< Back to Financial Aid Helpful Resources
The world of Financial Aid can be a swirl of confusing acronyms. The following is a list of commonly used acronyms and abbreviations to help guide you through FAA talk.
ACT听- American College Testing Program
AGI听- Adjusted Gross Income
ATB听- Ability To Benefit (See Federal Eligibility Requirements)
COA听- Cost of Attendance-- estimated student expense budgets
ED听- The Department of Education administers the federal financial aid program
EAP听- Electronic Application Processing
EFC听- Expected (or Estimated) Family Contribution as determined by federal methodology
ESAR听- An Electronic Student Aid Report is the information a school receives electronically when a student听听听 includes a school's Title IV code on the FAFSA when applying for financial aid.
FAA听- Financial Aid Administrator- the staff of a college's financial aid office
FAFSA听- The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the initial application for any/all of the federal Title IV programs.
FAO听- Financial Aid Office (or Officer)
FSEOG听-听 Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants are additional grants given to Pell eligible students.
FWS听- Federal Work Study-- on-campus and community service jobs partially Federally funded that are offered to students who show unmet need
GED听- General Education Degree-- the equivalent of a high school diploma administered through a high school equivalency program.
GPA听- Grade Point Average
PELL听- Federal PELL grants are basic entitlement grants awarded to students through the Title IV financial aid program
SAP听- Satisfactory Academic Progress. A student must be making satisfactory academic progress as defined by BCCC for students to receive financial aid
SAR听- A Student Aid Report is a letter sent to the applicant after the federal processor has processed a student's FAFSA
SSN听- Social Security Number
VA听- Veterans Administration