Boston University Medical Campus
Student Financial Services

Glossary A-F

GLOSSARY A-F

Academic Period – The period of time needed to complete one academic level (For first-year students 9.5 months, for second-year students 9 months, for third-year students 12 months, and for fourth-year students 11 months).

Accrued Interest – Interest that accumulates to be paid in installments at a later time rather than being paid in installments which begin at the time the loan is made.

Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) – Income after adjustments for social security, federal, state, and local taxes, health care costs; business income or losses, retirement and/or social security benefits, also referred to as net income.

Assets – Savings and checking accounts; value of home, business, farm or other real estate; stocks, bonds, and trust funds. Cars are not considered as assets, nor are such possessions as stamp collections or jewelry.

Bankruptcy – A legal action in which a person is declared unable to meet financial obligations; under federal bankruptcy law this person’s property can be used to satisfy creditors.

Base Year – The twelve-month period ending on December 31 preceding the beginning of the student enrollment period. For applicants for aid for 2002-2003, the base year is 2001.

Campus-Based Programs – Programs such as federal Primary Care Loans (PCL), Perkins Loans, Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (SDS), Loans for Disadvantaged Students (LDS), Health Profession Student Loans (HPSL), which use federal funds that are administered by the financial aid office.

Cancellation – The balance of some student loans may be canceled upon the death or disability of the borrower or upon full or partial service in a particular field or geographic area.

Capitalizing Interest – Computed interest that is added to the principal to arrive at a new principal balance. Interest is then assessed on the new principal balance.

Cash Flow Projection – The estimate of your income and expenses for any given period of time.

Citizen/Eligible Non-Citizen – To be eligible to receive federally-funded student aid, you must be one of the following:

• U.S. Citizen
• U.S. National
• Permanent resident with an I-151 or I-551
• Holder of an I-94 indicating:
• 1. Refugee
  2. Asylum Granted
  3. Indefinite Parole and/or Humanitarian Parole
  4. Cuban-Haitian Entrant, Status Pending
  5. Conditional Entrant (valid only if issued before April 1, 1980)

Compound Interest – Computed interest which is added to the principal to arrive at a new principal balance. Interest is then assessed on the new principal balance.

Consolidation – The creation of a new single loan by a lender’s paying off a borrower’s multiple educational loans.

Cosigner – A creditworthy party who signs a promissory note together with a loan borrower. The cosigner assumes responsibility for the loan if the borrower fails to make payments.

Cost of Education (or Cost of Attendance) – The total amount it will cost a student to attend school, including tuition and fees; housing and food for the period of enrollment; books and supplies for education; travel costs directly related to being a student; child care expenses; and costs related to a handicap.

Debt – Something owed; an obligation or a liability which must be paid or rendered to someone else.

Default – Failure to meet financial obligations on loan notes or other contractual agreements; failure to make loan payments as required. Defaults may also occur when a borrower fails to submit deferment requests on time.

Deferment – A specified period of time during which principal and/or interest payments may be postponed; deferments are frequently granted for time spent as a student, a resident, or in the Peace Corps.

Delinquency – Failure to make a loan payment when it is due; multiple delinquencies may lead to default.

Disclosure Statement – A statement of the interest rate, monthly repayments, due dates, length of repayment, and total repayment obligation on a loan.

Eligible Program – A program of study which leads to a degree, certificate, or other recognized educational credential at an institution of higher education that participates in U.S. Department of Education student financial aid programs.

Expected Family Contribution (EFC) – A figure determined by formula which indicates how much of a family’s resources should be available to help pay for school. Factors such as taxable and non-taxable income and value of assets are considered to determine a family’s financial strength. Allowances for maintaining a family and future financial needs are then taken into consideration before determining what portion of the remaining “strength” is considered available to help with the cost of education.

Federal Methodology (FM) – A standard method of determining ability to pay for education, as contained in written statutes, which must be used to determine eligibility for Title IV (Department of Education) funds.

Fixed Interest – A rate of interest which is set at the time the loan is negotiated and which remains constant over the life of the loan.

Forbearance – An arrangement to postpone or reduce a borrower’s monthly payment amount for a limited and specified period, or to extend the repayment period. The borrower is charged interest during forbearance.

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