Verification is a process used to confirm information submitted on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in order to ensure its accuracy. Any student who completes a FAFSA may be selected for verification by the FAFSA Processing System for the U.S. Department of Education (ED). Once you are selected for verification, please do not make changes to your FAFSA data. Send the requested documents to us and we will make any necessary changes.
ED uses data models to select students for further review. Selected students are assigned verification groups that determine the data elements each student has to verify. The list of items to verify will be different across selected students. NIU must follow all federal verification requirements for any selected students. In addition to students selected by ED, NIU selects a small number of students based on conflicting or inconsistent information or data that appears to have been submitted in error.
The data elements you may be asked to verify includes but is not limited to the IRS adjusted gross income and taxes paid, income earned from work (for non-tax filers), certain untaxed income items, household size, number in college, receipt of food stamps/SNAP benefit, child support paid and any other inconsistent or conflicting information.
If you are selected for verification, the information you must provide, along with any necessary instructions, will be posted on your MyNIU "Tasks Tile". You will receive an email from the Financial Aid and Scholarship Office anytime an item is posted to your "To Do" list. Several weeks after the next year’s FAFSA opens, NIU loads FAFSA data received from ED into our student system and updates your To Do List. For initial FAFSAs for admitted and current students, this occurs most business days. FAFSA data received by NIU before you apply for admission or are formally admitted to NIU is held in a temporary file and loaded once your admission is complete. If your name, social security number or date of birth is different on the FAFSA than in the NIU student system, we will review your records before processing.
If you make changes to FAFSA data, NIU will receive a change file. That file may require additional review before it is processed, and your To Do List is updated. This generally occurs within 3 business days but may take longer during peak processing periods. If you make changes to your FAFSA after you have received a financial aid offer or disbursement, all future disbursements will be put on hold until verification is complete. If that verification results in a change to your aid eligibility, you will receive a new financial aid offer in about two weeks.
If you are selected for verification, please submit all requested documentation as quickly as possible so that your aid application may be processed in a timely manner. Verification review will begin once all verification documents are received. While verification review is generally complete in three business days, during peak processing times, particularly late summer, verification review may take up to two weeks.
We are happy to provide an estimate of your financial aid eligibility based on unverified information upon request, as possible.
Verification requirements may be waived for students who are only eligible for Direct Unsubsidized Loans, private scholarships and/or forms of aid that do not require a FAFSA to establish eligibility.
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For scholarship-specific questions
scholarships@niu.edu