Financial Aid Code of Conduct

The University of Northern Colorado Financial Aid Office has adopted and will follow the Statement of Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct for Financial Aid Professionals as created by the National Association of Financial Aid Administrators.

The UNC Financial Aid Office is dedicated to providing outstanding customer service to our students and their families with the appropriate level of professionalism and commitment to ethical standards.

National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) Statement of Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct

For Institutional Financial Aid Professionals NASFAA Statement of Ethical Principles:
NASFAA's Statement of Ethical Principles provides that the primary goal of the institutional financial aid professional is to help students achieve their educational potential by providing appropriate financial resources. To this end, this Statement provides that the financial aid professional shall:

• Be committed to removing financial barriers for those who wish to pursue postsecondary learning.
• Make every effort to assist students with financial need. 
• Be aware of the issues affecting students and advocate their interests at the institutional, state, and federal levels. 
• Support efforts to encourage students, as early as the elementary grades, to aspire to and plan for education beyond high school.
• Educate students and families through quality consumer information.
• Respect the dignity and protect the privacy of students, and ensure the confidentiality of student records and personal circumstances 
• Ensure equity by applying all need analysis formulas consistently across the institution's full population of student financial aid applicants.
• Provide services that do not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, disability or age.
• Recognize the need for professional development and continuing education opportunities. 
• Promote the free expression of ideas and opinions, and foster respect for diverse viewpoints within the profession. 
• Commit to the highest level of ethical behavior and refrain from conflict of interest or the perception thereof.
• Maintain the highest level of professionalism, reflecting a commitment to the goals of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. 

Code of Conduct for Institutional Financial Aid Professionals

The University of Northern Colorado financial aid staff is expected to always maintain exemplary standards of professional conduct in all aspects of carrying out his or her responsibilities, specifically including all dealings with any entities involved in any manner in student financial aid, regardless of whether such entities are involved in a government sponsored, subsidized, or regulated activity. In doing so, the UNC financial aid staff will:

• Refrain from taking any official action through which an employee may derive a personal benefit or financial gain above and beyond the employee's usual UNC compensation.
• Refrain from taking any action we believe is contrary to law, or school policy, or not in the best interests of our students.
• Ensure that the information we provide is accurate, unbiased, and does not reflect any preference arising from actual or potential personal gain. Although UNC participates in the Direct Loan program, we have not and will not engage in any contractual relationship with a private loan lender nor steer our families to one lender over another. We do not have a preferred lender list of private loan lenders and will certify any loan from any lender the family chooses.
• Refrain from soliciting or accepting anything of value from any lender or financial institution (other than an institution of higher education or a governmental entity such as the U.S. Department of Education) involved in the making, holding, consolidating or processing of any student loans, including anything of value (e.g. stipend, honorarium or reimbursement of expenses) in exchange for serving on an advisory body or participating in a training activity sponsored by any such entity. 
• Disclose to the appropriate UNC authority, in such manner as may prescribe by the established guidelines of UNC, any relationship which may be a conflict of interest with any entity involved in any aspect of student financial aid.