Apply for admission and pay your application fee to Trident Technical College. We cannot process your financial aid until you apply. Information for applying to the college and an application is available at the Admission's Office.

Submit your high school and/or college transcripts or GED to the Admissions Office. We can admit you to the College with simple proof of graduation. But, to be sure we consider you for all of the financial aid programs for which you may qualify; we must have your actual transcripts. Your transcript must show the date that you graduated.

If you are a transfer student, you must have official academic transcripts mailed to the TTC’s Registrar’s Office. Transcripts are required from each college that you have attended.  Transcript Information 

Get your PIN at www.pin.ed.gov. This will be your electronic signature. Electronic signatures hold the same legal status as written signatures. Students and parents of dependent students applying for aid may sign their FAFSA on the Web applications by using their PINs. This allows the student aid process to be completed totally online. You may use your PIN each year to apply electronically for federal student aid. You may also use it to access your U.S. Department of Education records online.

Complete the FAFSA or the renewal application on line at www.fafsa.gov. We strongly encourage you to apply online. It speeds up the process as well as minimizes errors. Don’t forget to list Trident Technical College and our school code 004920 on the FAFSA.

Complete your FAFSA as soon as possible after January 1. By law, we give early applications first consideration for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Work-Study (FWS), and the South Carolina Needs Based Grant (SCNBG). We also set what we call “priority deadlines.” Complete the Financial Aid application process (not just submit your application) by these dates. Then we are able to complete our part of the process in time for your financial aid funds to be in place by the start of the semester. Financial Aid priority dates are published in the On Course schedule.

If you filed your FAFSA online, the federal processors will send your SAR to the email address you put on the FAFSA within two to four weeks. The SAR summarizes the information you submitted on the FAFSA. Review your SAR carefully for errors. If necessary, make any corrections to the SAR. Follow the instructions on the SAR, and return it promptly to the address listed on the SAR. If corrections are not necessary, keep the SAR for your records.

When your FAFSA is processed, the federal processor may randomly select your file for “Verification.” They are required to make these random selections by law. If selected, you will see a message on your SAR notifying you that they have selected you for Verification. Verification is a process used to confirm data that you and/or your parents supplied in your FAFSA. We will notify you by student e-mail if the federal processor selects you for Verification. We will identify the documentation that you need to provide our office. These documents include signed copies of federal tax returns and a Verification form. We may require documentation of independent status, etc. Submit the requested documentation to the Financial Aid/Veterans Assistance office quickly. The Verification process may delay the completion of your file by several weeks. Remember this when you consider meeting the Priority Deadline. Your financial aid file is “complete” only after you have finished the Verification process.

If you applied for a loan, you must sign a master promissory note (MPN) before the lender can issue your loan funds. You may do this on line at http://www.studentloans.gov/. You will need your federal PIN. Click here to view a tutorial on how to complete your master promissory note (MPN)  http://www.tridenttech.edu/training/studentloangov/studentloangov.html.

If you are a first-time loan borrower at TTC, you will need to complete a Loan Entrance Counseling. You must do this before your lender can issue your loan funds. You may do this online at http://www.studentloans.gov/. Click here to view a tutorial on how to complete loan entrance counseling http://www.tridenttech.edu/training/studentloangov/studentloangov.html.

Use the TTC Scholarships Application form to apply for TTC Foundation scholarships. You must complete an application and submit it before the required deadline for each academic year. Find scholarship application deadlines online at http://www.tridenttech.edu/ttcscholarships.htm.

Our FA/VA office posts outside organization scholarships in the “Announcement” section on student e-mail.

PLAN AHEAD - Complete the FA application process before the priority deadline date for each semester. This includes allowing time for Verification. If you do, your financial aid will be available by the tuition payment date. If you don’t, be prepared to pay for tuition and books “out of pocket.”

READ YOUR STUDENT E-MAILS – You should open your account as soon as you receive instructions on how to do so. After that, you should check your email at least once a week. This is our PRIMARY way of keeping you informed.

FOLLOW UP - Periodically check the status of your financial aid file. You may do this online by logging into your student e-mail and TTC Express accounts.

LOOK FORWARD – You must complete a TTC Summer Aid Request form if you are going to attend TTC during the summer term. Keep in mind that you will need to reapply for financial aid each academic year that you are in school.