Withdrawal Exception Request
Financial Aid Advising Impact Information Sheet
Students withdrawing from all courses for the term, whether through the Withdrawal Exception
Process or on their own should be aware of how this may affect not only current financial aid
standing, but also future financial aid eligibility. Below is a list of items students should consider.
Return to Title IV – Federal Financial Aid funds are considered Title IV funding. When a student completely
withdraws from a term, either self‐initiated or via the Withdrawal Exception process, the school is required to
complete a calculation to determine the amount of earned and unearned financial aid. Any unearned financial
aid must be returned to the U.S. Dept. of Education on behalf of the student. This calculation is completed
within 30 days of a student completely withdrawing or the institution becoming aware of the students
withdrawal.
Overpayment – Students are awarded financial aid based on financial need and enrollment status. If a
student changes enrollment status, it is possible for the student to have received too much financial aid,
causing an overpayment. Aside from funds owed to the college an overpayment of financial aid is due back to
the U.S. Dept. of Education by the student. An overpayment may result in a student not being able to receive
Federal Financial Aid funds at any institution until this balance is paid, or successful payment arrangements
have been reached.
Transferring/Using Remaining Funds – Any funds applied to a student account will decrease a student’s
financial aid eligibility at another institution during the same award year. This may result in a student having
less financial aid eligibility at their new school due to what was awarded/paid at the previous institution.
Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) – Federal Financial Aid Regulations state that a student
must be completing 2/3
rd
( 67%) of their enrollment, and maintain a GPA eligible to graduate (2.0 or higher at
Cuyahoga Community College). Students failing to meet these standards are subject to losing financial aid
eligibility for a term or longer and may need to appeal to try to regain their financial aid eligibility. A students
SAP status is non‐transferrable, meaning that a student’s status at Cuyahoga Community College does not
affect their eligibility at another institution.
Subsidized Loan 150% Rule –Federal Financial Aid Regulations regarding loans state that a student will
lose their eligibility to receive a Federal Direct Subsidized Loan once they have exceeded 150% of their
program’s published length of time. Students enrolled in a published two year program are allotted three
years to complete before they are no longer eligible to receive a subsidized loan. This is applied to new
borrowers as of 7/1/2013 (A new borrower is considered anyone that had a zero outstanding federal loan
balance as of 7/1/2013, or at the time of the loan).
Pell Grant Lifetime Limit –Federal Financial Aid Regulations have been put in place regarding Pell Grant.
Once a student has received the equivalent of 600% they are no longer eligible to receive the Pell Grant. This
is based on the number of semesters enrolled and enrollment status during which Pell Grant was disbursed.
For example, if a student attends full time status during fall semester, and used Pell, they would have used
50%. During the spring semester, the student attends full time again, and uses Pell. The student’s Pell usage
for the year would be 100%, and the student would then have 500% remaining.
Direct Loan Aggregate Limits – In addition to the annual loan limits for students, Federal Financial Aid
Regulations stipulate that a student may receive a total of $57,500 (dependent students are limited to
$31,000. Up to $23,000 can be subsidized, depending on eligibility. Independent borrowers may utilize the
full $57,500) total during their undergraduate degree. If a student reaches this level prior to completing their
degree program, and wish to continue borrowing, payments may have to be made toward the loan aggregate
amount, before the student is eligible to borrow again.