If students are short of cash and worrying about next semester’s fees, money might be available without having to result to undesirable conditions.

Financial aid, in the form of loans, grants, scholarships, and work study programs, still might be provided for students for the spring semester.

If the applicant “proves to be eligible for aid, it’s possible to receive it,” said Jerry Augsburger, director of financial aid. “The exact timing when it will be received is uncertain” since the forms are processed on a “date completed basis.”

Forms for the 1990-91 school year will be available sometime in January. The March 1 deadline will again apply, Augsburger said.

How quickly students are awarded aid greatly depends on filling out the required forms correctly. “Do it right and do it on time” to avoid delays, Augsburger said. “Our ultimate goal is that all students would follow directions carefully.”

Counselors, as well as front counter and phone personnel, are always on duty and available for assistance in completing the forms.

The counselors review what the computer system “red flags,” items that students incorrectly filled out, “causing a significant delay in the process,” Augsburger said. “I strongly suggest students touch base with the counselors to clarify uncertainties rather than guess.”

Since “huge numbers of students apply,” chances for aid are increased with a correctly filled out form. Currently, “close to two-thirds of the students receive some form of aid,” Augsburger said, “but on a need basis, about 40-50 percent receive one or more types.”

Eligibility for financial aid is determined through a “congressional methodology,” a complex plan which the computers employ with applications, Augsburger said. Elements, such as family income, equity, number of household members, and the number of dependent children in college, “any factors which affect the financial strength of the family,” are reviewed and the “end result is an expected family contribution.”

The contribution is then subtracted from the Standard Budget to determine the financial aid amount. The Standard Budget, an estimation of college expenses, is $7,000 for two semesters.

Financial aid is offerred in many forms, such as the Work Study Program, which is federally funded. The program “enhances the student’s employability,” since the employer pays 25 percent of the students wages while the government provides the remaining wages, Augsburger said.

The Stafford Loan is “the single largest loan program as far as numbers of students and volume go,” Augsburger said.