PROCEDURES FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

FAFSA ON THE WEB | AWARDING | VERIFICATION | ATTENDANCE | REFUNDS

FAFSA ON THE WEB

FAFSA on the Web is an Internet application developed by the U.S. Department of Education that enables students to complete an electronic Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Using a supported web browser, students may complete and submit their FAFSA information directly to the U. S. Department of Education's Central Processing System (CPS). The Internet address is: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov .

After transmitting an application over the Internet, students may either mail a printed and signed signature page to the U.S. Department of Education or electronically sign on the Internet using a Personal Identification Number (PIN). The CPS will determine eligibility for financial aid within 72 hours after receiving the completed application. To apply for a PIN, students can go to www.pin.ed.gov . If the student is a dependent student as determined in Step 3 of the FAFSA, a parent signature is also required.

AWARDING

Once the FAFSA has been processed, the student will be notified of the results by the U.S. Dept. of Education. If the student designates MCC as their school of choice, the Financial Aid Office will also notify the student of FAFSA results and/or additional requirements.

If verification is required, the student will be asked to follow the process described below under the heading, verification. At the time the student's financial aid file is completed, the Financial Aid Office then uses the needs analysis method to determine the student's financial aid package. If the student demonstrates a financial need, his/her financial aid package may consist of the following components: grants, scholarships, Federal Work-Study, and/or MCC Temporary Loans. The Financial Aid Office issues a Financial Aid Award Notification to all eligible students.

VERIFICATION

In applying for financial aid, the student may be selected for verification; or more clearly, will need to prove those items reported on the financial aid application. Documentation to verify financial aid forms will need to be submitted to the Financial Aid Office staff and each student will be informed as to what documentation is needed by mail. These documents should be submitted promptly, as a delay may hinder the financial aid process. If corrections are required as a result of verification, the Financial Aid Office will inform the student immediately, by mail or email if provided, to prevent any delay in completing the file.

Corrections can be made to the Student Aid Report (SAR) and mailed in or by going online to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov . The student may also provide their Data Release Number (DRN), as shown on the SAR from the U.S. Department of Education, to the Financial Aid Office and those corrections will be made for them. Again, the verification process should be handled promptly, as a delay may hinder the Financial Aid process.

NOTE: Should a student receive financial aid as a result of having reported incorrect information the student will have to repay any portion of the financial aid he/she should not have received.

All students selected for verification must submit a signed copy of their 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ or 1040tel Federal Tax forms along with W-2 forms for the year indicated. Other income documentation may be required in the verification process. All forms must be signed and dated.

Financial assistance applicants who indicate a non-filing tax status on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) must provide documentation from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) verifying their non-filing status. IRS Form 4506-T is available from the Financial Aid Office to request this documentation.

Note: The U.S. Department of Education has the authority to confirm federal income tax information with the Internal Revenue Service.

ATTENDANCE

Students who are to receive the North Carolina Community College grant, the Less Than Half Time (LTHT) grant, the Targeted Assistance grant, and/or or the Lottery grant must attend classes through the last date for tuition refund as published in the College's Academic Calendar in order to receive their awards. Students who fail to attend their classes by this date, or who withdraw from school prior to this date, are not eligible for state awards.

Federal awards (Pell and FSEOG) are contingent upon students attending at least one class session in each course for which they are enrolled. Students must attend each class once prior to the 10% census date of the term. While federal awards are frozen after students attend one class session, federal funds are subject to a return calculation if students fail to complete the term. The refund calculation may result in students having to repay a portion of their awards to the U.S. Dept. of Education. Please refer to the R2T4 section at www.montgomery.edu or in the MCC Financial Aid Handbook for more details on repaying federal funds.

Please be advised that students who fail to attend classes as prescribed and who fail to complete an official withdrawal form prior to the first day of classes will be responsible for paying all, or a percentage, of their tuition charges. Please refer to the MCC Student Handbook for complete details of tuition charges and eligible refunds.

REFUNDS

Other Fees (Activity Fee, Technology Fee, etc.)

These fees are collected at registration and will be refunded only in the event of a 100% withdrawal by the student prior to the beginning of the semester/term or in the event that a class in which the student is officially registered fails to materialize due to insufficient enrollment. All student refund requests will be disbursed two weeks from receipt in the Business Office.

Tuition Refunds

If a student has to withdraw from the College or drop a class(es), tuition refunds may be granted. Requests for tuition refunds must be made to Student Services.

A tuition refund shall not be made except under the following circumstances:

• A 100 percent refund shall be made if the student officially withdraws prior to the first day of class(es) of the academic term as noted in the Academic Calendar . Also, a student is eligible for a 100 percent refund if the class in which the student is officially registered fails to materialize due to insufficient enrollment.
• A 75 percent refund shall be made if the student officially withdraws from the class(es) prior to or on the official 10 percent point of the term.
• For classes beginning at times other than the first week (seven calendar days) of the term, a 100 percent refund shall be made if the student officially withdraws from the class prior to the first class meeting. A 75 percent refund shall be made if the student officially withdraws from the class prior to or on the 10 percent point of the class.
• Refunds are not permitted by law, under any circumstances, after the 10 percent point of the term

Additionally, where a student, having paid the required tuition for a term dies during the term, (prior to or on the last day of examination at the College the student was attending), all tuition and fees for the term may be refunded to the estate of the deceased. Since a curriculum student is charged hour-for-hour up to 16 credit hours, a refund is not applicable unless the credit hours enrolled were reduced to less than 16.

Students who are attending MCC for the first time and receive Title IV funds are subject to pro-rata refund as specified by the U. S. Department of Education. Should such a student withdraw on or before the 60 percent point of the semester, MCC will utilize either the current state policy or pro-rata refund (whichever calculates the larger refund.)

Refunds made on behalf of financial aid recipients at MCC must be distributed in the following order:

1. Federal Pell Grant
2. Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant
3. Other student financial aid programs
4. Other federal, state, private or institutional sources of aid
5. The student