Financial Aid


Important Changes to the 2012-2013 FAFSA Process


All students applying for financial aid for the 2012-2013 school year should be informed of the following changes involving FAFSA and the Verification process:

IRS Data Retrieval – When filling out the FAFSA, Schoolcraft College strongly recommends all students parents, and spouses (if applicable) to upload the 2011 income tax information to their FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval tool. In order to do so, all parties must have already filed 2011 taxes, at least two weeks prior to filling out the FAFSA. The IRS Data Retrieval tool will be available February 1, 2012.

Verification: Students who are selected for verification and DID NOT use the IRS Data Retrieval tool will be required to:

  • Complete and submit the Verification Worksheet
  • Submit an OFFICIAL Tax Return Transcript, obtainable from IRS after the 2011 Tax Return has been filed by calling 1-800-908-9946 or you may request the transcript on line at www.irs.gov, under "tools," click on "Order a Tax Return or Account Transcript."
  • Submit Tax Return Transcripts for students or parents spouse’s who are married (not separated) but file income tax separately.

NOTE: For 2012-2013, Schoolcraft College will no longer accept sign copies of Federal Tax Returns (IRS 1040, 1040A, and 1040EZ) to complete the verification process. Please do not send 2011 Tax Returns to the Office of Financial Aid. All paper copies of 2011 tax returns will be shredded.



FINANCIAL AID POLICY REGARDING REPEAT COURSEWORK

Effective July 1, 2011, per federal regulations (34 CFR Section 668.2), repeated coursework that falls under the following conditions cannot be included in a student's enrollment status for Title IV Federal Aid eligibility, including the Federal Pell Grant and Federal Stafford Loans:

  • Repeating a previously passed course more than once. A course is considered passed if the student receives a grade of 1.0 or better.
  • Repeating a previously passed course due to failing other coursework.
  • Repeating a previously passed course for the sole purpose of gaining eligibility for Title IV aid.

Federal Title IV aid will be recalculated based on the student's adjusted enrollment status. This recalculation will be applied regardless of whether a student received aid for previous course enrollments.

Some courses are repeatable per college policy and are not restricted by these regulations.

Examples

Example 1:
A student is repeating a previously passed three credit hour course for the second time. The student is enrolled in a total of twelve credit hours for the term. Per federal regulations, the repeated course must be excluded from the student's Title IV enrollment status. Only nine of the student's twelve hours can be used to calculate his Title IV aid eligibility. The student's Federal Pell Grant will be reduced to reflect three quarter time instead of full-time enrollment.

Example 2:
A student passes a course with a 1.2. They want to take the course a second time to improve their grade. The second attempt will be counted in the total enrollment hours for Title IV aid purposes. The student will not be eligible to receive aid for that same class on any additional attempt.

Example 3:
A student repeats a previously passed course. The student receives a 0.0 on the second attempt. The student attempts the course for the third time. The third course attempt will not be counted in total enrollment hours for Title IV aid purposes.

Example 4:
A student repeats a previously passed course. The student withdraws (receives a W) from the course on the second attempt. The student attempts the course for the third time. The third course attempt will not be counted in total enrollment hours for Title IV aid purposes.