SUNY Delhi Applauds Standard Financial Aid Award Letter Launch

DELHI, NY (02/21/2013)(readMedia)-- SUNY Delhi applauds the State University's launch of a standardized financial aid award letter and is taking steps to implement this process for students beginning this fall.

The SUNY Smart Track™ letter is part of a broader commitment to transparency in college financing and has been adopted by all 64 campuses within the State University system. Now students and their families will see clearly the cost of attendance and financial aid offerings at each campus. The letter will include campus-specific information, such as graduation rate, median borrowing and loan default rate.

"This is a positive step in streamlining the financial aid process for prospective students and their families," said Rob Mazzei, SUNY Delhi Director of Admissions. "It will allow them to compare colleges and make informed decisions on loan borrowing."

SUNY launched its Smart Track™ campaign in September. With the launch, SUNY adopted the concept of transparency of financial aid and college costs and the system began offering students the most proactive, comprehensive financial aid information and services in the country.

More recently, in the 2013 State of the University Address, Chancellor Nancy Zimpher announced that SUNY Smart Track™ would contribute to a wider system-wide goal of decreasing the loan default rate of SUNY students by at least five percent over the next five years.

The average debt of a SUNY Delhi graduate is about $12,000, well below the national average of $26,600. Many SUNY Delhi student loan borrowers repay their loans successfully.

The SUNY Smart Track™ Award Letter, a modification of the federal Financial Aid Shopping Sheet, creates a unique version for SUNY. Additionally, the campaign calls for an expansion of SUNY's Student Loan Service Center, early engagement of students at risk of default, and providing new and improved online resources such as a net price calculator, chats with financial aid experts, and financial literacy materials.