Financial Aid

Students who wish to receive funding from the New York State financial aid programs must maintain good academic standing.

• Good academic standing consists of Pursuit of Program (POP), which the New York State Education Department defines as receiving a passing or failing grade in a certain percentage of a full-time courseload. Passing grades are grades of D- or better. A failing grade is an "F." Grades of "W," "I," and "WI" are not passing or failing grades. The percentage increases for each year of attendance. See the TAP Eligibility Charts for details.
• The second element of good academic standing is Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). SAP is the number of credits the student earned toward their certificate or degree at the end of each semester, and the cumulative grade point average. Transitional studies courses that students may be required to take do not count toward SAP requirements. See the TAP Eligibility Charts for details. There are 2 TAP charts, one for remedial and one for non-remedial students.

Students will be evaluated for POP and SAP at the end of each semester. Students who fail to meet either POP or SAP standards will lose eligibility for New York state financial aid programs at MCC for the next calendar year. Students who have received the equivalent of six full-time New York State TAP awards will no longer be eligible for TAP at a community college. Program changes will not assist students in regaining eligibility for SAP and GPA requirements in the first semester of the new program.

C Average Requirement:

Students who, in prior terms, have received the equivalent of two or more full years of state funded student financial aid payments (have accumulated 24 or more payment points in prior terms) must have a cumulative "C" (2.0) GPA to be eligible for continued state financial aid. Students subject to the "C" average requirement must meet this in addition to POP and SAP requirements. State financial aid programs subject to this requirement include all general and academic performance awards.

Non-Credit Transitional Studies Courses: Students who are required to take non-credit transitional studies courses must be aware of the following:

• Non-credit transitional studies courses do not count toward completion of SAP requirements.
• To meet the full-time or part-time requirements for each semester's attendance, students in non-credit transitional studies courses must include in their registration a minimum of 3 credit bearing hours the first semester and a minimum of 6 credit bearing hours in each following semesters. The total number of semester hours (non-credit and credit) must be at least 12 or more for TAP, and 3 to 11 semester hours for Aid for Part-Time Study.

Full-Time Enrollment

The NYS Education Department defines full-time status for TAP certification as a student who is enrolled and attending at least 12 credits that lead toward their degree or certificate (with the remedial combination noted above) in a semester that is at least 15 weeks in length.

Repeat Courses

When a student has earned a passing grade (D- or better) in a course, it generally cannot be included in the calculation of full or part-time status if the student takes the course again. For State financial aid purposes, courses cannot be repeated to raise the GPA or to get a better grasp of the subject matter. Four exceptions to this ruling are:

1. When a grade received is passing but is not acceptable in the degree or certificate program in which the student is matriculated. For example, the student's program requires that the student get a C or better in ABC100 to be graduated, but the student earns a D in ABC100. The student could repeat ABC100 to earn a better grade. The program description in this Catalog & Student Handbook (Programs of Study) must stipulate this for the repeated course to be eligible for financial aid.

2. When a grade received is passing but is not acceptable for the student to move on to the next course in the sequence. For example, ABC101 requires that a student get a C or better in ABC100 in order to take ABC101. The student gets a C- in ABC100 and, therefore, would not be able to take ABC101. Therefore, the student can repeat ABC100 to earn a better grade. The course description in this Catalog & Student Handbook (Course Descriptions) must stipulate this for the repeated course to be eligible for financial aid.

3. When a student must take and pass a course and an associated course concurrently and a passing grade is received in only one of the courses. For example, ABC200 requires that the student concurrently take ABC201. The student earns an A in ABC200 but an F in ABC201. The student must repeat both courses and pass both courses concurrently to receive credit toward the degree or certificate. The student can repeat both courses in order to receive credit toward the degree or certificate. The course descriptions in this Catalog & Student Handbook must stipulate this for the repeated courses to be eligible for financial aid.

4. When a course may be repeated and credit earned toward the degree or certificate each time it is taken. For example, as with physical education courses.

Reinstatement of Eligibility for New York State Programs

Students who fail to achieve good academic standing for state programs have several options for reinstatement of eligibility.

• First, the student may attempt to make up their academic deficiencies by taking courses without the benefit of New York State aid. If successful, the student could have their aid reinstated for a future semester.
• Second, the student can sit out from school for at least one calendar year. Upon returning to school, the student could be eligible in their first term for state financial aid. However, if the student has already utilized the equivalent of four TAP payments, 24 paypoints and has less than a 2.0 GPA, sitting out one year will not reinstate eligibility.
• Third, the student can request a one time Waiver of Good Academic Standing for Pop and/or SAP.

Waiver of Good Academic Standing for POP and/or SAP

Students who fail to achieve good academic standing during a semester may apply for a waiver of good academic standing for the next semester. For New York State programs, students may be granted only one waiver as an undergraduate student. Waiver applications and information are available in the Financial Aid Office. Waivers will be considered only for extraordinary circumstances. Extraordinary circumstances include the death of a parent, child or spouse; injury or severe illness of the student, student's spouse, parents or children; or other special circumstances. The student will have to provide proof of the circumstance and document that the situation is either under control or will not occur again.

Waiver of C Average Requirement for New York State Programs: Students who fail to achieve a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better at the end of a semester (beginning 24th paypoint) may apply for a waiver for the next semester. Waivers will be considered as noted in the above section. Program changes will not assist students in making the C average requirement for the first semester in a new program.

Attendance and Registered Classes
You must be a registered student to be eligible for financial aid in any semester. The Financial Aid Office considers a registered student as one who is actively engaged in the requirements for their courses, including class attendance. Any changes to the number of credit hours for which you are registered can impact financial aid eligibility for that semester and future semesters. Changes in registered courses may be student initiated by a withdrawal or drop, or can be instructor initiated due to lack of class attendance. The student is responsible for maintaining themselves as registered students for financial aid purposes.

Method and Frequency of Disbursement
Financial aid is credited to eligible student accounts through the computer system that links financial aid to the student's account in the Student Accounts Office. Eligible student accounts are credited by the Financial Aid Office on an on-going basis after attendance in classes has been verified after the drop/add period ends. If your tuition and fee bill is completely paid and you have a credit balance, you will be issued a refund by mail or through EFT. The Student Accounts Office normally sends refund checks on a bi-weekly basis, or EFT semi-weekly, no sooner than the fifth week of classes. Students are expected to pay for their indirect educational related expenses with their own funds until refunds are distributed.

William D. Ford Federal Direct Student (Subsidized and Unsubsidized) Loan

Disbursed in two or more equal installments, (i.e. one in fall, one in spring) after the drop/add period ends each semester. Federal regulations require that the first disbursement of Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Stafford loans be held for 30 days after the beginning of the loan period for all first year, first-time borrowers at MCC. All students must be registered and in attendance in at least 6 credits when the loan funds are disbursed. If not, the loan is canceled.

William D. Ford Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS)

Disbursed to the student's account. Credit balances are disbursed to either the student or parent directly. The Financial Aid Office sends the student a selection form.

Federal Return of Federal Title IV Funds Policy

The Financial Aid Office recalculates federal financial aid* eligibility for any student who completely withdraws, stops attending classes, or is dismissed during the semester, prior to 60% of the semester being completed. Recalculation is based on the percent of earned federal financial aid using the following formula:
% earned = number of days completed up to the withdrawal date** divided by total days in the semester

Federal financial aid is returned to the federal government based on the percent of unearned aid using the following formula:
aid to be returned = amount of Federal Title IV Aid disbursed minus Federal Title IV aid earned

When federal financial aid is returned, the student may owe money to MCC and may also owe funds to the federal government. Students should contact the Student Accounts Office regarding any money owed to MCC.

*Federal financial aid for this calculation at MCC includes Federal Pell Grant, FSEOG, Federal Direct Student Loans and Federal Plus Loans.
**Withdrawal date is defined as the actual date the student began the withdrawal process (Please see the MCC catalog for official withdrawal procedure), the student's last date of recorded attendance or the midpoint of the semester for a student who leaves without notifying MCC.
*** For students who receive all F's or a combination of F's and W's, the Financial Aid Office will confirm the last date a student attended and will return funds if the last date of attendance is prior to the 60% point of the semester. The return of funds in this case would occur after the semester is over and students will be notified via e-mail if they have had a recalculation performed, and if so, will be billed by the Student Accounts Office.

Financial Aid Freeze Date

In accordance with federal and state regulations, Monroe Community College establishes a “freeze date” each semester after the end of the add/drop period to determine a student’s enrollment status for disbursing Federal Pell grants and state financial aid. Financial aid will only pay for courses that are required for your major and are added by the freeze date. Hours will be frozen at the end of the add/drop period. Students must be registered for all parts of term before the freeze date to receive Federal Pell and/or state aid for that class. Federal and state aid will not be available for classes added after hours have been frozen.
Financial aid award amounts associated with late starting classes will not be disbursed until attendance is confirmed in those classes. Students should plan accordingly with regard to financial aid refunds when enrolled in classes that start at some point after the start of the term. Students who are retroactively awarded financial aid (after the freeze date) will have hours frozen at the time the award is made and payment will be based on current enrollment at that time.