Financial Aid Disqualification And Probation Status And Provisions For Regaining Eligibility For Financial Aid

Financial Aid Disqualification Status

Financial aid recipients who are unable to meet the qualitative and/or quantitative standards outlined under the policy on satisfactory academic progress (SAP) disqualify themselves from financial aid. An appeal must be filed with the Financial Aid Office to be considered for probation status. Warning notices of pending disqualification are mailed to students at the conclusion of the fall semester. Official notices of financial aid disqualification status are mailed to students at the conclusion of each academic year.

For purposes of financial aid, summer session enrollments may be used to remediate units from the previous fall and spring academic semesters. To remediate GPA deficiencies, courses must be completed at Woodbury, as GPA quality points are only applied to units completed in residency. When probation status is not removed within the time limit, students lose their eligibility for financial aid.

Loss of Eligibility for Financial Aid

When the terms of the policies on satisfactory academic progress and financial aid probation status are not met, students experience a loss of eligibility for financial aid. Students who are disqualified from financial aid may continue to study at the University if they are not also academically disqualified. Academic achievements during this period may assist students in regaining eligibility for financial aid during future terms of enrollment.

Provisions for Regaining Eligibility for Financial Aid

Students who have lost their eligibility for financial aid may regain eligibility by remediating the factors that caused the disqualification, including the following:

Unit deficiencies may be remediated through completion of credit via approved transfer credit procedures, or, under special provisions, the student may complete additional residency
coursework to remediate unit and GPA deficiencies.
Readmission to the University after a two-year period of absence from the University.
The Second-Year Rule: When eligibility for financial aid is lost due to failure to end the second academic year at Woodbury with a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher, eligibility may only be reinstated following a financial aid appeal. If the appeal is granted, the student must then meet the minimum GPA in the semester immediately following the semester during which the minimum GPA was not achieved.
An appeal for financial aid probation status, through a successful appeal of policies on satisfactory academic progress.
Remediation through summer enrollment at Woodbury or an approved concurrent enrollment at another institution. Summer sessions may be used to remediate deficiencies from the previous academic year.

Financial Aid Probation Status

Official notices of financial aid probation status are mailed to students following a successful appeal of loss of eligibility for financial aid. During semesters with an approved financial aid probation status, students remain eligible for financial aid and must meet the conditions of their probation to continue their eligibility during future semesters. The conditions of an approved financial aid probation status are defined based upon the student’s academic deficiencies and must be met within specified time frames. When probation status is not removed within specified time limits, students lose their eligibility for financial aid programs.

Procedures for Appeals to the Policies on Satisfactory Progress

Students who have not made satisfactory academic progress have the right to appeal their loss of eligibility for financial aid. Students who believe they have extenuating circumstances may submit a written letter of appeal and provide full documentation of those circumstances for review by the Director of Enrollment Services or the director’s designee. Each appeal will be considered on the merits of its circumstances and on an individual basis. Decisions on appeals are final and will be documented in writing.

Petitions to the Financial Aid Appeals Committee

Written petitions for exceptions to financial aid policy are filed at the Financial Aid Office and directed to the attention of the Director of Enrollment Services. Each petition is evaluated on its own merits based on the special circumstances presented by the student. Students are notified in writing regarding the decision.

Disabled Students

Woodbury University is sensitive to the needs of disabled students and makes reasonable accommodations to create an accessible campus. In addition, when determining financial need, the Financial Aid Office takes into consideration extra costs that disabled students may incur while pursuing higher education. Resources available through federal and state programs also are considered when evaluating students’ special needs.