Verification is a process by which the U.S. Department of Education requires the institution to verify or confirm the information that was reported on the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) for the student and parents. The U.S. Department of Education randomly selects students for verification. Changes or updates to your application may result in you being selected for verification even if you were not initially selected. The institution also has the authority to select an application for verification. The U.S. Department of Education's goal is to move toward customized verification; therefore, all students selected for verification may not be required to submit the same documents.
If you are selected for verification you will be required to complete verification worksheets, provide documentation that supports the income and other information you reported on the FAFSA.
Students may be placed into one of the following verification groups:
Students that are selected for verification or have missing information needed to complete the processing of their application will receive an email to their Senators Mail account. Students are strongly encouraged to review eligibility requirements through MyWS or follow up with the Financial Aid Office to determine what documents are needed to complete the processing of their financial aid application. If you are selected for verification it is important to return all documents to the Financial Aid office. Your eligibility cannot be determined until the verification process is complete.
Income reported on the FAFSA for student/parents if dependent or student/spouse if independent must be verified. This may be satisfied by each contributor giving consent and using the IRS data exchange in the FAFSA, or by providing the Financial Aid office with either an official IRS Tax Return Transcript or a signed copy of the IRS 1040 Tax Return. How to Verify Your Income
Your FAFSA is based on prior, prior year tax information. For example, the 2025/2026 School Year is based on 2023 tax information.
Students in this group must verify the following information if they are tax filers:
This information may be provided on one or more financial aid verification worksheets. Additional information may also be required to complete the processing of your application or complete the verification process.
All earned income must be verified by submitting copies of W2 or other income forms for the student/parents if dependent or student/spouse if independent. If you failed to keep a copy of your W2 form you may also request this from the IRS. Click here for instructions on how to request a W2 transcript.
Students must verify the following