1.  Enroll in ineligible courses/programs.  Not all courses qualify for financial assistance.  Nursing Assistant/Aid, Cosmetology Teacher, Real Estate, and non-credit course work do not qualify for financial aid.
2.  Don't attend class.  Attendance is required.  If you don't attend, your aid will be canceled for those courses.  You will still be responsible for tuition and fees for the course(s).
3.  Drop before the class begins.  If you drop a class before it begins, the financial aid will be canceled for that course.
4.  Audit Classes. Courses taken as audit do not qualify for financial aid.
5.  Don't complete your course(s) successfully.  If you do not obtain a minimum required GPA, or you fail or withdraw from your courses, you will jeopardize your ability to receive financial aid.  (See the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy below.)
6.  Withdraw from all of your courses prior to the Eleventh week of the semester, or fail all of your courses.  Students who do not complete any courses successfully may be required to repay a portion of the financial aid funds received.
You will have to repay a portion of your financial aid if:     

• you received federal student aid (Pell Grant, SEOG, and Direct Student Loans), and
• you withdraw, fail to attend classes, or are dropped by the faculty from all of your courses prior to the eleventh week of the semester.  The amount of repayment will be prorated based on the percent of the semester you do not complete. 

    You can avoid repayment of aid if you remain in attendance in at least one of your courses through the eleventh week of the semester.   If you cease attending that class, the faculty may withdraw you and you will be required to repay financial aid.  The last date to attend is posted at each campus. 

Satisfactory Academic Progress: 

Carl Sandburg College is required by federal law to establish satisfactory progress standards for federal and state financial aid applicants.  This policy ensures that any student who receives or applies for federal financial aid is making progress toward a degree.  In order to maintain eligibility for financial aid, a student must meet the "Standards Requirements" listed below.  Failure to meet these requirements will result in the loss of aid until action is taken to regain eligibility.  The aid programs affected by "Standards Requirements" are:  (1) Federal Pell Grant; (2) Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (Federal SEOG); (3) Federal Work Study Program (FWS); (4) Federal Direct Loan; (5) Federal Parent Loan for Undergraduate Student (PLUS Loan); (6) Monetary Award Program (MAP); and (7) Illinois Incentive for Access ((IIA); and (8) TRIO Student Support Services Grant (SSS Grant).

STANDARDS REQUIREMENTS

1.  COMPLETE 67% OF ENROLLED CREDIT HOURS.
This is the minimum number of cumulative enrolled credit hours that must be earned for all terms.  Example: If a student has enrolled in 12 credit hours for two terms, the student must satisfactorily complete 16 hours. 

(Example: 12 hours x 2 term x .67 (67%) = 16 hours)
Only grades of A, B, C, or D are considered earned for this purpose.

2.  MAXIMUM HOURS ALLOWED TO COMPLETE
DEGREE/CERTIFICATE
Students are sometimes enrolled in two programs simultaneously. Due to this, we set our maximum time frames based on averages. A student in certificate programs will be allowed 49 credit hours to complete the program(s).  A student enrolled in degree programs requiring less than 70 credit hours will be allowed 96 hours to complete the program(s).  Degree programs requiring more than 70 credit hours to complete will be allowed 111 hours to complete the program(s).  The total number of hours required to complete degree or certificate programs are shown in the catalog. Regardless of a change of major, additional hours are not allowed.

3.  MAINTAIN GRADE POINT AVERAGE.
The cumulative grade point average must be a 2.0 or above.

MONITORING PROGRESS

1.  Academic progress will be reviewed following each term to determine if the "Standards Requirements" have been met.
2.  Financial Aid Probation (FAP)- The first term the student fails to meet the "Standard Requirements," the student will be placed on financial aid probation (FAP).  During probation the student may not receive any Federal Direct Loans.
3.  Financial Aid Dismissal (FAD)- Students placed on FAP will have one term to re-establish eligibility under the "Standard Requirements." Students whose cumulative totals do not meet the standards requirements following the next semester of attendance will be placed on financial aid dismissal.  A student will also be placed on FAD if no credits are earned during the first term of enrollment.  A student may not receive any aid listed above while on FAD.
4.  Students placed on either FAP or FAD will be notified in writing.

TO REGAIN ELIGIBILITY

1.  Complete the number of credit hours necessary to achieve the 67% requirement and/or the minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average.  This will be at the student's own expense.  When the standards have been met, the student must notify the Financial Aid Office so eligibility for aid can be reinstated.         OR
2.  If special circumstances exist, a written appeal should be prepared and submitted to the Financial Aid Office stating the reasons the standards were not met.  Appropriate third-party professional documentation must accompany this appeal.  The appeal will be reviewed by the Standards Appeal Committee.  If the petition is approved, eligibility for federal financial aid will be reinstated.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

1.  INCOMPLETES (I) - Once an "I" has been changed to an A, B, C, or D, it is the student's responsibility to notify the Financial Aid Office.  Those credit hours will then be used to determine whether "Standards Requirements" have been met.
2.  AVAILABILITY OF CAMPUS-BASED AID -Students enrolled during a summer term for the purpose of being reinstated for financial aid may find that campus-based funds (FWS and SEOG) may not be available for the following fall and spring semester when eligibility is regained.
3.  ENROLLED CREDIT HOURS - Represent the number of credit hours in which the student is enrolled at the end of the 100% refund period.