Accepting Aid

Next Steps to Finalizing Your Financial Aid Award

Congratulations! You have been approved to receive some form of Financial Aid. Now take the next step!

It is important that you ensure you will receive your aid by going through the appropriate process of finalizing your financial aid offer notice. Please take the time to read all of the information below carefully so you understand what is required of you in order to receive your aid. If you have questions at any point, please contact the Office of Financial Aid for assistance.

Please review the simple instructions steps below:

Reviewing Your Financial Aid Offer Notice
How to Respond to Your Aid Offer
Terms & Conditions of Financial Aid
Receiving Your Financial Aid
Funds Applied Directly to Your Student Account
Financial Aid Refunds
Items that Impact the Offering of Aid
Taxable Financial Aid

Financial Aid Offer Notice

Once you have been offered aid, you will receive an offer notice. This will come in the form of a physical letter for first-year students – carefully reviewing this letter is the first step in accepting your aid. An email is sent to continuing and transfer students.

Reviewing Your Offer Notice

Area 1. Type of Offer

Offer – this is the first offer notice sent.
Estimated – first offer sent to a student needing additional documents.
Revised – offer notice that is different from the first notice.

Area 2. Financial Aid Offers

The financial aid offers are based on the financial need of the student. Offers are broken down into:
- Grants (aid that does not have to be repaid)
- Loans (aid that is borrowed and must be repaid)
- Scholarships (aid that does not have to be repaid)
- Work-Study (aid that must be earned)

Area 3. Additional Documents Required

Your aid will only pay once all required documents have been completed. If you still need to file any documents, they will be listed here.

Area 4. Expected Enrollment

This is the enrollment status your offers are based on for the terms listed

Area 5. Cost of Attendance (COA)

The COA, also known as the budget, is an estimation of what it costs to go to school for a specific period of enrollment. The COA is calculated using an estimated cost of tuition & fees; food & housing; books & supplies; personal expenses; and transportation.
This is not what a student/family is expected to pay out-of-pocket. Actual expenses may be higher or lower depending on your lifestyle.
Tuition & fees and housing costs (for on-campus students) are the only items charged by the university.

How to Respond to Your Aid Offer

Aid offer notification is done electronically (with the exception of the first notice to new first-year students). Students will receive notifications in the UM-Flint email account. Review the Terms and Conditions and the entire Required Reading document for information on your rights and responsibilities that may affect your financial aid. Please see the instructions below to view, accept, and/or decline aid.

All Financial Aid Recipients
Online acceptance/declination of Federal work-study and all Federal loans. Loans will be cancelled if not accepted by the end of the loan period, which is typically the end of the semester. The Federal Work-Study acceptance deadline is September 30th.

Complete the following:

Log on to SIS: finaid.umflint.edu
Click on ‘Offer’
If needed, select the aid year from the drop down menu at the top
Scroll down to view aid
In the ‘Take Action’ column, click on select to accept, decline, or modify your aid
Click the submit button
Follow the instructions to review the terms and conditions

First Time Borrower
Federal Direct Subsidized, Federal Direct Unsubsidized, and Graduate PLUS Loan Borrowers:

Students borrowing through the Federal Direct Loan Program must sign a Direct Loan EMPN to receive their Direct Loan funds. This signature authorizes UM-Flint to credit the Direct Loan funds to your student account. An EMPN will expire if no loan funds are paid within the first year of signing. After signing the EMPN you will immediately receive a receipt and acceptance confirmation from the Federal government. The Office of Financial Aid receives electronic confirmation that the EMPN and Entrance Counseling have been completed. The EMPN is valid for up to ten years. Student will need to complete another EMPN if their original EMPN expires and they are still in need of borrowing Federal Direct Loan funds. Print or save a copy of your signed EMPN for your records (optional).

Online Signature of Electronic Master Promissory Note (EMPN)

Complete the following:
Log on to studentaid.gov
Click on ‘Complete Loan Agreement for a Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loan (MPN)’
Click on the ‘Log into Start’
Click on ‘Accept’
Click on ‘Start’
Enter the required information
Select the ‘University of Michigan – Flint’ as your school
Review, Sign, and Submit
Print or save a copy of your Master Promissory Note for your records (optional)

Online Entrance Counseling
Students borrowing through the Federal Direct Loan Program must complete counseling to receive their Direct Loan funds. Complete the following:

Log on to studentaid.gov
Click on ‘Complete Counseling’
Select ‘Entrance Counseling’ and then click ‘Start’
Select ‘Michigan’ as the school state
Select ‘University of Michigan – Flint’ as your school
Click on ‘Notify This School’
Complete the session online

Terms & Conditions of Financial Aid

When a student accepts the offer of financial aid specified on an offer notice, that student agrees to accept and fulfill the following responsibilities, including the terms and conditions set by the federal regulations for financial aid.

Receipt of Additional Assistance

You cannot receive aid in excess of your assigned budget per institutional policies and federal regulations.
You MUST notify the Office of Financial Aid in writing of any additional assistance (such as book vouchers, MRS, stipends, outside scholarships, etc.) that you receive.
Financial Aid offers will be reviewed in cases of additional assistance to evaluate if adjustments to aid must be made. Should any change be necessary, from the offers you accepted, you will be notified at the earliest possible date.
Students enrolled at more than one institution CANNOT receive Federal Pell Grant from both institutions.

Use of Funds

Aid cannot be disbursed any earlier than ten days prior to the start of a semester.
You must use funds listed on your offer notice only for educationally related expenses incurred at UM-Flint for the academic year for which the funds were offered.
Financial aid funds are directly applied to tuition, fees, housing, and other charges that may appear on a student’s account. Any additional funds (indicated by a negative balance on SIS) will be released to students to be used for indirect educational costs (see Financial Aid Refunds).
You agree that a financial aid refund from one semester can be used to cover any prior semester’s outstanding charges within the same academic year. If you wish to decline the crediting of one semester’s aid refund to a prior semester’s charges, you must decline in writing to the Student Accounts Office, ten days before the start of the semester. This exception is limited to $200.

Students Selected for Verification

Federal regulations governing financial aid programs require some students’ FAFSA information to be verified. Additional forms may be requested to complete the verification process and must be submitted immediately.
Worksheets for Dependent and Independent students are available thru the student requirements section on SIS.
NO federal, state and some institutional AID is disbursed until all requested documents are received, reviewed, and processed.
Your offer notice will state that it is estimated if selected for verification.
Once verification is complete aid will be disbursed; if the EFC changes as a result of verification, there may be a delay in certain types of aid from disbursing. Students will be notified of any changes to their offer amounts.

Previously Received Title IV Federal Aid

Aid recipients must not be in default of any federal educational loans, or owe any repayment of federal grants received at post-secondary institutions.

Enrollment Requirements

Attendance
- The U.S. Department of Education allows funds to be disbursed to students in good faith that students will begin attending all classes. Students earn their financial aid by beginning attendance, continuing, and successfully completing all coursework. Students failing to begin attendance in all courses will have their aid adjusted.
Repeating Coursework
- There are restrictions on the number of times a student may receive financial aid for repeating coursework regardless if financial aid paid for the course. Courses passed once, with a D- or higher, are eligible for financial aid for one retake of the course in which another grade is earned (whether pass or fail). Some courses are excluded from this regulation.
Enrollment Level
- The financial aid budget is based on the enrollment level listed on the financial aid offer notice. If enrollment plans change students should submit a revision form to the Office of Financial Aid.
- Most types of aid require at least half-time enrollment. Graduate students need to be enrolled in a minimum of four graduate credits to be eligible for graduate level loans, including Graduate Plus Loan.

Federal Pell Grant
- Students are offered Federal Pell Grant based on their annual SAI (as determined by the FAFSA) and must begin attendance in each semester’s courses to be eligible. Amounts will vary depending on SAI and enrollment. Only students attempting their first undergraduate degree are eligible. Students may receive Pell Grant for the equivalent of 12 full-time semesters. Annual limits are determined by the SAI and Federal Pell tables. Students enrolled full-time for fall/winter terms will use their annual limit in these terms. Students may have summer eligibility if they qualify for a 150% Pell offer or did not enroll full-time in fall and winter. If a student withdraws from a semester in which the student receives 150% Federal Pell Grant, the Federal Pell Grant will be recalculated and there is a possibility it will be rescinded even after it has paid to the student’s account.
Scholarships
- Scholarships have varying enrollment requirements. Students should refer to their scholarship congratulatory letter for specific enrollment requirements.
Wait-list & Auditing
- Courses for which a student is wait-listed or courses elected to audit do not count when determining your level of enrollment. Please note that less than full-time enrollment will result in reduced aid eligibility and may affect your future aid eligibility, as well as your Satisfactory Academic Progress.
Reducing Enrollment Levels
- Enrollment levels (number of credit hours) are monitored each term. If you drop courses and fall below the minimum credit hour requirements you may be required to repay all or part of the aid you received. If you consider dropping a class, it is important to discuss your situation fully with a financial aid officer prior to doing so. Every attempt should be made to drop courses within the first ten days of the semester to avoid being charged.
Withdrawal from the University
- If you officially or unofficially withdraw from a semester your aid will require a recalculation. Depending upon when you withdraw, you may be required to repay all or part of the aid you received — including any refunds.
- If you received a federal student loan, you will be sent information on completing loan repayment “exit” counseling.
Satisfactory Academic Progress
- To remain eligible for financial aid, students must make Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward completing degree requirements
Undergraduates with a Prior Bachelor’s Degree(s)
- Undergraduates who are returning for a second bachelor’s degree or teacher certification will only be offered loans while pursuing additional majors or bachelor’s degree(s). This includes students with a double major or dual degree program who have already met the requirements for one of their majors or degrees and are continuing their education toward the additional major or degree.
Repayment
- You agree to repay UM-Flint any financial aid funds disbursed to you in error. If a mistake was made, whether by yourself, or a university office or another agency, federal regulations require that the mistake be corrected and funds be billed back as necessary.
Electronic Communication
- The Office of Financial Aid uses the UM-Flint email address provided to each student as the primary means of communication. All notifications and disclosures are sent via email. Students who do not wish to use electronic communication must notify the Office of Financial Aid in writing.

Receiving Your Financial Aid

If all the steps below have been completed approximately one month prior to the beginning of the enrollment period, every attempt will be made to release funds by the beginning of the term. The first disbursement of aid will be made no earlier than 10 days prior to the beginning of the fall and winter semesters. The first disbursement of aid for spring and summer semesters will be made no earlier than the first day of classes.

Credit Hours: You must be enrolled (not wait-listed) for the credit hours that your aid is based on. Refer to the Award Overview page on SIS to see your expected enrollment.

Offer Notice: You must have received a financial aid offer notice, submitted documents requested to the Office of Financial Aid, and satisfied all posted requirements.

Requirements: Outstanding requirements can prevent the disbursement of aid.

Loan Promissory Notes:

Federal Direct Subsidized or Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans:
- If you have been offered one of these loans for the first time, you must complete a Direct Loan Electronic Master Promissory Note using your FSA ID.
- First-time loan borrowers will also need to complete the on-line entrance counseling.

Financial Aid Holds: All financial aid holds must be resolved in order for your financial aid funds to disburse to your student account. Examples of Financial Aid Holds: students placed on Satisfactory Academic Progress WARN status; students needing a final high school transcript; students placed on academic Up or Out status; or students graduating in one semester and admitted to a subsequent semester under another student type.

Funds Applied Directly to Your Student Account

Financial aid funds are directly applied to tuition, fees, and other charges that appear on a student’s account.
Students are responsible for checking the status of their student account.
All bills are emailed by the Cashier’s/Student Accounts to students using their UM-Flint email account. Exception: The first bill for incoming first-year, transfers, or new graduate students are printed and mailed to the address on file. All subsequent bills will be sent via email. Students are responsible for seeing that tuition is paid by the due date each semester to avoid late fees assessed by the university.
A student’s delay in submitting additional paperwork by the August 1 deadline, as specified under outstanding requirements, may result in a delay in disbursement. Students are responsible for late fees in these situations.
Student borrowers have the right to cancel all or a portion of a Federal Student Loan (Direct, or PLUS) up to 14 days after the disbursement of the loan
Financial aid can take up to 2 weeks to reflect on a student account after acceptance. To avoid late fees, allow processing time prior to due dates.

Work-Study Employment

Work-Study awards are earned as wages by working in positions on campus or through approved non-profit organizations.
Wages are typically paid bi-weekly through the university’s payroll system (they are not applied directly to a student account). The preferred method of payment is direct deposit to a checking or savings account. Paychecks not cashed after 180 days are VOID. Earned funds are returned to the program if paychecks are not cashed within 240 days.
Students who are interested in community service may find a number of positions available through the Work-Study program.
Human Resources maintains a listing of eligible Work-Study jobs.

Financial Aid Refunds

Students whose financial aid is more than the charges on their student account will receive the excess funds, referred to as a stipend, to pay other educationally related expenses.

Stipend Disbursement Options

Direct deposit into a student’s checking or savings account
- Students must sign up for an e-Refund on SIS in order to take advantage of this option
- Students should check with their financial institution for any holds placed on deposited funds
A check mailed to your current address as listed on SIS (void after 90 days if not cashed)
If a parent borrows through the Parent PLUS Loan program, they have the choice of having the PLUS loan stipend mailed to them or released to the student.

If subsequent charges are made to a student account after a stipend is received, payment is the responsibility of the student.

Allowable Expenses for Stipend Funds

Students may use the stipend funds to pay for any of the following educationally related expenses.

Housing
Books and supplies
Transportation
Other miscellaneous expenses

Options for Book Purchases Using Stipend Funds

All stores or on-line sites that sell textbooks; including Barnes & Noble Book Store
- Cash the check or deposit to checking or savings account
- Direct deposited to a student’s checking or savings account
Additional benefit available through Barnes & Noble Book Store
- Take the check from the Cashier’s/Student Accounts directly to the bookstore
- Book purchase must be at least 50% of the amount of the check

Items that Impact the Offering of Aid

Repeat Coursework

A student may receive aid when repeating a course for the first time (course was previously failed or passed first time)
A student may receive aid when repeating a course that was previously failed (received an N, E, F); regardless of the number of times the course was attempted and failed
A student may receive aid to repeat a previously passed course one additional time ONLY
Once a student has completed any course once with a passing grade and received aid for one retake in which a grade is earned (whether pass or fail), he/she is no longer eligible to receive aid for that course, regardless if the course itself requires a higher grade to receive full credit
Passing grades for purposes of this regulation are A, B, C, D, or P

The following action will occur following the add/drop period of each term:

If a student retakes a course that is not aid-eligible, a recalculation of aid will be done to exclude the credits for the repeated course
Not all aid will require adjustment. Students may see the adjustment on their aid offers by viewing offers in SIS.
Students will receive notification if they are aid applicants and attempt to repeat coursework beyond the limits. Adjustments to financial aid and notification of such will occur following the add/drop period of each term. This may result in the student repaying part of their federal aid.

UM-Flint has academic policies regarding courses that may be re-elected for a defined number of attempts. Courses that must be re-elected as a requirement of a major may be covered by financial aid (i.e. music, theater, etc.). Please refer to the UM-Flint Catalog for more information on academic policies.

Withdrawing from the University

All withdrawal steps are handled by the Office of the Registrar.
If you withdraw or are asked to withdraw, you should inquire with the Office of Financial Aid about the impact withdrawing will have on your aid.
Depending on the withdrawal date, you may be required to repay all or a portion of the aid that you received (see the Return of Title IV Funds section).
Withdrawing from a semester significantly impacts your Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).
Withdrawal is the term used for the process of dropping all classes across all parts of term for a given semester. Students may withdraw from the semester until the final drop deadline. Once a course has received any grade, students are no longer eligible to withdraw from the semester.
- During the Fall, Winter, or Semester, a student who withdraws
  - Could receive a refund of half tuition depending on the date of the withdrawal
  - See Academic Calendar for deadline dates.

Withdrawing from Parts of Term

Students enrolling in both the Part of Term 2 and Part of Term 3 who elect to withdraw from Part of Term 2 must provide in writing to the Office of Financial Aid, their intent to remain in the Part of Term 3. A form will be available online to notify the office in writing.
Should a student decide to withdraw from Part of Term 3 while attending Part of Term 2, no recalculation of Part of Term 2 aid will be required.
A decision to withdraw from Part of Term 3 any time after Part of Term 2 has ended (this includes days between the parts of term) will result in a recalculation of that semester’s aid and may require that the student repay part or all of the aid already received.
Return of Funds calculations may be reversed if the student enrolls in and completes courses in a later part of term.
Students offered 150% Federal Pell Grant must maintain at least half-time enrollment. If a student withdraws from a semester in which the student receives 150% Federal Pell Grant, the Federal Pell Grant will be recalculated and there is a possibility it will be rescinded even after it has paid to the student’s account. If a student withdraws from Part of Term 3, Part of Term 2 Federal Pell Grant will be rescinded even after paid to the student account if the student didn’t remain enrolled at least half-time.

Fee Appeals

Extenuating circumstances may prompt a student to file an appeal to request their charges be reduced; this is called a fee appeal. Fee Appeals are handled by Cashier’s/Student Accounts. If a fee appeal is approved to adjust charges for a course or courses for a financial aid recipient, the information is forwarded to the Office of Financial Aid for review and potential aid adjustments.

When a fee appeal is approved for one or more courses but not all:
When a fee appeal is approved for one or more courses, but not a full semester’s tuition, institutional aid is revised to reflect only the remaining credit hours. This revision may or may not alter aid.
When a fee appeal is approved for the entire semester’s tuition & fees:
When a fee appeal is submitted for a semester in which the student completely withdrew from all courses, a Return of Title IV Funds calculation must be performed before a fee appeal adjustment can be made.
Reason for fee appeal is something other than non-attendance.
Current balance due on the student’s account (for the semester the fee appeal is granted) is reviewed. If there is a negative balance on the account (showing a credit): all institutional aid is cancelled.
- Instances where the student has paid out-of-pocket towards tuition and fees for the semester in question will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis to see if any credit can be refunded to the student.
If there is a positive balance on the account for the semester the fee appeal is granted (showing an amount due): no action will be taken by the Office of Financial Aid.
Reason for fee appeal is non-attendance
- All aid for the semester is cancelled (includes all sources of aid)

Return of Title IV Funds

When you withdraw from all classes, the Office of Financial Aid must calculate how much aid you are entitled to keep. Per the federal government, students are allowed to keep the financial aid they have “earned” up to the time of withdrawal. Students “earn” financial aid with class participation. The “unearned” amount must be returned to the federal government by the University and/or the student.
Financial aid returned to the government is done so in the following order.

In some cases, students must repay a portion of the aid that they received, and repayment arrangements must be made in order to remain eligible for aid and to re-enroll in subsequent semesters.
In some cases, a refund may be due the student.
The amount of repayment or refund will be affected if there is a refund of tuition given at the time of withdrawal.
Students who withdraw before 60% of the semester is completed are entitled to keep a portion of their offer equal to the percentage of the semester that they have completed. Students who withdraw after 60% of the semester is completed are eligible to keep their entire offer. CAUTION: SAP is still a factor in determining eligibility in future semesters.
Students who withdraw and are granted a fee appeal are still subject to the Return of Title IV Funds calculation.
Private, State of Michigan, and University of Michigan funds are not subject to the same pro-ration formula. These funds will be adjusted based on the amount of charges the student owes after the Federal Title IV calculation has been completed.
Any UM-Flint funded scholarship that is tuition-specific will be reduced if a student withdraws within the 50% refund period and/or is granted an approved Fee Appeal. An appropriate adjustment will be made to the student’s account affecting both the tuition assessed and the scholarship applied.

Students Receiving All E’s I’s & N’s

If a student who began attendance and has not officially withdrawn fails to earn a passing grade in at least one course offered over an entire period, UM-Flint must assume, for Title IV purposes, that the student has unofficially withdrawn, unless the institution can document that the student completed the period. A Return of Title IV funds calculation will need to be completed on all students who stopped attending their courses prior to 60 percent of the semester being completed.
Faculty include a last date of attendance when reporting failing grades.
Students, whose last day of attendance cannot be documented, will automatically have the 50% point of the semester used to determine any adjustments to their financial aid offers. Your last date of attendance for the previous semester at the UM-Flint is considered your disenrollment date when making adjustments to your account.
Refer to the Return of Title IV Funds section or how aid will be adjusted depending on the last date of attendance (withdrawal date).

Taxable Financial Aid

All questions regarding whether or not any financial aid received is taxable should be directed to a certified tax preparer. The IRS also provides Publication 970 which provides guidance on taxable scholarships and other financial aid.