In a personal reminiscence, a financial aid officer describes the initiation into a profession proliferated by paperwork and jargon. Comparisons are made between experiences in a small college and an urban university. (LBH)

The growing sense of professionalism within the financial aid community has led to the development of professional associations gathering periodically to talk about standards and procedures. Ethics related to the management of financial aid are discussed. (MLW)

With institutional survival at stake, admissions and financial aid administrators at all colleges may work together more in the future, concerned with both supply and retention of students and financial aid funds. Policy formation will require the cooperation of these administrators. (MSE)

Financial aid directors have a major impact on the institution's budget, and on the size and quality of the student body. Qualities that enhance perceptions of the financial aid director as an institutional leader are identified: the ability to analyze data; willingness to communicate; and the ability to be brief. (MLW)

A study designed to examine the amount of influence the aid officer has in effecting institutional policy is described. Its purpose was to compare the aid officer's impression of the degree of influence required to perform his job with the president's perception of how much influence the aid officer has. (MLW)

The changing role of the college financial aid administrator is examined, and contributing factors are discussed, including shifts in public perceptions of the aid officer's function, public lack of understanding of the financial aid process, technological advancement, economic change, the federal government's evolving influence, and changes in…