How do you submit these financial aid documents to colleges after you have acquired all the financial aid documents such as the W-2 tax form, income letter from your parent’s employers, International Student Financial Aid Application, and International Student Certification of Finances?
There are three methods by which you can submit your financial aid documents to colleges: through email, financial aid portal, or IDOC. You should check with each college’s website to know which method to use to submit the documents. Let’s discuss each method in further detail
Ways to Submit Financial Documents to US Colleges
1. Email the Financial Aid Documents to the College’s Financial Aid Office
One of the easiest ways to submit financial documents is via email. You can simply send the documents to a designated email. Before you click on the ‘submit’ button, be sure that you have the correct email address, call admissions or the designated office, or check with the university website for accurate email details.
2. Upload Financial Aid Documents in the Financial Aid Portal
Many US colleges have an admission and financial aid portal. In most cases, after you have submitted your applications, you will receive a link to your admissions and financial aid portal in your email. To be able to access the portal, you need to register by creating an ID and password. The financial aid portal usually has a checklist of the required materials. As soon as you have obtained all the necessary documents, the safest and most direct way to send them is to upload them to the portal.
3. Institutional Document Service (IDOC)
IDOC is created by Collegeboard and is connected to the CSS Profile. When you have submitted your CSS Profile, you will receive an email to activate IDOC (this is only applicable if the colleges to which you have submitted the CSS Profile use IDOC). Once activated, you can upload all your financial aid forms to IDOC, and IDOC will automatically send those documents to colleges you have applied for.
Scholarship Recipient Tip: Hyun’s experience in submitting financial documents.
IDOC is the least used method of submitting financial documents for international students. For example, only one college used IDOC out of eighteen schools that I have applied for. Many colleges use this method for domestic students, but not for international students.
Overall, you need to make sure to check with the colleges first to know their preferred method of sending the financial aid documents!
We hope this article on 3 Ways to Submit Your Financial Aid Documents to College was helpful. Check out the Available Programs for International Students and Guide to Studying in the USA to explore your options!
