Verification Gateway
Presentation College Private College Financial Aid Team Said “Goodbye” to Manual Verifications and “Hello” to Student Relationships
With an intimate student population and established academic and athletic programs, Presentation College is making its mark in the northern United States. Established in 1951 and the first school to enroll a class of Native American nursing students, Presentation is now home to approximately 800 students across its campuses in South Dakota and Minnesota. The growth of the college in both academic and athletic programs draws students of all kinds – undergraduate, graduate, transfer, and international – to pursue their education and careers. Desire to Build More Relationships with Students Prompted College to Look for Solution When Amber Brockel, Director of Financial Aid at Presentation College, first stepped on campus five years ago, she quickly learned their small team had their work cut out for them. “At the time, we were a new team and needed to learn all the regulatory aspects behind the financial aid business.” This, along with doing verifications, caused an administrative burden; committing full workdays to verifications left little time for anything else – especially the student relationships the team was craving. “We didn’t have time to work with our students and families,” Brockel said. “Sometimes I spent eight hours a day doing verifications.” The manual verifying resulted in minimal time meeting with students and educating them about their financial aid options. It also caused a delay in distributing award packages. When awards weren’t granted right away, students and families felt uncertain about paying for college. Brockel and her team knew it was time for a change.
CHALLENGE Amber Brockel and the financial aid team said verification processing took too much time out of their workday. They wanted to spend more time guiding students and parents through the financial aid process and be more involved in overall financial aid compliance. SOLUTION Presentation’s financial aid team wanted a solution that checked off their boxes: an experienced service team, fast turnaround time, and cost. Selecting Verification Gateway decreased email and call volume; increased financial compliance proficiency; increased number of verifications processed; and allowed more time spent educating students and families on financial aid. RESULTS • 237 completed verifications • Reduced student email and call volume • Faster verification turnaround
11
Powered by FlippingBook