2024-25 MAP Formula

2024-25 MAP Start-up Formula

Each year the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is responsible for adopting an allocation formula for the Monetary Award Program (MAP). The Commission approves a "start-up" formula that is used to begin making award announcements for students applying for the next academic year. Typically, once the Governor and General Assembly take final action on the budget, the Commission revisits the formula in June or July and takes action to approve a "recompute" formula.

Unless otherwise noted, all calculations should be rounded to the nearest whole dollar upward from .500 and downward from .499. Students who have been paid for 135 or more MAP Paid Credit Hours are not eligible for MAP.

2024-25 Start-up Formula

On September 21, 2023, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission approved the 2024-25 (FY25) MAP start-up formula. Following the FY24 recompute formula, the start-up formula for 2024-25 MAP grants – which is outlined in Table One of Agenda Item 5 from the September 21, 2023 Commission meeting – uses:

• 2021-22 reported tuition and fees;
• the 2021-22 Pell Grant Payment Schedule;
• a $5,200 living allowance; and,
• an $8,400 maximum award.

In addition, as necessitated by FAFSA Simplification, the 2024-25 MAP start-up formula replaces "Expected Family Contribution (EFC)" with "Student Aid Index (SAI)" and includes clarification regarding how to handle negative SAIs. MAP is mirroring the federal methodology that allows students with negative and zero SAIs to receive the same maximum Pell amount.

Budget

1. Use 2021-22 reported tuition and fees at all institutions, assessed at 100 percent.
2. Use one living allowance for all applicants, set to $5,200.

Resources

1. Use 80 percent of Pell Grant eligibility as determined by the 2021-22 Pell Grant Payment Schedule, which contains a $6,495 maximum.
2. If Student Aid Index (SAI) < 0, set SAI = 0
   
   For Dependent Students, if SAI = 0 then Parent Contribution = 0 and
   Student Contribution (both income and assets) = 0
   
   Calculate the ISAC-adjusted Student Aid Index (SAI) by inflating the SAI:
   
   Adjusted Dependent Students’ Student Aid Index:
   Adjustment Factor = [(Parent Contribution/11,000) +1.10] rounded to 2 decimals places
   Adjusted PC = PC x Adjustment Factor
   Adjusted SAI = Adjusted PC + highest of Student Contribution or self-help
   
   Adjusted Independent Student Aid Index:
   Adjustment Factor = [SAI/11,000 + 1.10] rounded to 2 decimal places
   Adjusted SAI = SAI x Adjustment Factor or self-help expectation
3. Use a minimum self-help expectation of $1,800 for all students.

Award Amount

1. Set maximum award equal to lesser of $8,400 or the tuition and mandatory fees specified in the budget. Set the minimum award to $300; round maximum eligibility in $150 increments to calculate partial awards.
2. Applicants with a (Federal) SAI of $9,000 or above are not eligible.
3. If determined necessary after first-term claims are received, either release some suspended applications and/or adjust claims to maximize claims without exceeding the appropriation.
4. Students with 135 or more MAP paid credit hours will not be eligible for MAP.