Office of Financial Aid - Financial Aid Process

Financial Aid Process

If you have any questions during the process please do not hesitate to contact us at financialaid@snc.edu.

Eligibility
St. Norbert College believes that the primary responsibility of financing a college education rests with the family. However, because many families can not finance a student's education in full, supplemental assistance is often required.

Basic to the concept of such financial assistance is the determination of "financial need". Most financial aid at St. Norbert is awarded on the basis of financial need. Financial need can be defined as the difference between the total cost of education (tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, personal expenses and transportation) and the portion of those costs which can be reasonably expected to be met by the family. To equitably determine a family's ability to provide for the cost of education, each student's Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is evaluated under a Federal methodology to establish financial need.

Application Process
To be considered for financial aid, the student must fill out the following form:

After January 1, 2009 the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) must be filled out. The FAFSA is a free form that may be completed without professional assistance via paper or electronic forms provided by the Department of Education. We recommend that you complete the FAFSA on the Web at www.fafsa.ed.gov to eliminate delays in processing. To do so, you will need to request a pin number at www.pin.ed.gov. You will receive your pin number in the mail within 2 weeks or by e-mail if you provide an e-mail address. The pin number will be used to electronically sign your FAFSA on the Web. The parent filling out the FAFSA form will need to do the same thing. St. Norbert College will give preference to students who have filed their forms before March 1, 2009. A student may apply after March 1, 2009 but all forms of assistance may not be available. St. Norbert College's school code for filing the FAFSA is 003892.

If the Federal Processor selects you for a process called verification, the Financial Aid Office will need the following documents from you to complete the financial aid process.

The Federal Verification Worksheet for Dependent Student.
A signed copy of the student's 2008 Federal U.S. Income Tax Return Form 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ. Form
Copy of your 2008 W2 forms.
A signed copy of the parent's 2008 Federal U.S. Income Tax Return Form 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ. Form
Copy of the parent's 2008 W2 forms.
NOTE: If the student qualified to file the FAFSA as an independent student, the parent information will not be needed.
The Federal Verification Worksheet for Independent Student will need to be completed
Additional information may be requested from the Financial Aid Office as they complete the verification process.

Award Notification
In determining a student's Financial Aid Award, the Financial Aid Office reviews each student in terms of need and academic ability. Only students who have been admitted to the college will be considered for financial assistance. Awarding of financial assistance begins March 15, 2009. Thereafter, students will be awarded aid within four weeks of the receipt of their processed forms. All financial aid awards are made for a given academic year.

Award Appeal Process
Any student is entitled to appeal the "Financial Aid Award." If the appeal is based on changes in the family financial situation, a written appeal detailing the pertinent information should be submitted to the Financial Aid Office. The appeal decision will be in the form of written notification.

Renewing Financial Aid
Financial aid is renewable as long as the student maintains satisfactory academic progress and continues to demonstrate financial need. St. Norbert College funds are renewable for a maximum of eight semesters. Students must reapply for financial aid each year by completing the necessary forms.

Disbursement of Financial Aid
The amount of any St. Norbert College Grant or Scholarship, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Federal Pell Grant, Wisconsin Tuition Grant or TIP Grant will be credited to the student's account as long as all paper work is complete in the Financial Aid Office. Loans will credit the student's accounts upon approval and completion of Promissory Notes and Entrance Counseling.

It is the policy of St. Norbert College that should a credit balance occur on the student's account after all charges have been covered, the College will notify the student in writing that such a credit exists and the College will refund the credit amount to the student by check after the College's add/drop period.

Enrollment Status
Enrollment status is based on the number of courses in which a student is enrolled. Students who take 3 or more courses each semester are considered full-time. Students taking at least 1.5 but less than 3 courses are half-time, while those taking less than 1.5 courses are classified as less than half-time. Students must maintain at least a half-time status to be considered for some forms of financial assistance. Students must maintain full-time status as an undergraduate student to be eligible for institutional grants and scholarships.

Satisfactory Academic Progress
Federal regulations require St. Norbert College to establish satisfactory academic progress standards for student financial aid recipients. St. Norbert College standards of academic progress measure a student’s performance in the following three areas: completion rate, cumulative grade point average (GPA), and maximum time frame. Students are required to maintain satisfactory progress for both academic and financial aid purposes. The Financial Aid Office is responsible for ensuring that all students who receive federal and state financial aid are meeting these standards.

Completion Rate and Cumulative G.P.A. Standard to Receive Financial Aid

Credits Attempted: 1 to 15.99 Minimum % of Credits Completed: 66% Minimum GPA: 2.00
Credits Attempted: 16 to 67.99   Minimum % of Credits Completed: 75%   Minimum GPA: 2.00
Credits Attempted: 68 to 99.99   Minimum % of Credits Completed: 83%   Minimum GPA: 2.00
Credits Attempted: 100+   Minimum % of Credits Completed: 87%   Minimum GPA: 2.00

The following are considered when evaluating a student’s academic progress:

Withdrawal, incompletes and failures are considered attempted but not earned courses
Passing grades received for satisfactory/unsatisfactory graded courses are considered attempted and earned courses; failing grades in these courses are considered attempted but not earned courses.
Repeated courses are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned courses. A student is allowed to repeat a course only twice.
Audit courses are not considered courses attempted or earned
Remedial courses are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned courses.
Transfer credits, including those received through approved study abroad programs or consortium agreements, do not count in the calculation of the GPA, but they are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned courses.

Maximum Time Frame
Students will not be eligible to receive financial aid if they attempt more than 150 percent of the normal credits required for a degree. At St. Norbert, this means that a student in a degree program requiring 128 credits for graduation will be eligible for financial aid during the first 192 credits attempted as a degree-seeking student. All attempted courses are counted, including transfer courses, whether or not financial aid was received or the course work was successfully completed.

Academic Progress Reviews
Progress reviews are performed by the Registrar's Office for continued academic eligibility and the Financial Aid Office for financial aid eligibility. Those students not meeting the requirements stated above will be placed on financial aid probation during the next enrollment period (two semesters) and will receive a letter of financial aid probation.

Probation
The student may continue to receive financial assistance during the financial aid probationary period. At the end of the probationary period the student will:

Be removed from probationary status if both cumulative G.P.A. and completion rate standards are being met; or
Be suspended from receiving assistance from federal, state and institutional sources and will receive a financial aid suspension letter.

Suspension
Students who do not meet the above standards are no longer eligible for federal, state or institutional assistance until they have taken classes, using their own funds, and have raised the cumulative G.P.A. and completion rate standards to the appropriate level.

Appeal Procedure
To appeal the suspension of financial aid, a student must, within 15 days of notification, submit to the Director of Financial Aid a signed and dated letter of appeal explaining why he or she should not be suspended. Some situations that may cause a student to fail to meet academic progress standards include:

Family difficulties, such as divorce or illness
Death of a parent or relative
Interpersonal problems with friends, roommates, significant others
Difficulty balancing work, athletics, family responsibilities, etc.
Financial difficulties

The Director of Financial Aid will consider the appeal and render a decision, which will be conveyed in writing to the student within two weeks of the student's appeal.

Reinstatement
A student can raise their G.P.A. and/or credit deficiencies by taking additional course work at St. Norbert College without receiving federal, state or institutional assistance. A student can eliminate credit deficiencies, but not GPA deficiencies, by successfully completing course work at another institution without receiving aid at that institution; that course work must be transferable to St. Norbert College. Transfer credits used to satisfy credit deficiencies cannot be credits that were earned prior to the period in which the student incurred the deficiencies. Students can also submit a copy of their St. Norbert College transcript to verify grade changes, including the removal of incompletes, if this will result in the removal of deficiencies.

Student Responsibilities
A financial aid recipient is required to:

Provide valid information on financial aid applications.
Keep the Financial Aid Office informed of changes in the family financial situation.
Notify the Financial Aid Office of any assistance received from outside sources.
Meet all filing deadlines.
Accept or reject any Financial Aid Award.
Comply with all terms and conditions governing the Financial Aid Award.
Use all financial aid funds for educational related expenses.
Comply with the requirements for LOAN entrance and exit counseling.
Notify Financial Aid Office and lenders of any changes in name, permanent address, and enrollment status.
Maintain copies of all correspondence with the Financial Aid Office and outside agencies.
Notify the Financial Aid Office of any changes in housing status.