Eligible educational institution

[pricermd]

I have a client that went to a truck driving school in order to train and prepare for his CDL. How do I verify that this school is an eligible educational institution without having to ask the school or the client?

Thank you.

[KBTS]

FAFSA Website

You can use this link to search for schools that are in the FASFA program. If you find the school, it is an eligible institution.

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/FOTWWebApp/FSLookupServlet

[LCP]

Is the FAFSA site determining?

I've used this one in the past .......

http://www.chea.org/search/

[gkaiseril]

The FAFSS site verifys that the school participates in the federal student tuition loan program or the student is eligable to get federally subsidized loans.

[Koss]

Eligible Educational Institution

I think most truck driving schools are not eligible to participate in federal student financial aid programs. But there may well be some that are.

In researching this question, I discovered that there are over a hundred different agencies that can provide accreditation that makes a school or program eligible to participate in federal student aid programs. Most of them are highly specialized, and their accreditation is limited in scope to certain types of programs, such as nursing or auto repair. But if a truck driving school is in fact eligible, its accreditation might come from just that type of agency.

Here's one link that provides a list of accrediting agencies that are recognized by the Department of Education for purposes of Title IV student aid eligibility:

http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/accreditation_pg10.html#TitleIVRecognition

Here's a different link that allows you to search by name for a particular school, institution, or program:

http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.asp

But keep in mind that just because a school is accredited doesn't mean that it is accredited by by an agency that offers accreditation for purposes of Title IV. So I think you first have to search for the school, and then, if it is accredited, check to see if the agency is on the list of accrediting agencies for Title IV.

Wouldn't it be easier to call the school?

If the school is legit, shouldn't they answer this simple yes or no question for an anonymous caller?

I guess you have to be careful because the folks who answer the phone at the school may be trained to respond by saying, "we offer financial aid," but that doesn't answer the question. They may offer privately funded loans...