Job Description

Position Title & Department: Financial Aid Loan Assistant; Financial Aid
Posting #
5414
Department Description:
The Office of Financial Aid (OFA) is responsible for the awarding of Federal, State, and Institutional financial aid to Undergraduate and Graduate students at the University of San Diego. The OFA is also responsible for maintaining Federal, State, and Institutional compliance to ensure proper delivery of financial aid. This includes scholarships, grants, work-study, and loans. The OFA determines student eligibility using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the CA Dream Act Application, and the USD Dream Act Application. 76% of USD students receive some type of financial aid.
University Description:
The University of San Diego, an engaged and contemporary Catholic institution, was founded by the Diocese of San Diego and the Society of the Sacred Heart in 1949. Governed by an independent board of trustees since 1972, USD remains committed to a liberal arts education grounded in the and the pursuit of truth, goodness and beauty. Inspired by this centuries old tradition of Catholic higher education, the University welcomes people of all faith traditions and any, or no, religious background. The future success of USD relies on the contributions of those who seek to foster the development of and an earnest confrontation of .
Detailed Description:
To assist in the management and administration of: The Federal Direct Loan Program and the Private Loan Program. This position requires excellent communication skills with demonstrated capabilities of maintaining confidential information and handling sensitive data with discretion and tact. Must possess the ability to handle multiple tasks, deadlines and time constraints in a calm and effective manner. Must have excellent spelling and grammar skills. This position requires a detail oriented independent person who has the ability to work well in a team environment.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Loan Certification and Processing:

• Reviews and processes federal and private loan changes (manual repackaging reports) and notates student's records.
• Processes loan declines, cancellations, changes, paper checks and loan reinstatements.
• Awards and certifies private loan applications as needed throughout the year.
• Submits private loan certifications to lender on behalf of the University of San Diego.
• Certification of private loans requires knowledge of budget figures, loan amount, term and disbursement dates.
• Processes private loan returns in Banner and on ELM (including Return to Title IV calculations).
• Creates and emails loan return notifications to borrowers.
• Assists with the implementation of processes related to both the Direct Loan Programs (DL) and private loan programs.
• Creates budgets for "private loan only" requests.
• Works with lenders to ensure paper loan applications are correctly processed.
• Reviews and processes Direct Loan changes and rejects.
• Verifies grade level and transfer units for proper grade level designation prior to loan originations.
• Processes Parent PLUS denials and offers additional Federal Direct Unsubsidized loans.
• Contacts student/parent if additional information or clarification of loan is required.
• Notifies private loan lenders of correct loan amounts when financial aid awards are revised.
• Reviews and verifies Banner Status reports regarding loan changes.
• Completes form review and analysis

Data Entry:

• Enters and submits loan data on Banner system for students applying for the Federal Direct Loans and for Private loans.
• Processes student loan requests when received, by updating Banner and comparing student requests with actual financial aid awards.
• Responds to emails regarding loan issues from OSSC and students/parents.
• Records information regarding any loan changes in Banner on student's record.

Loan Processes and Reconciliation:

• Identifies loan records that need to be re-evaluated due to specific loans being declined and forwards to the proper staff for follow-up.
• Updates student loan requests in the Banner system when loan amounts are reduced or declined.
• Resolves discrepancies in the NSLDS system.
• Conducts audits of Federal Direct Loan and Private Loan disbursements and adjustments ensuring accurate records.
• Assists with monthly Federal Direct Loan reconciliation utilizing Banner and the COD Student Account Summary (SAS) reports.
• Understand and maintain Trust Loan eligibility in partnership with the Loan Administration Office.
• Assists when needed with the daily reports and disbursement processes.
• Assists with resolving NSLDS discrepancies and issues (i.e. name, SS# or date of birth).

Supervision:

• Assists with training and supervision of Student Assistants.
• Assists with training and advises new employees in policies and procedures of the Federal Direct Loan program and Private Loan processes and student assistants' job duties.
• Assigns tasks and prioritizes work on a frequent basis for student assistants.

Updating of Reference Manuals, forms and Web site:

• Creates and updates loan processing procedures and manuals for current and future employees in regards to policy and procedures of the Loan Division.
• Maintains updates to procedure manuals in cooperation with the Loan Coordinator.
• Assists with creating new procedures for various loan processes in Banner.
• Updates processing instructions annually for specific loan procedures.
• Assists with the annual update of loan forms, instructions, materials and USD Loan Web site information.
• Assists with updating Salesforce Knowledge Base Loan articles
• Assists with the creation of tracking requirements and loan ROAMESGs as needed for a variety of loan processes.
• Assists with the annual updating of Banner Loan "set up" screens.
• Assists with updating Banner lender screens when new lenders are added or lender information is changed.

Customer Service - Student/Parent/Lender:

• Contacts students and parents regarding any discrepancies concerning loan requests; missing information; and proper procedural steps.
• Works directly with Direct Loan and Private loan lender representatives regarding loan processing issues and the prompt processing of loans.
• Responds to borrower phone, written, and email requests regarding loan questions and changes.
• Records discussions with students/parents on system and tracks for follow up.
• Act as liaison between USD and ELM Resources (software provider) on a case by case basis regarding loan record or disbursement changes.

Inter-Campus Liaison:

• Responds to phone and email requests regarding loan information from the Student Account Office, Torero Hub and other campus offices.
• Notifies the Treasury Office of private loan return totals, so they may keep their accounts up to date.
• Works with the Controller's Office and Accounting in monthly and annual reconciliation.
• Interacts with the Student Accounts Office as needed regarding loan questions, returns and issues.
• Assists with problem solving any Banner loan screen issues with Information Technology to ensure that loan screens are working correctly.

Reports:

• Assists, when needed, with daily Federal Direct Loan and Private Loan downloads, extracting and processing of reports and response files received electronically from COD and ELM by importing the data to the USD Banner system.
• When needed, transmits the Pre-Disburse Files to ELM daily to ensure that funds will be disbursed.
• Assist with reconciliation by running Cognos reports and reviewing disbursement information for all loan types.
• When needed, transmits Private Loan certifications to ELM for processing.
• Reviews and processes the downloaded Private Loan EFT rosters twice weekly for posting to the student's accounts.
• Confirms the totals of the disbursement rosters with the Budget & Accounting department.
• When needed, verifies Transmission of all the reports to the COD and ELM.
• When needed, receives electronics responses files from ELM and COD.
• Assists with the monitoring of the transfer of information to determine if problems arise; resolves the problems.

General Duties:

• Creates new budgets for "Private Loan only" student requests and documents the changes in budget figures, on Banner.
• Establishes student's eligibility upon receipt of loan changes; ensuring the correct amount of funds is returned (allowing for loan fees) and verifies the correct loan type before returning loan funds to COD or a lender.
• Calculates differences in disbursement amounts when making loan reductions.
• Attend workshops, conferences and webinars as needed for training.
• Conducts special projects as requested or needed.

Background check: Successful completion of a pre-employment background check.
Degree Verification Requirement: Persons offered employment in this position will be required to provide official education transcripts for degree verification purposes.
Job Requirements:
Minimum Qualifications:

• High School diploma required, some college preferred.
• A minimum of three years office support experience, including one year in a position that required critical thinking and analytical skills. SUBSTITUTION: A Bachelor's degree may substitute for up to two years of work experience, at the rate of two years of education is equivalent to one year of work experience.
• This position requires math skills.
• Data processing skills required.
• Organization skills required.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Working knowledge of financial aid preferred.

Performance Expectations - Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Effective communication skills with demonstrated capabilities of maintaining confidential information and handle sensitive data with discretion and tact.
• Attention to detail, ability to work independently as well as in a team environment.
• Accurate and perceptive data entry skills as well as analytical skills are vital.
• Familiarity with financial aid terminology and computer applications.
• Some knowledge of Federal Methodology is important.
• Proven ability using computers for business/accounting applications including word-processing, spreadsheets, data management and administrative systems software.

Posting Salary:
$24.39-27.79 per hour; Excellent Benefits
The University of San Diego offers a very competitive benefits package including; medical, dental, vision, a retirement contribution given to you by the University, and access to on-campus Fitness Centers. Please visit the benefits section of our website to view all of the perks and benefits that USD has to offer.
The salary range provided in this posting reflects what we reasonably expect to pay for this position. Actual compensation offered or earned is dependent on experience, education and other factors including departmental budget.
Special Application Instructions:
Resume and Cover Letter Required
Click the 'Apply Now' button to complete our online application. In addition, please upload a cover letter and resume to your application profile for the hiring managers' review. If you have any questions or difficulties please contact the Employment Services Team at
Additional Details:
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Closing date: Open until filled
Note: External job postings will be up for at least three days. After that time, applications will be reviewed by the hiring manager/committee throughout the posting period. A candidate may be selected at any time which could then close this posting on a date earlier than listed.
The University of San Diego is a smoking and tobacco-free campus. For more information, visit
Advertised: December 04, 2025 Pacific Standard Time
Applications close: December 09, 2025 Pacific Standard Time

Skills Required