Steps to Receiving Aid

Academic Standards of Progress for Recipients of Financial Aid

According to federal and state guidelines, students must maintain satisfactory academic progress at the end of each term to be eligible to receive financial aid.

Moraine Valley Community College has established the following standards of progress for students receiving federal and state financial aid.

• Grade Point Average (Qualitative) standard
  Students must maintain a 2.0 or higher cumulative grade point average (When repeating a course, the first course taken and courses in which students receive W or I are not included in the GPA calculation.)
• Completion Rate (Quantitative) standard
  Students must earn credit for at least 67% of the cumulative credit hours enrolled (Completion rate is calculated by dividing credit hours successfully completed by credit hours attempted at MVCC. For repeated courses the first course taken is not added into hours completed. Successfully completed courses are courses where student earns a grade of A, B, C, or D; grades of I, W or F are not considered successful completion.)
• Maximum Time Frame standard
  Eligibility for financial aid terminates once the student has attempted over 93 credit hours. (See below for a definition of credit hours attempted.)

Credit hours attempted include developmental and remedial courses and transfer credit from another institution. F grades can be forgiven for the student’s transferrable GPA (see college catalog). However, the F forgiveness policy does not pertain to financial aid. Therefore, ALL credit hours resulting in an F grade are included as credit hours attempted and are included in the financial aid GPA. F grades do not result in the awarding of college credit and credit hours that result in an F grade are not included in credit hours successfully completed.

Federal regulations require that the standards of progress for recipients of financial aid be applied to a student’s entire academic performance at MVCC regardless of whether or not financial aid has previously been received.

Student records will be reviewed at the end of each semester, including summer session. If student fails to meet the standards of academic progress he/she will be placed in one of the following categories:

• Warning: The first time a student fails to maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 and/or has earned less than 67% of the hours attempted. (Students placed on warning are still eligible to receive financial aid for the following semester and remain on warning permanently unless the student’s status changes to suspension.)
• Suspension: The second time a student fails to achieve a cumulative GPA of 2.0 and/or has earned less than 67% of the hours attempted. (Students placed on suspension are ineligible for any federal or state aid.)
• Probation: A student will be placed on probation if their financial aid appeal is approved by the Financial Aid Appeals Committee.

Students applying for a Direct Loan (subsidized or unsubsidized) must have at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA for the loan to be disbursed. There is no probationary period or appeal procedure for student borrowers.

Procedure for Appeal and Reinstatement

• Reinstatement of financial aid eligibility can occur after classes have been taken at the student’s own expense, a mimimum 2.0 GPA has been achieved, and the required 67% completion rate has been attained.
• If a student’s lack of achievement was caused by extenuating circumstances, students may submit an appeal with proper documentation to the Financial Aid Office. Please contact the Financial Aid Office at 708-974-5726 to schedule an appointment to begin the appeal process. (Extenuating circumstances may include an illness, accident, death of a family member, or an unavoidable circumstance. Appropriate documentation must be included with the appeal otherwise it will be denied)