Financial Aid

A student who is in default on a Federal or State student Loan are not eligible for Federal or state financial aid until he/she resolves the default status. In order to regain federal student aid eligibility, you must provide documentation from the Department of Education or a letter on institutional letterhead from the school associated with the loan, that your loan is paid in full, has been consolidated or that you are meeting satisfactory repayment arrangements. For more detailed information regarding defaulted loan(s), visit the the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) for Students website at www.nslds.ed.gov. Click on “Financial Aid Review” and log in using your FSA USER ID or call 800-433-3243.

Scholarships are an additional source of financial assistance that many students can take advantage of. FastWeb’s free scholarship search includes more than 500,000 scholarships worth more than $1 billion. FastWeb is provided completely free and South Suburban College is a proud FastWeb member school. Search for scholarships on FastWeb! Supercollege.com also provides ideas and sources of funding to college students. Click on the “Find Scholarships” tab at the top of their page. Visit the SSC Scholarship Opportunities page for a complete listing of available SSC scholarships.

The South Suburban College Board of Trustees awards two-year tuition scholarship to outstanding high school seniors who are in the top 15 percent of their high school graduating class or have a grade point average of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 grading scale. Recipients must attend high school within District 510 or reside in the district while attending another high school. Recipients are subject to renewal at the end of each semester and must maintain at least a 3.0 (B) grade point average.

• US Department of Education – Financial Aid
• Access America for Students
• College Zone (Illinois Student Assistance Commission)
• Financial Aid for Minority Students (Onlineschools.org)

The UPS Earn and Learn Program is a student financial assistance package offered to students who work part-time at UPS. What’s that really mean to you? If you attend or plan on attending South Suburban College, the program will most likely cover the entire cost of your education. And what’s more, UPS has partnered with South Suburban to help keep the financial paperwork simple. To find out more about the Earn and Learn Program, contact the UPS representative for South Suburban College at 708-225-5827 or visit us at https://www.jobs-ups.com/earn-and-learn.

South Suburban College participates in the following federal and state financial aid programs

• Federal Pell Grant – The Pell Grant is awarded to students who demonstrate financial need as determined by the student’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) on their Student Aid Report (SAR). Grants are a form of financial aid that does not have to be repaid. Grant amounts are determined by the students’ EFC and enrollment status. Students must meet the Standards of Academic Progress (SAP) in order to remain eligible for Pell grant. The Federal Pell Grant has a lifetime eligibility limit. A student may receive Pell Grants up to a maximum of 12 semesters (600%), or the calculated equivalent.
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) – The FSEOG is a need-based grant available to students who demonstrate exceptional need (i.e. eligible for Pell grant, zero EFC).
• The Illinois Monetary Award Program (MAP) – Provides grants to eligible students demonstrating financial need. MAP grant funds are available to students who are residents of Illinois (independent students) or whose parent(s) is a resident of Illinois (dependent students). Students must meet the Standards of Academic Progress in order to remain eligible for state grants. Due to limited state funding, students are encouraged to complete and submit their FAFSA after October 1st each year.

The Federal Work-Study Program at South Suburban College is overseen by the College & Career Success Center & the Financial Aid Office.

South Suburban College may request copies of student worker candidate class schedules and financial aid award letters. All applications and supporting documents will remain on file with the College for at least six (6) months following submission. All materials submitted by successful applicants will be maintained by South Suburban College as part of the personnel file.

All individuals applying for a security sensitive position at South Suburban College are required to complete a fingerprint based criminal background investigation prior to the onset of employment with the College. The refusal to complete a fingerprint based criminal background investigation will prevent an applicant from continuing with the interview process. In the event the criminal background investigation results in a questionable finding; the matter shall be handled according to South Suburban College Board Policy 413.02.

PLEASE NOTE:

• Must have a current-year FAFSA completed.
• PROCESS: Not all students will be eligible for Federal Work study Program as it is based on financial need.
• HOURS: Students may work up to 20 hours per week.

See the list of Employment Opportunities through the Federal Work-Study Program at South Suburban College.

Limited funds are available under this program. Short-term loans are provided to eligible students for the purchase of books and supplies. Students must be continuing, have a GPA of 2.0 and be enrolled in at least 6 credit hours to be considered for this book loan.

For more information, please visit our VETERANS BENEFITS page.

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS (SAP) POLICY
All South Suburban College students, full-time and part-time, must meet the College’s guidelines for satisfactory academic progress (SAP). Students are required to be in good standing and to maintain satisfactory academic progress toward their degree requirements each semester in which they are enrolled. Satisfactory academic progress is evaluated three times a year: after the fall, spring, and summer semesters. Failure to maintain satisfactory progress may result in the loss of financial aid eligibility.

SAP Measurements
Federal regulations require that the College track the academic progress of financial aid recipients. Therefore, transfer credits, and all other credit sources, will be included in the computation of student degree completion hours. Students must meet both quantitative and qualitative components of the SAP policy in order to be considered in good academic standing.

REQUIREMENTS FOR MINIMUM SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS ARE:

1. Minimum Cumulative Grade Point Average – Students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0, a “C” average, each semester they are enrolled. Grades earned at another institution will not be included in the South Suburban College grade point average.
2. Minimum Completion Rate – Students must successfully complete two-thirds (66.67%) of their attempted cumulative semester hours. This will be measured after each semester and calculated by dividing the earned credit hours by the attempted credit hours. Transfer credit accepted from an accredited post-secondary institution will be counted as both attempted and earned credit hours in addition to any coursework completed as a student at South Suburban College.
3. Maximum Time Frame -SSC students are allowed to attempt the maximum of 150% of the credit hours required for their program of study (degree requirements may vary by program). Remedial courses, up to 30 credit hours are not counted toward credit hour completion. Students over the maximum time-frame and have not achieved their degree will be placed on disqualification (financial aid suspension) status.

EXCEPTIONS:

Exceptions are for degree programs that require more than 90 credit hours to complete, in, which the student will need to appeal for a FINAL semester.

• Academic Forgivness – All attempted hours are included in the satisfactory academic progress calculation.
• Repeated Classes– Repeat classes may only count toward financial aid eligibility if:
  • The course was previously failed or withdrawn OR
  • The course was previously passed only once(unless the College indicates that a higher grade is necessary to advance to the next course level).

EVALUATION PERIOD

Students are evaluated at the end of each semester.

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS (SAP) TERMS

1. Satisfactory – Students who met satisfactory academic progress standards (i.e. GPA of 2.0 or better, meeting completion rate of 66.67% or better and have attempted less than 90 credit hours for their degree program.)
2. Financial Aid Warning – Students will be placed on Financial Aid Warning when they fail to meet the minimum satisfactory academic progress requirements after one term for one or more of the following reasons:
   • A student’s cumulative GPA is below the 2.0 requirement; and/or
   • A student did not meet the minimum completion rate of 66.67% toward their degree progress; and/or
   • A student has attempted 90 credit hours or more.

   Students are eligible to continue receiving financial aid while on Financial Aid Warning. Students placed on Financial Aid Warning status must meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements following the grading period of the warning term in order to remain eligible for financial aid.

3. Unsatisfactory – Students who are placed on Disqualification status due to GPA, Completion Rate or Maximum Time-Frame are not eligible to receive financial aid.
4. Financial Aid Probation – Students with approved appeals are placed on Financial Aid Probation and are eligible to receive financial aid while on Financial Aid Probation. Students on Financial Aid Probation must meet the terms outlined in their academic plan.
5. Met Academic Plan – Students who meet the requirements of the academic plan will be eligible for financial aid.
6. Failed Academic Plan – Students who fail to meet the requirements of the academic plan will NOT be eligible for financial aid.
7. Appeals – South Suburban College recognizes there may be extenuating circumstances affecting student performance. The College allows students to appeal their satisfactory academic progress Disqualification status by submitting a Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal form with appropriate documentation to the Financial Aid Office for consideration of extenuating circumstances. A Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal must be submitted in writing on or before the established deadline for the appropriate term and is subject to approval by the appeal committee.Granted appeals are available for one semester only. Students who are granted a SAP appeal are required to adhere to an academic plan. The academic plan states that the student will maintain a 2.0 grade point average each semester and complete 100% of the classes in which they are enrolled. (No withdrawals, incompletes or failures).
8. SAP Notification – All SAP results (i.e. financial aid warning, financial aid probation and approved/denied appeals) are sent to students via their SSC email.

Title IV financial aid funds are awarded to the student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which federal assistance was awarded. South Suburban College Financial Aid office has established the following procedures in compliance with Federal Regulations 34 CFR 668.22 and the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 (HERA). In accordance with these regulations, South Suburban College is required to recalculate Federal Student Aid (FSA) eligibility for a student who ceases all attendance. When a student withdraws from all their courses he/she may no longer be eligible for the full amount of Title IV Funds that he/she was originally scheduled to receive. A pro-rated schedule is used to determine the amount of federal student aid the student earned at the time of the withdrawal. South Suburban College will follow the outlined procedures below to process official and unofficial withdrawals for Title IV eligible students.

Federal regulations requires schools to calculate how much federal financial aid a student has earned if that student:

• Completely withdraws, or
• Stops attending before completing the semester, or
• Does not complete all courses which are not scheduled for the entire semester

Students who receive financial aid and do not complete their classes during the semester enrolled could be responsible for repaying a portion of the financial aid they received.

Types of Withdrawals: Official and Unofficial

• Official Withdrawal – Students at South Suburban College who are completely withdrawing may request changes to their enrollment by completing the Official Course Withdrawal Form. If at any time after the published 100% tuition reversal period a student submits an Official Course Withdrawal Form; South Suburban College recognizes this as an Official Withdrawal. An R2T4 calculation will be performed for all students who completely withdraw during the aforementioned time period and are receiving or are scheduled to receive Title IV aid.
• Unofficial Withdrawals – Financial aid is awarded under the assumption that the student will attend South Suburban College for the entire term for which federal assistance was disbursed. Students who started a course but stopped attending without notifying SSC of their intent to cease attendance are considered an “unofficial” withdrawal. An R2T4 calculation will be performed.

Changes to Enrollment

Students at South Suburban College may make changes to their enrollment through their SSC portal or at the Registration Office. Students who withdraw from all of their classes during the first 60% of the semester are subject to a pro-rata refund of their federal funds. That is the college is obligated to return a percentage of federal funds to the Department of Education. A withdrawal could result in the student owing a balance to the college.

Students who are withdrawing from all courses during the term must complete the following steps:

1. Student must meet with a counselor, upon consultation with a counselor the student is given an Official Course Withdrawal form
2. Prior to withdrawing from all courses the student must meet with the financial aid staff member to understand the implications of withdrawing from all courses as complete withdrawals affect student satisfactory academic progress
3. Student takes the Official Course Withdrawal Form to Registration to complete the withdrawal process

Recalculation of Aid

Per federal regulations, if a student begins attendance in at least one course but does not begin attendance in all coursework s/he was scheduled to attend, regardless of the student is a withdrawal, the institution must determine if it is necessary to recalculate the student’s eligibility for Pell and FSEOG based on the revised enrollment status and cost of attendance. This recalculation must be done prior to performing an R2T4.

Charges

Charges are assessed to the student’s account for the term based on the census hours. After this drop/add period is over, there is no refund or pro-ration of tuition or fees.

Unearned Aid Returned

Once the R2T4 calculation has been completed, South Suburban College will return all funds for which the institution is responsible and return all funds for which the student is responsible( on behalf of the student). South Suburban College will return all aid in the following order as regulated in The Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 (HERA):

• Unsubsidized Stafford Loan*
• Subsidized Stafford Loan*
• PLUS Loan*
• Pell Grant
• FSEOG Grant
• Federal TEACH Grant*
• Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant (IASG)

*South Suburban College does not participate in the Direct Loan and Teach Program.

Post-Withdrawal Disbursement

Apost-withdrawal disbursement (PWD) occurs when a student’s earned aid exceeds the amount of aid disbursed.

Student Notification

The Financial Aid Office will notify all students who had an R2T4 calculation performed or who may be eligible for a PWD via email. The email will provide the student with the following information:

• Documentation required to complete verification
• Amount of aid returned and from which program
• Balance due to the College
• Information on where to make a payment

The U.S. Department of Education requires colleges with financial aid eligible certificate programs that prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation to disclose certain information about these programs. Educational program information is updated as new data becomes available. Whether you are a current student or a prospective student, we hope that this information is helpful in making informed choices about your career and education.

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