Financial Aid Office

Student Employment Phishing Email Alert

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 Dear Student,

We have been made aware that students are receiving emails posing as the Financial Aid Department as well as emails advertising student employment opportunities that are not legitimate.  Given this increase in phishing emails, we wanted to provide you with some guidance on how to determine if a job opportunity is legitimate.

If an email appears to be strange in nature, confirm its authenticity before automatically complying with the request.  Emails that appear to be very vague in content and ask you to click on a link or to respond immediately without much detail for the purpose of the email would fit this description.  Even if an email is from a known source, but not someone ordinarily associated with financial aid or student employment (ex: a faculty member) should be questioned.

For student employment opportunities:  Handshake contains up to date information about student employment opportunities for students available directly through Wesleyan.  Jobs posted by Wesleyan University Student Employment on Handshake have been vetted by our office before being made available to students; therefore, it is the best way to search for legitimate job opportunities.  Students are welcome to seek employment outside of Wesleyan but should exercise caution when considering opportunities from other employers, particularly when seeking remote employment.  Students should always research any employer and/or offered job opportunity; if an opportunity sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. You should note that it is possible for a fraudulent email to come from a legitimate Wesleyan email address if the account has been hacked, so job opportunities sent to you from a Wesleyan email address should be researched as you would any other job.

When communicating with an employer, receiving emails from potential employers, or searching for a job, be on the lookout for the following “Red Flag” situations:

·         Makes an offer for a position without ever interacting/interviewing you

·         You receive an email from an employer you have had no interaction with offering you a job or to “make money quickly”

·         Offers a large sum of money for minimal work.  Remember that the Connecticut minimum wage is $12 an hour

·         Offers payment before you do any work or sends you compensation unexpectedly

·         Requests for you to make a payment upfront via transfer/wire money, money order or courier

·         Requests your personal information – social security number, credit card information, bank account number, copies of your license, passport, photograph, or other personal documents

·         Posting lacks all or some of the following information: company name, address, contact information, telephone number, domain email address, etc.

·         Postings with spelling and grammatical errors

·         Employer website without a clear description of the business, contact information, or job descriptions

If you suspect a posting is fraudulent, be sure to proceed with caution.  Do not provide any personal information and do not click on any links. End all communications with the employer immediately and, if Wesleyan University is mentioned in the email, contact the ITS Security group at security@wesleyan.eduASAP for assistance and advice on how to proceed.

You can find additional information regarding student employment on our website and additional information about fraudulent job postings here.  If you have any questions, please reach out to studentemployment@wesleyan.edu.

Sincerely,

Financial Aid Office
Student Employment Office
Jen Duncan, Associate Director of Financial Aid

Claudia Morrow, Associate Director of Financial Aid

Robyn Ewig, Senior Assistant Director of Financial Aid

Allison Soden, Student Employment Coordinator

Ali McFadzen, Department Assistant

Wesleyan University
Office of Financial Aid
237 High Street
Middletown, CT 06459
Tel: (860) 685-2800
Fax: (860) 685-2801

Applications for Winter Session Aid Open – Initial Deadline 10/26

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Applications for Winter Session aid are currently open in Portal/Courses/Winter Session. The deadline to apply and receive your award before registration opens is Monday, October 26 at noon. Applying for aid does not mean you have to take a Winter Session course. Registration for Winter Session will open on Tuesday, November 3. Winter Session has 2 sessions this term. Please visit the Winter Session site for complete details or email winter@wesleyan.edu.

Wesleyan Financial Aid and Student Accounts Virtual Q&A on 7/20

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The following is a message from Admissions, Student Accounts, and Financial Aid.

 

Dear students and families,

I hope that you and your loved ones remain well during these challenging times.

In an effort to keep you well-informed, Director of Financial Aid Bob Coughlin, Director of Student Accounts Robert Mirabal, and I invite you to attend a live webinar this Monday, July 20, from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. (Eastern time). This session will address concerns we’re hearing from students and families in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and will speak to how to manage student accounts.

During the session, Bob and Robert will also respond to questions you may have pertaining to their respective areas. We encourage you to submit questions in advance.Please also note that both students and family members may use the same link to access the webinar.

Financial Aid and Student Account Q&A
Monday, July 20, 2020
12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. (Eastern time)
Access via Zoom

Webinar ID: 916 9414 1689

Password: 553090

Find your local number: https://wesleyan.zoom.us/u/adD1wg6oqi

We look forward to visiting with you soon.

Best regards,

Amin Abdul-Malik Gonzalez ‘96
Vice President and Dean of Admission & Financial Aid

Bob Coughlin, Director of Financial Aid

Robert Mirabal, Director of Student Accounts

Student Employment Update

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Dear Members of the Wesleyan Community:

I would like to share some important information concerning the student employment program at Wesleyan.

All student employees should speak with their supervisors to determine whether remote work is possible for the positions they held prior to the transition to a remote campus. Students who can continue to work remotely should do so and, in accordance with the University’s student weekly payroll schedule, submit their hours for approval on a weekly basis.

Students who had been working to fulfill their semester’s work-study expectation, but are unable to continue to work remotely for the remainder of the semester will receive the income they were receiving prior to the move to remote learning, up to their maximum work-study allocation for the semester. Their payment will be based upon an average of the total amount of pay they already received for the spring semester (i.e., earnings received from December 16 through March 22), divided by the number of paychecks the student received, up to the student’s work-study allocation.

Supervisors who have positions for remote work available are encouraged to post these positions on the Student Employment Office website: https://www.wesleyan.edu/finaid/employment/availablepositions/index.html.

Supervisors unfamiliar with posting positions through the Student Employment Office website are encouraged to visit the supervisor FAQs: https://www.wesleyan.edu/finaid/employment/employers/studentsupervisorfaq.html. These positions will be open to any student based upon the eligibility criteria set by the supervisor.

Additional details regarding Student Employment are available in the FAQ section for students on the COVID-19 website: https://www.wesleyan.edu/healthservices/coronavirus/faq/student.html. I encourage you to review the FAQ’s for important updates on this topic.

We know the disruptions of the COVID-19 outbreak have been significant. We hope that knowing that students who were working to fulfill their need-based work obligations will continue to have income for their campus jobs will be one less source of anxiety.

Should you have questions regarding remote student employment, please direct them to Covid-19Info@wesleyan.edu or call us at 1-888-675-2011 and we will respond as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

Please stay safe and let’s continue to take care of one another.

With appreciation and best wishes,

Amin Abdul-Malik Gonzalez ‘96
Vice President & Dean of Admission and Financial Aid

Financial Aid Timeline for Wesleyan Summer Session Courses

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Financial Aid Calendar for 2020 Wesleyan Summer Session Courses

  • Applications open: February 3, 2020
  • Cutoff for first award letter: noon February 28, 2020
  • First award email: March 3, 2020
  • Registration opens: March 6, 2020
  • Applications close: NOON April 15, 2020
  • This deadline is firm; no exceptions are granted as the processing of applications begins at 12:01pm April 15, 2020
  • Final award email: April 21, 2020

Eligibility:

Wesleyan University grant aid is available to qualified Wesleyan University students. Wesleyan students should apply for aid using the application available in the Portal; applying for aid does not commit students to taking a course. Summer Session does not meet full-need for students; students should expect to use personal funds or student loans to meet the cost of Summer Session.

Summer Session Financial Aid Deadline — March 1 at midnight

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The deadline to apply for Summer Session financial aid before registration opens is Thursday, March 1 at midnight. Registration opens Thursday, March 8 and students will get award emails on Tues, March 6.

Students who need aid but don’t apply by that deadline can still apply before April 20, but won’t get awards and be able to register until April 24.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Mary Kelly, Senior Associate Director for Finance and Administrative Services in Continuing Studies, at 860-685-3334 or mgkelly@wesleyan.edu.

Winter Session Financial Aid Application is Open — Oct. 25 deadline

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The application for Winter Session Financial Aid is open. To be eligible for aid, you must currently be receiving need-based Wesleyan grant funds, and new this year: International students receiving need-based grant funds may be eligible to receive aid for Winter Session! Need-based grant funds are limited and students also should expect to consider student loans. Applying for financial aid does not obligate you to take a course; if you’re considering Winter Session but are not sure, please apply for aid anyway.

  • Apply for Wesleyan grant aid by October 25, using the link in your Portal’s Courses Bucket.
  • You will receive an award letter Friday, October 27.
  • Enroll in your course beginning Monday, October 30: bring your paper enrollment form, award letter, and payment for the difference between tuition and your award to the Winter Session office (74 Wyllys).
  • If you plan to use student loans to pay for your course, please consult with your financial aid advisor to make sure you have enough loan availability to cover both Winter Session and the spring term – and to complete the additional loan request process.
  • Applications for grant aid will not be accepted after Wednesday, October 25. Need-based grant funds are limited and will not meet full need, as Winter Session is an optional term.

More information about Winter Session, including the course list, is available at http://www.wesleyan.edu/wintersession. Winter Session takes place January 8-21. Course registration, housing requests, and dining requests will open on October 30. Winter Housing and Dining requests will only be accepted until Thursday, November 30 at noon.

Please direct all questions to winter@wesleyan.edu.