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Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked questions regarding financial aid.

What records will I need to complete the FAFSA?

You will need the following documents to complete the FAFSA:

Your Federal tax return and all W-2 forms for the year prior to the upcoming school year
Your parent's Federal tax return and all W-2 forms (if you are dependent)
Bank statements for checking, savings, and investment accounts
Business and farm financial records (if applicable)
Your spouse's Federal tax return and all W-2 forms (if applicable)

How do I apply for Financial Aid at Bay Path?

The first step is to complete the admissions process and be admitted into a degree-seeking program. Next, you must file the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), which you can find by visiting the Federal Student Aid website

What is the deadline for submitting my FAFSA?

We suggest that you submit your FAFSA by February of the year you are planning on attending. This will leave plenty of time for your application to be received by the federal aid processor.

What is Bay Path's Title IV Code?

Bay Path's Title IV Code is: 002122. This code is required on the FAFSA.

What are your Financial Aid Office hours?

Student Financial Services is open from 8:30am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday and most Saturdays from 8:30am to 2:00pm.

What is your contact information?

Our phone number is 413.565.1256
Our fax number is 413.565.1101
Our email address is sfs@baypath.edu

Should I send my tax forms and other paperwork before you ask for it?

No, you should not submit tax forms unless we specifically ask for them. Paperwork that is not required causes us to take time away from reviewing information that was requested.

Must my parents and I complete our federal tax forms before filing the FAFSA?

No, the FAFSA allows estimates for income and tax information if the applicant and/or applicant's parents have not yet completed federal tax forms.

On the FAFSA, just select "Will file". If you do estimate, keep in mind that you must correct your FAFSA later with the actual tax figures, since you are obligated by law to report an accurate picture of your family's finances.

We prefer that you file the FAFSA with estimates instead of waiting for a completed federal tax return, if waiting for your tax return will prevent you from meeting our priority-processing deadline.

If my parents are divorced or separated, do I include both parents' income information on the FAFSA, even though they no longer live together?

The FAFSA instructions give the following explanation:

If your parents are divorced, separated, or never married, and don’t live together, the parent who provided more financial support during the last 12 months is the contributor and must provide their information. If both parents provided an exact equal amount of financial support or if they don’t support you financially, the parent with the greater income or assets is the contributor and must provide their information.

If my parents are divorced, and either is remarried, do I have to include my stepparents income information on the FAFSA?

Yes, you do. Federal financial aid law states that if your biological parents are divorced, and you live with the parent who has remarried, you must include the stepparent's income information on the FAFSA, since you are considered part of that person's household. This is the case even if your parent and your stepparent file separate federal tax returns. You complete the FAFSA by adding the amounts from both of the tax returns together

Why does the Financial Aid office need copies of my taxes and W-2's?

The Department of Education randomly selects FAFSA records for a process known as "verification." Colleges are required to confirm or verify specific data elements from the FAFSA according to current federal regulations. Student Financial Services is not able to accept copies of tax return documents. Students selected for verification will be required to submit official IRS transcripts for themselves and their parents to the college unless they use the data retrieval process and do not make any changes to that data.

How much debt do students graduate with? What is the BPU loan repayment rate?

The average amount of debt residential undergraduate students have at graduation is $17,559. For more information about the rate of repayment of financial aid, please see the "Financial Aid & Debt" section of the College Scorecard.

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Contact Info

Student Financial Services

Bay Path University
588 Longmeadow Street
Longmeadow, MA 01106 413.565.1256 sfs@baypath.edu

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