Muskingum College: Adult Degree Completion

The financial aid award is a commitment from Muskingum but is subject to change if: a) family financial circumstances change, b) incorrect family financial information has been submitted, or c) certain eligibility criteria are not met. Please report any changes or corrections to financial information or circumstances directly to the Muskingum Office of Student Financial Services.
The amount of assistance awarded reflects the family financial situation. Financial aid awarded must be within the budget allowed for each student. The college will not reveal any information about the student’s award except as required by law. Students should treat this information confidentially.
Financial aid awards are made by term for an academic year period, based on a three term year. The awards are not transferable nor redeemable in cash. Students must apply for renewal of their aid each year.The award year for MAP students begins in summer term.
Students who fail to complete a semester will have their awards adjusted in accordance with the Federal Return of Title IV funds and College policies, and will be liable for any fees that remain unpaid.
MAP students are charged tuition at the rate of $330 per credit hour for summer 08 and $350 a credit hour for fall and spring terms. Terms in the MAP academic year are summer, fall, spring. Financial assistance will be awarded by term. Students could be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, Federal Stafford Loan if full time or half-time, and the Ohio Choice Grant and Ohio Instructional Grant if full time, dependent on the information from the FAFSA form.
Finalized Federal Pell Grants, Ohio Instructional Grants and Ohio Choice grants, if listed on the Award Letter, will be credited directly to the student's Business Office account for appropriate term billing purposes. This will be done after acceptance to the program and transfer credit hours are finalized, and upon verification of enrollment and financial eligibility. Students are responsible for securing payment for any other types of aid.
Official notification of Federal Pell Grant or Ohio Instructional Grants will come directly from the government agencies. The accuracy of the estimates is dependent upon both enrollment status and funding levels and eligibility criteria set by the specific agency. If actual award amounts differ from estimated figures, the student will be sent a revised Award Letter with the correct amount and the student will be responsible for any difference. A Student Aid Report (SAR) is sent to Financial aid applicants notifying them of their eligibility for the Federal Pell Grant; Muskingum receives this information electronically from the federal processor. State of Ohio programs send notification of eligibility to both students and colleges directly.
Ohio Student Choice Grants - Full-time students who are residents of Ohio are potentially eligible, provided that they were not enrolled full-time in college prior to 1984 and dependent on the terms of the 2008-09 state budget. The yearly award amount is $660 for 2008-09.
External Awards - from private sources in excess of $100 which are not indicated on the Award Notice must be reported to the Office of Student Financial Services, and appropriate adjustments will be made where necessary.
Verification - Muskingum will verify the accuracy of information supplied on applications for need-based financial aid. In some cases verification is required by the federal government. Students must supply tax information and other documentation when requested, and appropriate adjustments to the student's aid award will be made if there are discrepancies between reported and actual information. All required information must be received within 60 days of the completion of the most recently attended term in order to permit finalization of awards.
Muskie Bucks - Students who have a credit on their account can use some of that credit to buy books at the Muskingum College bookstore with Muskie Bucks - money transfered from their account to their id card. Muskie Bucks and credit balance refunds are handled by the Business Office.

Selective Service Registration - All students who have reached their 18th birthday must demonstrate that they have registered (or are not required to register) for the Selective Service in order to be eligible for any federal or state financial assistance.
Residency - Students must indicate their state of legal residency on the admission application, as this is a consideration for state grant assistance. Legal residency generally requires that a student live in the state for a complete 12 month duration, pay taxes to that state, and have a driver's license in that state.
High School Diploma - Students must have earned a high school diploma or its equivalent (GED or passing score on an a accepted Ability to Benefit measure) in order to be eligible for financial assistance.
Full-Time Enrollment - Students must generally be enrolled at least half- time (6 hours undergraduate) in order to receive certain types of financial aid. Federal Title IV Aid (Pell, Stafford) Ohio Instructional Grants and Ohio Choice Grants may be awarded to full-time students (12 credit hours undergraduate) dependent on eligibility.
Satisfactory Academic Progress - Students are expected to meet certain standards of satisfactory academic progress in order for financial aid to be renewed. The Satisfactory Academic Policy for MAP students is presented below.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

Students are expected to meet certain standards of satisfactory academic progress in order for financial aid to be renewed.The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy for Muskingum College follows.

Federal and state regulations, and Muskingum College policy, require that students make satisfactory academic progress (SAP) in their course of study in order to be eligible to receive financial aid.Official standards of satisfactory academic progress for retention of financial aid at Muskingum are set by the Financial Aid Committee on Academic Progress. Membership in this committee consists of representation from the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Office of the Dean of Student Life, the Director of Student Financial Services Operations, and the Senior Director of Admission and Student Financial Services.

All financial aid awards are made contingent on satisfactory academic progress. If the College makes an award and subsequently discovers that academic progress was not made, the award will be withdrawn.
Decisions regarding satisfactory academic progress for the retention of financial aid are made by the Financial Aid Committee on Academic Progress. Appeals of any decision made by this committee should be directed to the Vice President of Enrollment. Questions regarding satisfactory academic progress should be directed to the Office of Student Financial Services.
The satisfactory academic progress requirements stated are applicable to federal financial assistance (including Federal Pell Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Work-Study, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal Stafford and Federal PLUS Loans) and Muskingum College aid. Programs run by state or private agencies are governed by the specific policies of those agencies.
Satisfactory academic progress is monitored upon the completion of the first two semesters of enrollment, and each semester thereafter. Summer term is considered at full term.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Requirements

Muskingum’s satisfactory academic progress requirements for retention of financial aid have both a quantitative and a qualitative component .The quantitative element refers to the student’s actual progression toward a degree by measuring the number of credit hours attempted per term. The qualitative requirement relates to the quality of a student’s academic performance as measured by grade-point average.

Students should note that the satisfactory academic progress requirements are not the same as Muskingum’s definition of good academic standing, which requires a 2.0 grade average, both cumulative and for the most recent semester completed. The financial aid progress guidelines are minimum requirements which a student must meet to be eligible for financial assistance, provided that the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs has determined that the student is academically eligible to be enrolled at Muskingum. It is therefore possible for a student to be eligible for financial aid renewal but be dismissed for academic reasons, or for a student to be eligible to return to Muskingum, and even be in good academic standing, but be denied eligibility for financial assistance due to lack of satisfactory academic progress.

Quantitative Requirements

Students must successfully complete 67% of all coursework attempted at Muskingum. Credits earned in summer sessions are considered in evaluating satisfactory academic progress. Muskingum College considers four years of full-time study as the standard time frame to complete a baccalaureate degree program, and thus limits financial aid eligibility to six years of full-time study, which is 150% of the program length. Appropriate considerations are made for students whose standard program length is greater than four years, and for students who enroll part-time.

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

Students in programs requiring 124 credit hours for graduation are eligible for financial aid during the first 186 attempted hours as an undergraduate (150% time frame). All attempted hours are counted, whether or not financial aid was received or the coursework was successfully completed.

An attempted course is one for which the student is registered at the end of the add/drop period.

Withdrawals, incompletes and failures are considered attempted but not earned hours.

Passing credits received for pass/fail courses are considered attempted and earned credits; failing grades in pass/fail courses are considered attempted but not earned.

Repeated courses are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned hours.

Audited courses are not considered attempted or earned.

Transfer credits, including those received prior to entering Muskingum College and those earned subsequent to entry, such as in off-campus study, do not count in the calculation of the GPA, but are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned credit hours.

Qualitative Requirements

Students must have achieved the stipulated minimum grade-point average in accordance with the categories of credit hours earned:

Credit Hours Attempted Required Cumulative GPA

1-27 N/A

28-59 N/A

60-91 1.8

92 + 2.0

Satisfactory Academic Progress Administrative Action

Academic progress will be reviewed at the end of each academic semester, beginning at the conclusion of a student’s second completed semester at Muskingum. Students not meeting both the stated quantitative and qualitative requirements for the first time will be placed on Financial Aid Probation during the next semester of enrollment and will receive a letter of probation.

Probation and Suspension

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

be removed from probationary status because required standards are met, or

be suspended from receiving federal, state (when required), and institutional financial assistance. A letter of financial aid suspension will be sent informing the student that future enrollment will be at the student’s own expense until both qualitative and quantitative academic progress guidelines are met.

Appeal and Reinstatement

Students may appeal the decision to suspend financial aid eligibility. Letters of appeal are to be directed to the Vice President of Enrollment, and must be submitted within two weeks of notification of suspension. Students will be notified of the outcome of the appeal review within two weeks of receipt of the student’s letter of appeal. Under normal circumstances a student's appeal of financial aid suspension will be only granted once in a student's academic career at Muskingum College.

Reinstatement of financial aid eligibility will occur immediately upon the student’s attainment of both the quantitative (credit hours attempted)and qualitative (GPA) benchmarks of satisfactory academic progress. Coursework taken away from Muskingum, including summers, will count toward meeting the quantitative requirement, but not the qualitative requirement.

Withdrawal and RefundPolicy(Including Return to Title IV funds)

Drop and Refund

MAP students who wish to drop a class may do so before or during the add/drop period. Those who drop classes prior to the end of the add/drop period receive a full refund for all dropped classes. Students who drop all classes prior to or during the add/drop period are considered to be not enrolled for the term. Any financial aid for which the student may have been eligible is returned to the respective program. For students who drop some, but not all, classes prior to or during the add/drop period, the enrollment status and subsequent financial aid eligibility are effective as of the end of the add/drop period.

Withdrawal and Refund

MAP students who wish to withdraw from a class may do so anytime prior to the last day of class. Students who withdraw from some or all classes following the end of the add/drop period are responsible for paying all tuition and fees for the courses. Students who withdraw from all courses within a given term are not necessarily considered by Muskingum College to be withdrawn from the program. Federal financial aid guidelines, however, consider such students to be withdrawn from the institution.

Financial aid awards to MAP students who withdraw from all classes after the end of the add/drop period but prior to the completion of 60% of the session will have their federal financial aid adjusted in accordance with federal regulations. Adjustments to financial aid are not required for students who withdraw after the end of the add/drop period from some, but not all, classes within the term.In all cases, MAP students are responsible for paying any balance due to the College.

MAP students who wish to withdraw from a class after the add/drop period must submit a written request to the Dean of Graduate and Continuing Studies.

MAP students who withdraw from a course receive a grade of “W”, which is not included in the GPA computation.