Applicants and their families should review the International Certification of Finances (COF) instructions as early as possible so that they have sufficient time to collect and prepare the required documents and materials that must be submitted with the online COF form.
Applicants must submit the COF and supporting documentation online through their applicant portal. Information and instructions for setting up the application portal will be sent shortly after an application is submitted.
The deadline for submitting the COF and supporting documentation is no later than 10 days after submitting an admission application and activating the applicant portal.
Applications with no COF, a COF that is incomplete or a COF without the required supporting documentation may not be reviewed or considered for admission.
How is the COF Form used?
The COF form is used by Dickinson to determine the amount of funding you and your family have available to pay for the first full academic year of study as well as each subsequent year of study. It is also used to issue an I-20 Form to enrolling international students so that they may obtain a student visa. Supporting financial documentation may be reviewed by U.S. consular officials when reviewing student visa applications.
All international applicants must submit the COF whether or not they are applying for need-based financial aid. All international applicants must submit the COF regardless of any current or existing non-immigrant visa status.
Instructions
- Enter the amount of funding available for each year of study from each source in sections 1a, 1b, 1c and 1d under Sources and Funding below.
- Applicants must provide supporting documentation for the assured funding amounts listed from each source for their first year of study at Dickinson. This is the 2025-26 academic year for anyone applying for fall (August) 2025 admission. It is the 2024-25 academic year for anyone applying for spring (January) 2025 admission.
- Applicants must indicate the amount that will be available for academic years 2, 3 and 4 but do not have to provide supporting documentation for those years.
- Dickinson requires an equal contribution for each year of attendance. Different funding amounts listed across academic years will be added together, and the average of that amount will be the funding amount we will use for each year in reviewing the COF.
- The funding must be "liquid" and accessible. If there is no funding available for a source, leave that section blank or unfilled. All funding amounts must be in U.S. dollars or converted to U.S. dollars.
Sources of Funding
1a. Personal or Family Savings or Assets
Required documentation: bank letter or bank statement.
Bank Letter: A signed or stamped bank official's letter must be provided when financial support from personal or family savings or assets is indicated on the COF. The bank letter must include the following:
- The letter must be on bank stationary that includes the name and address of the bank.
- The name of the account holder. Please note that this should be a parent listed on the ICF. If funding is provided by a sponsor, the account must be in that person's name.
- The letter must be translated into English if the original is in a language other than English.
- The amount listed in the letter must be converted to U.S. dollars if it is originally provided in another currency. The conversion rate and date must be provided.
- The letter must be signed by a bank official and must include the name and title of that official.
- The bank letter should indicate that the amount of money in the account is at least the amount indicated on the COF. For example, if a student indicates on the COF that the amount of personal or family savings or assets to be provided is US$30,000, the bank letter should state specifically that this amount or more in the equivalent U.S. dollars is in the account.
Bank Statement: The statement must include the name and address of the bank, date and type of account (savings, checking, ect.). It also must contain the following:
- The name of the account holder. Please note that this should be a parent listed on the COF. If funding is provided by a sponsor, the account must be in that person's name.
- The statement must be translated into English if the original is in a language other than English.
- The amount listed in the letter must be converted to U.S. dollars if it is originally provided in another currency. The conversion rate and date must be provided.
- The bank statement funding amount should be equal to or greater than the amount of funding entered in Section 10a of the COF.
1b. Income Verification
Required documentation: Annual earnings or income statement from employers or other sources of income. Only enter in this section the amount of income that will be used to pay for your educational costs. DO NOT ENTER THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF PARENT INCOME.
Documents must include the name of the income recipient. This should be a parent or sponsor. All documents must be translated into English if the original is in a language other than English. The amounts provided on supporting documents must be converted to U.S. dollars if they are originally provided in another currency.
1c. Sponsors (funding available from sources other than parents)
Sponsors are people other than parents who will provide funding to support study at Dickinson. These may include other relatives or family friends. Required documentation:
- Sponsor letter.
- Bank letter or statement.
- Earnings of income statement from employers or other sources of income.
Sponsors must provide a signed letter with their address, telephone number or email address; their relationship to the student; amount of funding in U.S. dollars that they will provide for each year of academic study; and the source of their funding (personal saving, income).
The letter must be translated into English if the original is written in a language other than English. The sponsor must provide the same documentation described in the instructions for sections 10a and 10b.
1d. Government or Other Sources
Required documentation: funding award letter. Applicants who have been awarded funding from their government or other source, such as a scholarship program, should enter the amount of the award in U.S. dollars for each year of study. A letter from the funding source must be provided with the following information:
- It must be on the sponsoring organization’s letterhead including the name and address.
- The letter must be signed by an authorized official and must include the official’s name and title.
- The letter must be translated into English if the original is in a language other than English.
- The amount listed in the letter must be converted to U.S. dollars if it is originally provided in another currency.
Do not enter any funding that may be received from a government or other source but that has not yet been awarded. Applicants who anticipate funding from one or more of these sources should provide a separate document providing as much detail as possible about the funding source, amount and how many years it will be provided.