Student Financial Assistance - General Eligibility for Aid

General Eligibility for All Federal Aid

 You must:

• Be enrolled in a degree program or certificate program of 24 or more credits. In some cases, less-than-half-time students may be eligible for FSEOG, FWS and/or FPELL aid programs, depending upon appropriation and funds availability.
• Be a citizen or eligible non-citizen.
• Be evaluated to have need. Need is defined as the cost of education (tuition, fees, books, etc.) minus the expected student and/or family contribution.
• Not owe a refund for any Title IV aid received at Westchester Community College or any other college.
• Possess a GED or HS diploma or meet Ability to Benefit criteria by scoring appropriately on the ACCUPLACER PLACEMENT test (Sentence skills 60, Reading Comprehension 55 and Arithmetic 34) obtained in one sitting, or have earned at least six college credits applicable to your degree or certificate program at this college. 
  Not be convicted of any offense involving the possession or sale of a controlled substance while receiving federal aid.
•  Meet federal Progress and Pursuit Standards. (Withdrawal from class may affect your eligibility).
• Meet the college’s academic standards.
• Students will be reviewed for aid eligibility at the end of every Spring semester.
   

  Federal Pursuit and Progress Standards 

Earned Academic Credits

Federal Credits attempted is the number of academic credits the student is enrolled in at the end of the add/drop period.
 
Maximum Time Frame:  Students are allowed to attempt 150% of the courses required for graduation in their specific major.  For example:  If you are in a program requiring 64 credits, the maximum credits you can attempt will be 96 credits:  students in programs requiring 74 credits for graduation can attempt up to 111 credits. (See definition for federal credits attempted above).
 
Students taking maximum credits at their enrollment category will reach the allowable credit attempted more quickly e.g. a ¾ student taking 9 credits every semester will reach 96 credits attempted (assuming a 64-credit program) in about 10 and 2/3 semesters as opposed to just under 9 semesters for a ¾ student taking 11 credits each and every semester.
 
Probation:  Students failing to meet credit accrual by 6 or fewer credits as determined by their payment level will be placed on probation.  Students on probation remain eligible for aid, once all other requirements are met.
 
Academic Standing:  Students must meet the college’s academic standards.
 
Academic Dismissal:  Students who fail to meet the college’s academic standards and are academically dismissed will NOT be eligible for financial aid unless they have been academically reinstated by an Academic Counselor. They must then submit a copy of the reinstatement letter to the Office of Student Financial Assistance.  However, aid will only be reinstated, provided all other federal aid pursuit and progress requirements are met.
 
PLEASE NOTE, students who have reached 2 full years of attendance, will NOT be eligible for federal aid even if they have been academically reinstated, if their cumulative GPA is under 2.0.
 
Waivers:  A one semester waiver may be granted to students with documented extenuating circumstances who fail to meet the federal pursuit and progress standards.  A waiver is not automatic.  The decision of the  school to grant a waiver  is based on the extenuating circumstance, the belief that the extenuating circumstance was a one-time situation, and the likelihood that the student will be able to make up the deficit and successfully complete the course of study. This decision is made on a case by case basis.
 
After the semester in which the waiver is granted, students will be expected to have made up the required deficit and meet standards required at the time the waiver was granted. 
 
Students requesting a waiver must meet with their financial aid counselor who will assess their status and inform them of the waiver request procedure.
 
Students not receiving a waiver can regain eligibility for federal aid by earning the required credits at WCC or another college (consult your financial aid counselor) until the pursuit and progress requirements are met.  NOTE:  The College does NOT waive the 150% time frame required to complete your course of study.  
 
Withdrawals, Incompletes and Failures:  These courses will figure in the total number of credits attempted.  Repeating such grades will mean that a student may use his/her eligibility without accruing the adequate number of credits to graduate.  If you withdraw fully from the college or stop attending all of your classes before 60% of the semester is completed you may lose some of your federal aid and will be billed by the college for expenses not covered by your reduced aid.
 
Repeated Courses: Students will not receive aid for repeated courses in which a passing grade was received, unless such a grade is not accepted in their curriculum.  Effective for the 2011-12 academic year federal guidelines permit a student to receive aid once for a course in which a passing grade was received.
 
Transfer credits: accepted credits transferred into the college will be used to determine total credits earned and credits attempted, but will not impact on your GPA at this college. 

General Eligibility for State Aid

You must:

• Be a US citizen or eligible non-citizen.

•  Be a legal New York State resident.

•  Be a matriculated student.

•  Possess a GED or HS diploma  issued by a United States institution, OR meet Ability to Benefit criteria as determined  the ACCUPLACER test  at the time of admissions to the college but no later than the end of the college's add/drop period or within 30 days of the start of the semester, whichever comes first.

•  Meet income guidelines.

•  Maintain satisfactory academic Progress and Pursuit each term.
  (Withdrawal from class may affect your eligibility)

State Pursuit and Progress Standards

•  Students must have a GPA of at least 2.0 after two full years of TAP and a GPA of 2.0 for all APTS payments.
• Students, who fail to meet the above standards as a result of extenuating circumstances, which can be documented, may be eligible for a one-time waiver. Consult your Financial Aid Counselor about the waiver procedures. 
•  State aid only pays for courses related to your major.
• D grades are considered to be passing grades unless not applicable to your curriculum.  Any course you repeat to improve this grade will not be counted towards full-time enrollment and will not be covered by state aid unless such a grade is not accepted for your major.

The charts below are based on minimum requirements.  Students taking the minimum credit requirements will not meet Pursuit and Progress Standards further down the road.  

 TAP Satisfactory Academic Pursuit and Progress Standards

DEFINITION OF REMEDIAL STUDENT
Those meeting the definition of “remedial student” will not be subject to the new academic standards. “Remedial student” is defined as a student: (a) whose scores on a recognized college placement exam or nationally recognized standardized exam indicated the need for remediation for at least two semesters, as certified by the college and approved by the New York State Education Department (SED); or (b) who was enrolled in at least six semester hours of non-credit remedial courses, as approved by SED, in the first term they received a TAP award; or (c) who is or was enrolled in an opportunity program. Those meeting the definition of “remedial student” will not be subject to the new academic standards but rather will stay on the 2006 chart.

1.  (Based on a full-time TAP Award), Associate degree/Certificate students are only allowed 6 full TAP payments up to 36 points of eligibility, including points used at other institutions or while enrolled in other programs.  Each full-time TAP payment uses 6 points of eligibility.
2.  In order to accrue the required cumulative credits for fifth and subsequent TAP payments you must pass more than the minimum credits required for each semester.
3.  Students failing to meet Pursuit and Progress Standards as a result of extenuating family circumstances may be eligible for a one-time waiver. Consult your financial aid counselors about the waiver procedure.
4.  EOP students are allowed up to 8 semesters of TAP eligibility.

Effective Fall 2007, students taking 6-11credits may be eligible for Part-time TAP.  (6 credits uses 3 points, 7 credits uses 3.5 points, 8 credits uses 4 points, 9 credits uses 4.5 points 10 credits uses 5 points and 11 credits uses 5.5 points). TAP is also available for accelerated study in the summer.  Check with your financial aid counselor for specific eligibility requirements.

AID FOR PART-TIME STUDY (APTS) PROGRESS STANDARDS

APTS students are allowed up to a maximum of 48 points of eligibility. These points include any points earned as a TAP recipient or for any other state grant.  Each APTS award uses 3 points and each TAP award uses 6 points. 

APTS recipients must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 at all times to be eligible.

ACADEMIC STANDARDS FOR WESTCHESTER COMMUNITY COLLEGE

NOTE:  A Minimum Cumulative GPA of 2.0 is required for graduation.

Financial aid rules and regulations are subject to change.  Students are strongly urged to meet with a Financial Aid Counselor to discuss any concerns regarding eligibility for aid.

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