Why would a school prefer CFA over FAST (ISM)?

Reason One: CFA is Friendly and Simple

FAST's application takes 45 minutes or longer, after collecting all necessary information. (their site says “similar to gathering information to complete your taxes.”)

CFA’s Application is very comprehensive, yet quite simple. <10% of parents rate completing the application as difficult. Completion time is 20-30 minutes.

Reason Two: CFA only collects information essential to an accurate financial evaluation

1. Parents may be put off because FAST's application asks very detailed family information, such as children’s savings accounts, detailed information about non-enrolled children, parent birth dates, even disabilities and dependent adults.

2. FAST asks for written explanations of private investments, CD’s, securities, and trusts, as well as medical expenses and loans.

CFA asks about these things but only asks for detailed explanations when amounts are excessive.

3. If a school chooses to use CFA’s verification, CFA will ask for verification of expenses that fall outside of normal parameters, but not for a written explanation, and not from every applicant.

Reason Three: CFA’s calculations are "real time" current

FAST's recommendations are based on last year’s income (applicant supplies W-2’s, 1099’s & tax returns from last year)

CFA's recommendations are based on current monthly income (applicant supplies current pay stubs and tax returns from last year)

Reason Four: CFA applicants have the options of internet, email or snail-mail.

With FAST, the process for non-email and non-internet families can be difficult and challenging. Parents must create an email account, and if they don’t have internet, they must go to the school or a library and learn how to navigate through a computer’s complex menu system.

With CFA, parents who don’t do email and internet can receive a paper application, instructions and worksheets from the school and mail or fax their application to CFA. We'll input the data for them.

Reason Five: Cost to the school / cost to the parents.

Actual Costs:

In addition to this ... Five more reasons

Information Verification®. CFA Schools who choose to do their own verification have a complete administrative online tool box from which they can handle the entire verification process electronically. About 2/3rds of CFA clients do their own verification.

Accuracy. CFA Schools who choose to have CFA do the verification find that CFA does all the communication back and forth with families, ensuring that 8 critical areas of financial information are accurate. CFA client-schools have rated CFA’s calculations as “very accurate” in 93% of cases.

Family Financial Condition Indicator®. CFA is the only service that provides the school with an indicator rating each family’s financial health as healthy, manageable, struggling, or unmanageable. This enables schools to make informed decisions that will help guarantee that an aid-recipient family will remain enrolled year after year.

Budget and debt reduction resources. CFA provides families and schools with helpful budget and debt reduction resources.

Tuition / Tuition Aid Setting. CFA has 20 years experience in counseling schools in tuition-setting through comprehensive survey instruments. (click to see). (ISM FAST has 35 years experience in counseling schools in tuition-setting and tuition aid budgeting, but not through comprehensive surveys.)

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