature and more quickly completed by the CLIENT using the same information located on the CTS College Family Care Center web site. CTS will file the FAFSA and check the status of the Student Aid Report for data mismatches and to ascertain that an EFC was generated. Assistance with the College Board's IDOC requirements including IDOC notifications and requirements, notification of the Non Custodial Parent requirements, non tax filer forms, verification forms, Business/Farm Supplements, and tax return dates. CTS will notify the CLIENT if selected for verification by the Department of Education within a reasonable amount of time (usually within ten business days). Verification is a two-page form verifying untaxed income and sources as well as signed copies of parent and student federal tax returns. Roughly 30% of students are randomly selected for verification. When all financial aid awards have been reported to the CLIENTS CTS web site, a report will be generated detailing the fairness of each award. Fairness is determined by the desirability of the student to each college accepted; historical financial aid awards; financial need; and resources of the college. Should a college not offer a fair financial aid award we will advise the CLIENT on their best option to increase the amount of the award. If a request for an appeal is, in the opinion of CTS, frivolous, CTS will inform CLIENT that CTS can only assist parents with their appeal but cannot do it for them. CTS can only appeal awards that it finds a legitimate request for additional aid. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

6 However, in such cases, CTS will provide coaching instruction for interaction with the colleges financial aid department or admissions office. If the CLIENTS financial situation needs to be articulated in a letter of appeal, CTS, at it s discretion will assist in the organization of documents required for an appeal and the supervision and editing of letters. Please note that merit awards typically are not successfully appealed without an award from a similar institution. Each CLIENT is entitled to a review of their student and parent loan options. CTS will, at the option of the CLIENT, complete federal student and parent loan applications as well as complete loan entrance counseling. CTS will provide ongoing financial aid support. When CLIENT has concerns about financial aid, CTS will address those concerns promptly. As long as CLIENT has provided CTS with a list of colleges, CTS will alert CLIENT prior to important dates regarding issues pertaining to the financial aid process. The Standard Level of service ends on the day the student matriculates at their chosen institution. The renewal fee of $ can be paid as of that day to continue the service. COLLEGE TUITION SOLUTIONS, INC CLIENT Services Disclosure Statement and Terms & Conditions CLIENT Responsibilities & Requirements CLIENT must provide CTS with the information necessary to complete all contracted services. Information must be provided to CTS in a timely fashion in order to meet all financial aid deadlines. It is the responsibility of the CLIENT to keep all financial information current. Failure of the CLIENT to comply with requests to provide correct and accurate information and to provide information by required deadline dates to CTS will indemnify and void all liability to College Tuition Solutions Inc. for any loss of aid. CLIENT authorizes CTS to apply for financial aid to their student s selected educational institutions and government agencies as required. Information must be provided to CTS in a timely fashion in order to meet all financial aid. CTS makes no statements, claims or guarantees that CLIENTS will qualify for financial aid. The submission of information on behalf of the CLIENT by CTS does not guarantee the awarding of financial aid. The CTS responsibility is to file the CLIENTS financial information in as favorable a manner as permitted by state and federal laws on time and accurately. Financial Aid Deadlines CTS only guarantees that the financial information of the CLIENT is delivered as approved by the CLIENT before financial aid deadlines. While CTS makes every effort to file forms by deadlines; due to the limitations of the FAFSA and CSS/Financial Aid Profile web sites on deadline dates, i.e. 2/1; 2/15; and 3/1, CTS cannot guarantee that a CLIENTS financial aid forms will be submitted by college deadlines unless the CLIENT approves and submits their information via the CTS CLIENT web site at least five days (5) before the first college deadline. Financial aid is determined by a family s particular financial situation, desirability of the student by the colleges, institutional resources, and the financial aid policies of the colleges/universities applied to, the Department of Education and private lenders of student loan products. If CTS has the electronic or fax with signature approval of the CLIENT or CLIENT, non compliance College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

7 by CTS to fulfill it s obligation, through no fault of the CLIENT, shall constitute a full refund of the fee paid for the service requested. Sending Information via Any unprotected communication over the Internet, as with communication via other mediums (e.g. cellular phones), is not secure or confidential and is subject to possible interception or loss as well as possible alteration. You should not send any confidential, proprietary, or sensitive information via unsecured . You must use our secure website to submit CLIENT data to CTS. CTS is not responsible for and will not be liable to CLIENT or any other entity for any damages in connection with unsecured or any other unprotected means sent by CLIENTS to CTS. CTS uses secure 128-bit encrypted server technology (SSL) to ensure that no CLIENT data is intercepted by outside parties when sent to CTS using CTS secure web site. It is the responsibility of the user to ensure their browser is capable of using this technology. CTS is not responsible for the results of interception, sabotage, changed regulations, or other causes beyond our control. Submission of CLIENT Data via CTS Web Site CLIENT data must be submitted via the secure CTS web site. CLIENT will receive a unique user name and password. To indemnify and protect CTS from any liability issues that could arise, the CLIENT must use the Approve and Submit feature of the CTS CLIENT Care Center web site to insure that any errors are not the fault of CTS. To prevent the misreading and transfer of CLIENT information, data cannot be accepted via paper for manual transcription. Additional Fees and Charges The CSS/Financial Aid Profile : The College Board CSS/Financial Aid Profile is a form that over 300 colleges and scholarship programs use to determine if the college, or awarding body, institutional or endowment funds, be used in part or all, to fund the student s college expenses. The CSS/Financial Aid Profile is a fee for service financial aid form. Currently, the College Board charges $9.00 to register the student and $16.00 for each college the CSS/Financial Aid Profile is submitted. Charges to submit the CSS/Financial Aid Profile are the responsibility of the CLIENT. Fees are subject to change without notice. CTS collects no additional fees in the filing of this form. CTS merely acts as CLIENTS agent for these charges and will use the CLIENTS credit card to file this form. A receipt will be electronically provided to the CLIENT by the College Board upon the successful submission of the CSS/Financial Aid Profile. Business-Farm Supplement Only a few elite colleges and universities use this form and it is preferable the CLIENTS accountant complete this form; however, CTS will offer advice as part of the service at no charge. If the Business/Farm Supplement is to be completed by CTS, a $ charge will apply and is due at time of service via personal check, money order or credit card. IDOC and tax forms IDOC stands for the College Boards Institutional Documentation Service. More and more colleges are using IDOC to process parent and student tax returns. Typically, there are additional supplemental financial aid forms that accompany the tax returns. If the parents wish for CTS to process completed tax returns and other required forms to IDOC, a $55.00 fee is assessed to cover processing and priority mail postage. It is not necessary that CTS do this for the CLIENT. It is merely an additional service. Payment may be made by personal check, money order or credit card at time of request. Tax Returns The majority of colleges that use the CSS/Financial Aid Profile but not IDOC will need to verify CLIENTS income and family information and will require a signed copy of the federal tax return and perhaps additional financial aid forms. If a student has many colleges on their list that require the returns, CTS will for a fee, disseminate all the forms at an additional charge of $55.00 for the first college and $30.00 per additional college. Payment may be made by personal check, money order or credit card at time of request. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

8 Rush Service If CTS receives a CLIENT that must be processed within five business days, a $100 per student surcharge will apply and be payable upon engagement by the CLIENT. This applies to all levels of service. CSS/Financial Aid Profile 's Non-Custodial Parent Statement (NCP) There is no additional fee for CTS to speak with and offer guidance on the completion of the NCP to the non-custodial parent. CTS will complete the NCP for an additional fee of $ payable by personal check, money order or credit card at time of request. Confidentiality The College Board provides for secure measures so that either parent without the others permission can share information. Confidentiality is assured to both parties. Information from the non-custodial parent will not be shared with the custodial parent without written authorization from the noncustodial parent. Institutional-specific financial aid forms: Some colleges have their own supplemental forms. CTS will assist CLIENTS in the completion of individual financial aid forms by telephone or via the CTS CLIENT Care Center web site. CTS is authorized to use the CFS trademark and logo by Collegiate Funding Solutions, Inc. ( CFS ) as one of CFS Client Care Center providers. However, this agreement is solely between CLIENT and CTS and all services are provided by CTS to Client. Any disputes regarding this agreement or the services shall be between Client and CTS, and CFS will not be responsible or liable in any manner under this agreement, including for any performance (or failure to perform) by CTS. This agreement will be considered fulfilled upon STUDENTS FIRST NAME matriculation to her chosen institution or September 15, YEAR OF ENROLLMENT whichever comes first. Refund Policy: CLIENT may request and receive a full refund within 10 business days from authorization of the engagement agreement. After the 10th business day of the authorization of the engagement agreement OR if the financial aid forms have already been submitted by CTS for CLIENT, there will be no refund on fees paid. To request a refund, send an to info@cf-solutions.com. In the subject line put: Request for refund of College Family Care Center services. In the body of the include the full name of the student that was registered for the service and the service level that was selected. The refund will be applied within 7 days of receipt of the request Privacy Policy: At CTS, we recognize the confidentiality expectations of our clients. Therefore, it is the policy of College Tuition Solutions, Inc. and its independent authorized users to: Collect information only necessary or relevant to the filing of college financial aid forms. Make a reasonable effort that information we act upon is accurate, relevant, timely and complete. Use only legitimate means to collect information. Make non-public personal financial information available only to the colleges, universities and scholarship bodies that are submitted through the College Board s CSS/Financial Aid Profile that you authorize to receive. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax:

9 Limit employees access to only those who have a business reason for knowing such information and are trained in the proper handling of personal information. Here is a summary of the types of information that College Tuition Solutions, Inc may collect, what is done with information after it s collected, and how you can view information we have about you in our records. What kind of information do we collect about you and from whom? College Tuition Solutions, Inc. receives only that information relevant to applying for financial aid. We may contact you by phone, , regular mail or text to obtain missing information. What do we do with the information you provide? Your information will be transmitted electronically to the colleges, universities and scholarship bodies on your student s college list located in the College Information page of the College Family Care Center web site (File My College Info). This is done using the FAFSA and CSS/Profile or in some instances the institutions own online website (such as Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania among others). How do we protect the confidentiality of information about you? Our company maintains security standards and procedures to prevent unauthorized access to your information. We limit employee access to personally identifiable information to those with a business reason for knowing such information. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. also believes in educating its employees so that they will understand the importance of confidentiality of personal information, and in acting appropriately to enforce employee privacy responsibilities. Should you cease being a client, we will continue to protect your personal information in this same manner. How can you find out about information we have about you? You have a right to know the information we keep about you in our files. This information is available by accessing your students College Family Care Center web site. College Tuition Solutions, Inc. 155 East 10 Street Erie, PA Tel: Fax: