Financial Aid Operations Specialist - Richmond, United States - Virginia Commonwealth University

Virginia Commonwealth University

Verified Company

Richmond, United States

2 weeks ago

Posted by:

Mark Lane

beBee recruiter

Description

Position Summary:

The Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships in the Division of Strategic Enrollment Management and Student Success is recruiting for an Operations Specialist to support student enrollment, retention, and success at VCU. Reporting to the Assistant Director of Operations, the Operations Specialist performs activities related to the effective operations of VCU financial aid programs.
Below is a list of some of the benefits you can enjoy as a VCU employee:
Paid time off available at the beginning of employment
Tuition benefits that reimburse tuition for up to two classes a semester

Core Responsibilities:

Financial Aid Operations
Award and Risk Management (65%):
Complete verification review and processing steps, review and respond to students experiencing extenuating circumstances impacting aid needs, adjust awards based on changes in Student Aid Index.
Troubleshoots inquiries with thirdparty verification servicer.
Responds timely to counselor requests for pending items such as updating student award packages and verification material.
Completes related reports on a daily, weekly, or asneeded basis including, but not limited to: Subsequent ISIR, Residency Mismatch, Level Mismatch, C-Flag, Disbursement Error, Counselor Request Form. Refund Exception, Overaward, Unusual Enrollment History, Housing Error, Pell History, Loan History, and Loan Extract and Reject Error Logs or Private Loan Error Logs.
Keeps financial management system (Banner) updated with accurate document requirements to reflect current status after processing forms.
Track incomplete forms and communicate with students and staff to resolve issues.
Assists with awarding of financial aid packages for the fall, spring, and summer semesters.
Originates federal Direct Loans, including PLUS loans.
Certifies private alternative loans and communicates with lenders to resolve issues.
Corresponds with external stakeholders and lenders in a concise and professional manner.
Handles sensitive and confidential information with discretion.
Monitors accounts for overawards or overlapping loan periods and completes related outreach.
Identifies students who can be offered a prorated loan for final term of study.
Ensures loans are correctly posted in the financial management system (Banner) under the correct SAY code, BBAY code, budget group, and packaging group.
Remains current on collaborative dashboards for PLUS loan or private loans and is actively transparent with updating the account with a comment.
Participates in annual Agency Risk Management and Internal Control Standards evaluation process.
Collaborates with spotchecking and testing in Banner during new year setup.

Culture of Care and Collaboration (10%):

Listens to and anticipates staff and student needs.
Responds to inquiries from colleagues in an accurate and timely manner.
Maintains a solutionsdriven outlook to resolve an inquiry, knowing that it impacts a student's enrollment, retention, and success.
Works with other departments or areas outside of Student Financial Services as needed to support the financial aid operational needs of the University.

WorkFlow Management (15%):

Independently plans, organizes, and prioritizes work to meet scheduled deadlines.
Informs supervisor when assigned reports are complete.
Manages documents in the ImageNow workflow queue.

Other Duties (10%):

Serves on department committees (e.g. Satisfactory Academic Progress, Professional Judgment) and workgroups as necessary.
Maintains uptodate knowledge of federal, state, and institutional regulations and policies. Supplements formal office training by seeking information independently.
Attends NASFAA, VASFAA, or Department of Education trainings as assigned, in addition to staff trainings.
Prepares outgoing mailings as required.
Other duties as required by Financial Aid and Scholarships leadership.

Minimum Hiring Standards:

High school degree or GED.
Strong organization and time management skills.
Displays a strong attention to detail.
Experience in a high volume, customeroriented environment.
Selfmotivated individual with the ability to excel within a complex, highvolume operation with a high degree of accuracy.
Ability to work cooperatively with a wide range of diverse constituents and colleagues.
Ability to communicate effectively, in writing and verbally, with constituents of the University.
Ability to understand the relationship between the Student Financial Services unit.
Demonstrated experience working in and fostering a diverse faculty, staff, and student environment or commitment to do so as a staff member at VCU.

Preferred Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree inprogress or completed.
Experience with major areas of higher education financial aid business process and operations.
Experience using student information systems such as Banner, CPS, COD, NSLDS, ElmSelect software, and Perceptive