You must notify the Financial Aid Office if you receive scholarships or other sources of financial aid from non-Macalester sources. Macalester's policy on the treatment of outside scholarships and awards is detailed below.

1. The first $500 you receive in outside scholarships will not impact the amount of your need-based grant aid from Macalester.
2. If you receive more than $500 in outside scholarships, half of the amount exceeding $500 will replace need-based grant aid from Macalester.
3. After the adjustments described above are made, Macalester will recalculate the maximum available Federal Stafford Loan and student employment eligibility remaining based on your FAFSA result.
4. See additional policy details below.

Example

An example of how an outside scholarship would affect an existing financial aid package is shown below. In this example, the student has chosen to use the outside scholarship to reduce loans rather than student employment.

Financial Aid Package    Before Outside Scholarship			Financial Aid Package After Outside Scholarship
Macalester College Grant	$15,000		Macalester College Grant	$14,250
Subsidized Federal Direct Loan	$3,500		Subsidized Fed. Direct Loan	$2,250
Unsubsidized Fed. Direct Loan	$2,000		Unsubsidized Fed. Direct Loan*	$2,000
Student Employment	$2,200		Student Employment	$2,200
			Outside Scholarship	$2,000
Total Financial Aid Package	$22,700		Total Financial Aid Package	$22,700

*Although the student’s total eligibility for Federal Direct Loan is decreased in this example, most first year students are eligible for a total of $5,500 through the Federal Direct Loan Program. The portion of the Federal Direct Loan that is subsidized depends on the FAFSA result.

Why do Non-Macalester Scholarships Affect financial aid from Macalester?

Macalester is committed to providing financial aid packages equal to 100% of each admitted student’s demonstrated need for financial aid. In many cases, we present a financial aid package to an admitted student before he or she is aware of his or her eligibility for outside scholarships. Rather than leaving a gap in the student’s financial aid package that could later be filled by outside scholarships, Macalester creates a financial aid package equal to the student’s full demonstrated need for financial aid before we know whether outside scholarships will eventually become available.

Macalester’s commitment to financial aid is significant. Over ninety percent of the grants and scholarships delivered to our students come from our own funds. Most of the financial aid from Macalester is made possible by gifts from alumni and friends of the College.

But Macalester’s financial aid budget is finite. We would not be able to provide full financial aid packages to all admitted students if we could not count on the help of outside scholarships, Federal Pell Grants, and state grants as part of meeting the needs of all students. Our aid program is built on the premise that all of these types of financial aid will work together to support our students.

At the same time, we recognize that students who win outside scholarships often have made extra effort to obtain them. For this reason, our treatment of outside scholarships does allow outside scholarship recipients to reduce their overall educational costs.

Additional Policy Details

• Policy exceptions:
  • College Access Scholarship Programs
  • Scholarships specific to Off-Campus Study
• Total financial aid will be capped at the total cost of attendance.
• Need-based grant, entitlements, and benefits from federal, state, or other sources (including tuition benefits from student/parent employer) will replace need-based Macalester College grants and/or scholarships dollar for dollar (e.g., a $1,000 state grant will replace $1,000 of Macalester College Grant).
• Post-911 GI Bill, Yellow Ribbon Program, and other Veterans Administration educational benefits will be considered resources for the purpose of determining financial aid eligibility and will replace Macalester College grants and/or scholarships dollar for dollar.  It is important to note that Macalester plans to provide a matching grant (beginning in 2010-2011) for students eligible to participate in the Yellow Ribbon program.
• Financial aid from federal, state, and other sources will be adjusted in response to receipt of outside scholarships and awards in accordance to eligibility rules established by the Department of Education or other program administering body.  For instance, scholarships from outside sources may affect the availability of subsidy for Federal Stafford Loan purposes.
• After the adjustments described above, Macalester will calculate the maximum available Federal Direct Loan based on Federal Student Aid regulations.  Notices of financial aid eligibility will include the maximum available Federal Direct Loan unless all or a portion of the Federal Direct Loan has been declined.  If a Federal Direct Loan was accepted prior to outside scholarship adjustments, Macalester will maintain the total accepted loan amount regardless of subsidy (as permitted by Federal Student Aid regulations).

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