Announcements

Even though the priority deadline has passed, we still encourage you to complete the appropriate application to be considered for financial aid for Fall 2022, Spring 2023, and Summer 2023 semesters! 

• The 2022-2023 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) 
• The 2022-2023 California Dream Act Application 

The Golden State Education and Training Grant (GSETG) Program is designed to encourage and support individuals who suffered COVID-related job loss to enter, continue, and complete college and job training programs.  The program was established and funded in the 2021 California Budget Act, mainly with one-time federal COVID recovery dollars, to offer this one-time financial incentive.

The GESTG program supports Californians who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic with a one-time grant of $2,500 to reskill, upskill, and access education or training programs to get back into the workforce.  You are not required to submit a FAFSA or CA Dream Application to apply - but it is strongly recommended.

Learn more about this program, including how to apply, from the CA Student Aid Commission's GESTG website.

Federal Student Aid and the Biden-Harris Administration have announced federal student debt relief and loan forgiveness plans of up to $20,000 for prior Pell-Grant recipients and up to $10,000 for all other loan borrowers. To be eligible the borrower’s annual income must be below $125,000 (individuals) and $250,000 (married couples/head of households).

Loans must have been fully disbursed as of June 30, 2022; any new loans will not covered by the debt relief.

Borrowers can view their loan balances and check their Pell Grant status by logging into their Federal Student Aid account online at studentaid.gov. Please visit studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement/ for the most up-to-date information. If you would like to be notified by the U.S. Department of Education when the application is open, please sign up at the Department of Education subscription page

While the economy continues to improve, COVID cases remain at an elevated level, and the President has made clear that pandemic-related relief should be phased out responsibly so that people do not suffer unnecessary financial harm.

On August 24, 2022, President Biden and the U.S. Department of Education announced a final extension of the pause on student loan payment, interest, and collections though December 31, 2022. 

Borrowers should plan to resume payments in January 2023.

Have questions? Find out what loans qualify, and get additional information about the 0% interest period, administrative forbearance, and other student loan flexibilities due to the COVID-19 emergency.

Financial aid recipients are required to pay the difference between all Fall university charges (including registration fees, on-campus housing and board plan) and pending Fall 2022 financial aid. Your balance due will automatically be deducted from your financial aid funds once they are released. 

View your pending financial aid in the Finances/Account Inquiry section of your Student Center. Payment for students receiving financial aid is due by September 9. 

The fees box in the Finances section of your Student Center will indicate fees as "Past Due" until your balance is paid in full.  No payments are necessary if you have sufficient pending aid to cover your Fall charges.  

The Internal Revenue Service today warned of an ongoing IRS-impersonation scam that appears to primarily target educational institutions, include students and staff who have ".edu" email addresses.

The phishing emails appear to target university and college students from both public and private, profit and non-profit institutions.

The suspect emails display the IRS logo and use various subject lines such as "Tax Refund Payment" or "Recalculation of your tax refund payment." It asks people to click a link and submit a form to claim their refund.

People who receive this scam email should not click on the link in the email, but they can report it to the IRS. For security reasons, save the email using "save as" and then send that attachment to phishing@irs.gov or forward the email as an attachment to phishing@irs.gov. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) and IRS Criminal Investigation have been notified.

Visit the IRS' Identity Theft Central to learn about the signs of identity theft and actions to take.

Students can save money on internet service!

May 5th, 2021:  Federal Pell Grant recipients are one of several groups of individuals who qualify for the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program.  This Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program provides a temporary discount on monthly broadband bills for qualifying households.

Benefits

The Emergency Broadband Benefit will provide:

• a discount of up to $50 per month for broadband services purchased by eligible households and up to $75 per month for households located on Tribal lands.
• a one-time maximum discount of $100 for purchase of a desk, laptop or tablet computer from participating providers; however, consumers must contribute $10-$50 toward the actual purchase price.

The Emergency Broadband Benefit is limited to one monthly service discount and one device discount per household.

Who Is Eligible?

The Emergency Broadband Benefit Program is open to:

• Federal Pell Grant recipients
• Households with students receiving free and reduced-price lunch or school breakfast
• Those who have lost jobs and seen their income reduced in the last year due to furloughs
• Households that participate in an existing low-income or pandemic relief program offered by a broadband provider
• Lifeline subscribers, including those who are on Medicaid or accept SNAP benefits

Access a full list of eligibility criteria at getemergencybroadband.org/do-i-qualify/.

When Can I Sign Up for the Benefit?

Starting on May 12, 2021, eligible households will be able to enroll in the program to receive a monthly discount off the cost of broadband service from an approved provider.  The program will end when the fund runs out of money, or six months after the Department of Health and Human Services declares an end to the COVID-19 health emergency, whichever comes first.

The agency is urging students to familiarize themselves with the registration process as well as required documentation so that, come May 12, they’ll be able to enroll and work through the FCC verification process as soon as the program is live.

2020-2021 Cal Poly Pomona Pell Grant recipients will receive an email from the Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships documenting their Pell Grant award.  This can be used for program eligibility documentation.  

How do I enroll?

Eligible households can enroll through an approved provider or by visiting the Emergency Broadband Benefit program’s website.

For more information

To learn more about the program, visit the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit page.

December 2020 - SCAM WARNING!

The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a consumer alert about an emerging scam aimed at college students looking for a job. Cal Poly Pomona student employment information is typically only available via MyCPP or Handshake. Students interested in looking for a job at Cal Poly Pomona are encouraged to be cautious of suspicious emails received from outside organizations.

November 2020 - FTC Issues Warning to Frank Financial Aid

As part of its ongoing effort to monitor the marketplace for questionable claims arising from the COVID pandemic, FTC staff just sent a warning letter to New York-based Frank Financial Aid, raising concerns about representations regarding CARES Act grants, as well as a cash advance product the company is advertising.

What has FTC staff concerned? Some potentially misleading claims on Frank’s website. One fundamental fact to keep in mind is that for assistance through the Department of Education’s Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund created by the CARES Act, the Department has made it clear that each school has its own unique application process and “decides the criteria for qualified students to receive a grant, the grant amount, and how and when the grant will be disbursed (paid out) to students”

May 2020 - SCAM WARNING!

The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a consumer alert about an emerging scam aimed at college students and COVID-19 emergency grants. 

Before you click on a link in any email or share any of your sensitive information:

• Check it out. If you have concerns about an email, contact the sender directly. Look up their phone number or website yourself. Don’t click on a link. That way, you’ll know you’re not about to call a scammer or follow a link that will download malware.
• Take a closer look. While some phishing emails look completely legit, bad grammar and spelling can be a tip-off to phishing. Another clue that the email is not really from your school: they use the wrong department name. In one example we’ve seen, the scammers called themselves the Financial Dept or stated the email was from “the Financial Aid.”