2007 Winter Financial Aid Newsletter

2007-2008 FINANCIAL AID APPLICATION REMINDERS
Here are few reminders for students and parents for applying for Financial Aid for the 2007-2008 academic year:

• File early, as soon as the student's and/or parent's federal tax returns are completed. Any student who plans to live in the Residence Halls and wants to have their financial aid credited towards their cost must apply for financial aid by March 15, 2007.
• Get a PIN. Both students and parents should have a financial aid PIN, which will allow them to sign the On-line FAFSA electronically and to make corrections to the FAFSA on-line. For more info go to www.pin.ed.gov.
• File On-line. Students can apply for both Federal and NYS Financial Aid programs via the Internet at www.fafsa.ed.gov. On-line is faster, more efficient, and more accurate than using the paper application process.
• Keep copies of all of your 2006 income documents. (Federal & State tax returns, W-2's, Social Security, Unemployment, or Welfare benefits statements)
• Respond to requests for additional information. If you delay in submitting requested information to the Financial Aid Office, you can expect that the processing of your financial aid will be delayed as well.

2007-08 RENEWAL FAFSA
If you are currently receiving financial aid through the Federal Aid Programs for the 2006-07 academic year, you may have received notification from the Department of Education that you can reapply for financial aid for the 2007-08 academic year, using the Renewal FAFSA process.

A "Renewal FAFSA" is a FAFSA that is made available to returning federal aid applicants who have a completed FAFSA on file prior to January 12, 2007. The Renewal FAFSA is pre-printed with information specific to an individual student, such as name, address, college information, etc… to be used for the next academic year. It is pre-printed with the student's information in order to make the re-application process faster for students and their families.

Students can access their 2007-08 Renewal FAFSA's via the FAFSA web page at www.fafsa.ed.gov. In order to access their Renewal FAFSA online, students will need their Federal Personal Identification Number (PIN). If a student has misplaced their PIN, they can request a new one via the Federal PIN web site at www.pin.ed.gov.

Renewal FAFSA notices are being sent via e-mail to students who provided an e-mail address on their 06-07 FAFSA's or by regular mail to students who did not provide an e-mail address. Students who cannot access their Renewal FAFSA or do not have one available can still reapply for financial aid using a standard 2007-08 FAFSA.

TAP FOR PART-TIME STUDENTS
Beginning in the 2007-2008 school year, students who are enrolled less than full-time, 6 to 11 credit hours, may be eligible to receive a Part-Time NYS TAP award. To be eligible for a Part-Time TAP award, a student must;

• Meet the standard eligibility requirements to receive a NYS TAP award.
• Be a first-time freshman in the 2006-07 academic year or thereafter.
• Have earned 12 credit hours or more in each of the two consecutive preceding semesters, for a minimum total of 24 credits earned.
• Maintain a minimum GPA of at least 2.0 or higher
• Be enrolled in 6-11 credit hours per semester

Part-Time TAP awards will be determined based on a percentage of their full-time award equivalent to the number of credit hours in which they are enrolled.

For example, a student who would receive an award of $250 for a semester as a full-time student, (12 credit hours) would receive an award of $187.50 if they were enrolled in 9 credit hours, or $125 in they were enrolled in 6 credit hours.

To apply, students must complete a FAFSA and NYS TAP application.

LOAN ENTRANCE COUNSELING
Students who are borrowing a student loan at MCC for the first time are required to complete a Loan Entrance Counseling Session. To meet this requirement, students must complete the loan entrance counseling session online at www.monroecc.edu/depts/finaid. From there click on the "Loan Entrance Counseling" link on the navigation bar.

Once the student completes the online Loan Entrance Counseling, they must print the confirmation form at the end and submit it to the MCC Financial Aid Office. Students who do not complete the Loan Entrance Counseling, will not receive a Federal Direct Student Loan.

REPEATED COURSES & YOUR FINANCIAL AID
Many students do not realize that repeating courses can have an adverse effect on their financial aid eligibility. This primarily occurs in regards to New York State Financial Aid programs, such as TAP. If a student retakes a course in which they have received a passing grade (D- or higher), the course cannot be counted as part of the student's course load which determines the students eligibility for state financial aid programs. However, as in most instances, there are a few exceptions to this rule:

1. A passing grade is received for a course, but a higher grade is necessary to meet the degree requirements. i.e. A student receives a grade of "D" in FIN 200, however the program requires that the student has a grade of "C" or higher in order to graduate from that program.
2. A passing grade is received for a course, but a higher grade is necessary to take the next course in the sequence. i.e. A student receives a grade of "D" in FIN 201, however the program requires that the student has a grade of "C" or higher in order to take FIN 202.
3. A student must take and pass two associated courses concurrently and a passing grade is received in only one of the courses. i.e. Course FIN 200 requires that concurrently take FIN 201 and the student receives a "B" in FIN 200 and an "F" in FIN 201.
4. When a course may be repeated and credit earned toward the degree each time it is taken, such as physical education courses.

Student's who have questions regarding repeating coursework and maintaining their financial aid eligibility, should review pages 33-36 of the MCC 2006-2007 College Catalog and Student Handbook or contact the MCC Financial Aid Office.

2005 Fall Financial Aid Newsletter

2005 Summer Financial Aid Newsletter

2005 Spring Financial Aid Newsletter

2005 Winter Financial Aid Newsletter

2004 Summer Financial Aid Newsletter

2004 Spring Financial Aid Newsletter

2004 Winter Financial Aid Newsletter

2003 Fall Financial Aid Newsletter

2003 Summer Financial Aid Newsletter

2003 Spring Financial Aid Newsletter

2003 Winter Financial Aid Newsletter