| Q: |
When should I apply
for financial aid? |
| A: |
You can apply starting
January 1 each year for
the school year beginning
the following fall. You
can apply up until June
30 of the current school
year; so if you are starting
school or attending school
now, and haven’t applied,
you can still do so. See
the SCC
Financial Aid Calendar
for the SCC Priority Deadline. |
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| Q: |
How many hours do
I have to take to be considered
full time for financial aid? |
| A: |
| 12 credit
hours each semester
are required for you
to be paid the full
time amount. These 12
hours must be hours
that are required for
your program as listed
in the catalog. If you
are less than full time,
your aid will be prorated
as follows: |
| 9-11
credit hours |
Three
quarter time |
| 6-8
credit hours |
Half time |
| 5
or less credit hours |
Less than half time |
Note
that student loans,
the NC Community College
Grant and the NC Education
Lottery Scholarship
require at least 6
credit hours, and
other grants and scholarships
have their own minimum
requirements. However,
Pell grants may generally
be paid on a less
than half time schedule. |
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| Q: |
When can I charge
books and when will I get
my refund check? |
| A: |
The Financial Aid Office
publishes a schedule of
dates that you can charge
books to your financial
aid and dates that refund
checks are mailed out. See
the SCC
Financial Aid Calendar.
You will get a refund check
if your tuition and books
charges are less than your
financial aid amount for
the semester. We will verify
that you are attending all
classes, including on-line
classes, before your funds
are released. Checks will
be mailed by the SCC Business
Office approximately
six weeks after classes
start each semester. |
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|
| Q: |
Can I participate
in the work-study program? |
| A: |
Work-study is a federal
financial aid program where
you are paid for working
on campus part-time. You
must have financial need
as defined by the federal
guidelines, so not all students
qualify. Most of the jobs
are clerical in nature,
and a limited number of
positions are available.
Students are paid monthly,
and earn $7.25 an hour.
If you wish to apply, see
How
to Apply for Work Study. |
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| Q: |
How do I apply for
scholarships? |
| A: |
Scholarships are available
from many sources in the
community and beyond. You
are encouraged to apply
for any scholarships for
which you are eligible.
In addition, there are several
scholarships each year that
are awarded by the SCC Foundation.
See How
to Apply for Scholarships
or in the scholarship notebook
in the SCC Financial Aid
Office, and request an application
for any scholarship that
applies to you. Most of
the deadlines are in the
spring and early summer
so that scholarships can
be awarded starting with
the fall semester. |
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|
| Q: |
Can I get a student
loan? |
| A: |
We encourage you to do
everything you can to avoid
taking out a student loan
while at SCC. Our costs
are low enough, that most
grant awards will cover
tuition and books. If you
do need to pursue a student
loan,
see How
to Apply for Loans. |
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| Q: |
What happens to
my financial aid if I withdraw
from one or more classes? |
| A: |
Partial Withdrawal—
If you know right away that
you need to drop a class,
try to do so during Drop/Add
so that you can add another
class, or get part of the
tuition refunded. We will
adjust your financial aid
if necessary to your enrollment
status at the financial aid
census date which occurs after
the end of Drop/Add. If you
decide to withdraw from a
class after the Drop/Add period
is over, be sure to do so
before the last date to withdraw
to avoid being given an F
grade. You will not have to
repay financial aid dollars
unless you withdraw from all
your classes. Even partial
withdrawals can hurt your
future eligibility, however,
because of the Satisfactory
Academic Progress requirement
to complete 70% of all attempted
hours.
Full
Withdrawal—
If you receive the Pell Grant,
Academic Competitiveness Grant,
Federal Supplemental Educational
Opportunity Grant (FSEOG),
Stafford Loan or PLUS Loan,
you must earn your financial
aid by attending class beyond
the 60%
point of each semester.
If you withdraw from all of
your classes OR stop attending
all your classes before the
60%
point of the semester
(which is right before the
last date to withdraw), you
may owe back a portion of
the financial aid you received.
The SCC Financial Aid Office
will send you a letter detailing
any amounts due to SCC and/or
to the United States Department
of Education. You will be
given 45 days from the date
of that letter to repay both
amounts to SCC. If you owe
funds, there will usually
be an amount you owe SCC.
This must be repaid before
you can enroll in classes
again, or before you can request
a transcript. There may also
be an amount you owe the Department
of Education. You must repay
this amount or make satisfactory
payment arrangements with
the Department of Education
to remain eligible for federal
financial aid beyond the 45
day period. If you do not
pay within the 45 days, SCC
will begin to collect the
amount you owe us, and the
Department of Education will
begin to collect the amount
you owe them.
To owe no funds you must attend
a class meeting on or beyond
the
60% date (the actual date
for you will depend on the
day of the week your class
meets). |
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| Q: |
What is Satisfactory
Academic Progress (SAP) and
what happens if I fall below
the requirements? |
| A: |
SAP is
the Department of Education’s
way of making sure you are
on track to completing your
program of study in a timely
manner since you are asking
them to help fund you. To
continue receiving aid at
SCC you must make a 2.0
cumulative
Grade Point Average, and
successfully complete 70%
of the cumulative
credit hours you have attempted.
If you withdraw from a class
or get an F grade, then
you have attempted that
class, but not completed
it. If you fall below either
of these standards, you
will be given one semester
of financial aid on probation
to try to improve your results
and meet these standards.
SAP rules can get rather
complicated, so please read
the full
SAP explanation for
complete information.
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