Tax Relief Act of 1997 – recent tax law changes benefiting students and their parents who are paying for college.

Taxable Income - income earned from wages, salaries and tips, as well as interest income, dividend income, business or farm profits and rental or property income.

Title IV Programs - Those federal student aid programs authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.  It includes: the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal Work-Study, Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Stafford Loan, Federal PLUS Loan, Direct Loan, Direct PLUS Loan and SSIG. Schools that participate in Title IV programs all assigned a code for students to use when applying for aid.

Total Cost of Attendance is an estimated total of all college costs used in determining a student’s eligibility for financial aid. It includes such expenses as tuition, books and supplies, housing, meals, personal expenses, transportation, travel, and miscellaneous expenses.

Tuition Prepayment Plan – allows future tuition to be paid at current rates; some plans allow for payment years in advance.

Unmet Need – is the difference between a student's total cost attendance at a specific institution and the student's total available resources.

Untaxed Income consists of all income received that is not reported to the IRS or is reported, but not taxed. It may include Social Security benefits, Earned Income Credit, welfare payments, untaxed capital gains, interest on tax-free bonds, military allowances, and others.

Unsubsidized Loan. With this loan, the government does not pay the interest while the student is enrolled. The student has the option to either pay the accruing interest monthly or allow the interest to capitalize.

U.S. Armed forces Reserve Officer Training Corps Program (ROTC) is a college-based officer training program administered by the military’s. Participants can receive full college tuition plus a monthly stipend, typically in return for a time commitment of active and reserve duty in the Armed Forces.

Verification – the procedure of review to determine the accuracy of the information on a student's financial aid application. Students are selected for verification by the federal Central Processing System when their FAFSA applications are processed.

Veterans Educational Benefits – are assistance programs for eligible veterans or their dependents for education or training.

Vocational Rehabilitation: – Programs administered by state departments of vocational rehabilitation services to assist individuals who have a physical or mental disability which is a substantial handicap to employment.

Waiver – is an arrangement by the school that allows non-residents (out-of-state students and foreign students) to attend that school at the resident tuition rate.   

William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program – this is the collective name for the Direct Subsidized, Direct Unsubsidized, Direct PLUS Loan and Direct Consolidation Loan Programs as loan funds for these programs are provided by the federal government to students and parents through postsecondary institutions that participate in the program.  

Work-Study – is a self-help aid, a federal- or state-subsidized student employment program.