Financial Aid-Graduate Students

The Financial Aid Office at York College provides instruction on the processes for applying, securing and maintaining eligibility for financial resources to meet educational costs, and ensures that every student is treated with the highest degree of professionalism, confidentiality, honesty and integrity. The Financial Aid Office is located in the Academic Core Building, room 1M08.

How to Contact us

The Financial Aid office offers both remote and in-person services to students in an effort to keep everyone safe. Please check the schedule on our website for in-person and virtual hours. We have also established a secure portal on our website where sensitive documents can be loaded. Our finaid email continues to be available to you as well as our office phones.

The Cost of Education

The cost of education is an important consideration when deciding which educational program is best suited to your goals and aspirations. The following information should be of assistance to you in calculating the costs related to attending York College. By performing some basic calculations, you can develop your own student budget. Generally, a student budget consists of the direct educational costs of tuition, fees, books and supplies, as well as those costs which are incurred by virtue of attendance, such as transportation and lunch. Students who are not living with their parents also need to take into consideration housing costs, and those with young children need to include childcare expenses.

Federal Aid

For most of the graduate student financial aid programs administered by the Federal Government, you need to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) first so that financial need is established. The application is available at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa and the York College federal code is 004759.. Updated information is maintained on the Financial Aid website.

Transfer Students

Students transferring to York should ensure that York College is listed on their application for federal aid. You can add the York College Federal Code (004759)

Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan

The Direct Stafford Loan program allows full-time and part-time students to borrow money directly from the federal government. The loans must be paid back beginning six months after graduation or dropping below half-time enrollment. Interest accrues while the student attends school. This interest may be paid or added to the loan. The latest interest rate information can be found at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates. You should be aware that once you begin receiving federal assistance, you must maintain good academic standing and must make satisfactory academic progress toward the completion of your degree in order to continue receiving aid.

PLUS Loans

Students are eligible to borrow under the PLUS Loan Program up to their cost of attendance minus other estimated financial assistance in the Direct Loan Program. The terms and conditions applicable to Parent PLUS Loans also apply to Graduate/Professional PLUS loans. Requirements include a determination that the applicant does not have an adverse credit history.

Application Form

Applicants for these loans are required to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Federal Programs for Graduate Study

Amounts

There are no set annual or aggregate limits. You may borrow up to your full cost of attendance, minus any other financial aid you receive (including Direct Subsidized Loans, Direct Unsubsidized Loans, scholarships, and certain fellowships).

Interest Rate and Repayment

Direct PLUS Loans have a fixed interest rate which can be found at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates. This interest rate will not change throughout the life of your loan. Graduate PLUS borrowers have nearly all the repayment options that Direct Loan borrowers have. The exception is that the Direct Loan Income Contingent Repayment Plan is not an option for Direct PLUS Loan borrowers. Repayment begins on the date of the last disbursement of the loan and the first payment is due within 60 days after the date the loan is fully disbursed. A Graduate PLUS borrower may receive a deferment while he or she is enrolled on at least a halftime basis at an eligible school. Upon dropping to less than half-time enrollment status, the borrower is not entitled to a grace period on his or her PLUS loans.

Qualifying Credits and Program

You must be enrolled at least half-time in a graduate or professional program (for example, a program that leads to a Master's Degree or to a law or medical degree), and must meet all of the other general eligibility requirements for the Federal Student Aid programs. In addition, you must not have an adverse credit history (a credit-check will be done).

Additional information

The Graduate and Professional Student PLUS loan will not reduce eligibility for the Stafford Loan, but the PLUS loan limit will take the amount borrowed under the Stafford Loan into account. The PLUS loan is limited to cost of attendance minus aid received, as certified by the school.

Federal Work Study Program (FWS)

Federal Work-Study is a program which provides employment for students with financial need. The program encourages community service and work related to the student's course of study. Jobs are available both on and off campus. The FWS award amount depends on the level of need and availability of funds. Selection of recipients and allocation of award you must be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen, enrolled at least halftime. In the event that more students are eligible for FWS than there are funds available, preference is given to students who have a greater financial need and have completed applications on file while funding is available.

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Federal regulations require the college to establish standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) for purposes of the receipt of Title IV financial assistance. When appropriate, this policy may be applied to other aid programs administered by Financial Aid. A student must maintain satisfactory academic progress in a course of study regardless of whether the student was a previous recipient of Title IV financial assistance. The factors required to measure satisfactory progress are qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative measure is the grade point average. The quantitative measure is the time-frame/limitation.

In order to be making satisfactory academic progress toward a degree, for purposes of receipt of Title IV Federal Assistance, a graduate student must:

• Maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 or better, or have an academic standing consistent with the requirements for graduation.

• Attempted no more than 150% of the credits normally required for completion of the degree

• Accumulated credits equal to or greater than two-thirds the cumulative credits attempted

All students will be measured against the satisfactory academic standard at the end of the spring term to determine eligibility for receipt of Title IV student financial assistance for the upcoming year. Students who fall beneath the conditional standard may petition to the Satisfactory Academic Petition Committee to retain their eligibility for receipt of Title IV Federal Student Assistance. These appeals will be evaluated for mitigating circumstances resulting from events such as personal illness, injury, and personal tragedy, and for indicators that the student will achieve the appropriate standard. A successful appeal will result in a one or two-semester probationary plan or period during which the student must meet the appropriate standard.

Other than having eligibility restored through filing a successful appeal, a student on financial aid suspension may regain eligibility only by taking action that brings him or her into compliance with the appropriate progress standard. The mere passage of time is insufficient to restore Title IV eligibility to a student who has lost eligibility due to not meeting the SAP standard. Therefore, students may not re-establish eligibility solely by leaving the institution for at least a year because this action, by itself, would not bring the student into compliance for Title IV SAP.

If a student is on financial aid suspension at the beginning of the academic year for not meeting one or more components of the school's SAP standard, but meets them at some point later in the academic year, he or she may regain Title IV eligibility upon request of review of academic record.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals recorded on your permanent record will be counted in your cumulative record of credits attempted and will adversely affect your ability to meet the satisfactory progress standard.

Note: Changes to your enrollment record caused by retroactive "non-punitive" administrative withdrawal activity can result in your having to repay the assistance you received that term.

Repeated Courses

Successfully completed courses can generally be accepted toward degree requirements only once. However, each time you attempt a course, it is included as part of your cumulative record of attempted credits. Therefore, repeating a course, regardless of prior grade, reduces your ability to meet the satisfactory progress standard. Note, federal aid permits repeat of a previously passed course only once.

Withdrawals and Return of Federal Financial Aid

There are federal regulations pertaining to recipients of financial aid funds who withdraw from school. They require the school, and sometimes the student, to repay some or all of the financial aid that was received. When these regulations require a larger repayment of federal funding sources than the amount specified by the school's refund policy, the student will be responsible for the difference. In general, the law assumes that you "earn" your federal financial aid awards directly in proportion to the number of days of the term you attend. If you completely withdraw from school during a term, the college must calculate according to a specific formula the portion of the total scheduled financial assistance you have earned and are therefore entitled to receive up to the time you withdrew.

If you receive (or the college receives on your behalf) more assistance than you earn, the unearned excess funds must be returned to the Department of Education. If, on the other hand, you receive (or the college receives on your behalf) less assistance than the amount you have earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds. The portion of your federal grants and loans you are entitled to receive is calculated on a percentage basis by comparing the total number of days in the semester to the number of days you completed before you withdrew. For example, if you complete 30% of the semester, you earn 30% of the assistance you were originally scheduled to receive. This means that 70% of your scheduled awards remain unearned and must be returned to the Federal Government. Once you have completed more than 60% of the semester, you can be said to have earned all (100%) of your assistance. If you withdraw from the college (either officially or unofficially) before completing 60% of the semester, you may have to repay any unearned federal monies that were already disbursed to you.

Your withdrawal date may be determined by the college as:

• The date you submitted the withdrawal form to the Office of the Registrar.

• Or the midpoint of the semester if you withdraw without notification.