Financial Aid Policies

Copper Mountain College processes federal, state, and institutional aid for anyone who meets the eligibility requirements for the specific programs. You’re encouraged to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to apply for state and federal aid that you may be eligible for.

You’re also encouraged to apply for any institutional and outside scholarships possible. Scholarships are posted on the financial aid bulletin board in Student Services Office. Various scholarship websites are available on the CMC’s website. A free scholarship search is available at www.fastweb.com.

The federal government is willing to provide assistance to students pursuing an education. However, it will not provide aid to students who are not completing their coursework satisfactorily or are not completing their program in a timely manner. Therefore, you are in danger of losing aid eligibility if you take more courses in a semester than you can reasonably complete or if you do not take the appropriate courses to complete the program’s requirements.

It’s advised to meet with a counselor to develop an educational plan so you can be realistic about the number of courses you can make to be diligent in attendance, complete the assignments, and finish in a given semester. In the event something should occur to prevent you from attending, it’s the student’s responsibility to drop the class in the Admissions Office of Student Services or through their MyCMC Portal.

Failure to officially withdraw may result in failures on transcripts and loss of financial aid in future semesters. Total withdrawal prior to the completion of 60% of the semester will result in a recalculation of the aid you’re entitled to receive. In keeping with federal regulations, the recalculation may require the student to repay some of the unearned aid received. Failure to return the funds can result in a loss of eligibility for future aid until the funds are repaid.

The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is the standard you’re measured by to determine if you’re making progress toward completing your degree.

To continue to receive financial aid, you are required to meet (SAP) standards. The SAP standards are defined as maintaining a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 and cumulatively completing 67% of attempted units, all while completing your program within 150% of the program’s published units. For example, you have 90 units to complete a 60-unit program).

Students CAN LOSE financial aid if academic standards are not met. There are 3 components to this standard:

• Qualitative – Maintain a 2.0 Cumulative Grade Point Average (C average)
• Quantitative – Complete 67% or more of attempted units successfully with a C or better
• Maximum Timeframe – Complete their degree or certificate within 150% of the program’s credit length. (90 units for A.A)

Current students can view their SAP status on their MyCMC Self-Service Financial Aid Portal after their first semester at CMC.

*Note: The SAP standard for federal and state financial aid is different from the CCPG Fee Waiver-SAP standard

Treatment of Title IV Aid When a Student Withdraws 34CFR 668.22

The law specifies how a school must determine the amount of Title IV program assistance that you earn if you withdraw from school. The Title IV programs that are covered by this law are Federal Pell Grants, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, TEACH Grants, Direct Loans, Direct PLUS Loans, and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOGs).

Though your aid is posted to your account at the start of each period, you earn the funds as you complete the period. If you withdraw during your payment period the amount of Title IV program assistance that you have earned up to that point is determined by a specific formula. If you received (or your school or parent received on your behalf) less assistance than the amount that you earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds. If you received more assistance than you earned, the excess funds must be returned by the school and/ or you.

The amount of assistance that you have earned is determined on a pro rata basis. For example, if you completed 30% of your payment period or period of enrollment, you earn 30% of the assistance you were originally scheduled to receive. Once you have completed more than 60% of the payment period or period of enrollment, you earn all the assistance that you were scheduled to receive for that period.

If you did not receive all of the funds that you earned, you may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement. If your post-withdrawal disbursement includes loan funds, your school must get your permission before it can disburse them. You may choose to decline some or all of the loan funds so that you don’t incur additional debt.

Your school may automatically use all or a portion of your post-withdrawal disbursement of grant funds for tuition, fees, and room and board charges (as contracted with the school). The school needs your permission to use the post-withdrawal grant disbursement for all other institutional charges. If you do not give your permission (some schools ask for this when you enroll), you will be offered the funds. However, it may be in your best interest to allow the school to keep the funds to reduce your debt at the school.

There are some Title IV funds that you were scheduled to receive that cannot be disbursed to you once you withdraw because of other eligibility requirements. For example, if you are a first-time, first-year undergraduate student and you have not completed the first 30 days of your program before you withdraw, you will not receive any Direct Loan funds that you would have received had you remained enrolled past the 30th day.

If you receive (or your school or parent receive on your behalf) excess Title IV program funds that must be returned, your school must return a portion of the excess equal to the lesser of:

1. your institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of your funds; or
2. the entire amount of excess funds.

The school must return this amount even if it didn’t keep this amount of your Title IV program funds. If your school is not required to return all of the excess funds, you must return the remaining amount.

For any loan funds that you must return, you (or your parent for a Direct PLUS Loan) repay in accordance with the terms of the promissory note. That is, you make scheduled payments to the holder of the loan over a period of time.

The requirements for Title IV program funds when you withdraw are separate from any refund policy that your school may have. Therefore, you may still owe funds to the school to cover unpaid institutional charges. Your school may also charge you for any Title IV program funds that the school was required to return.

If you don’t already know your school’s refund policy, you should ask your school for a copy. Your school can also provide you with the requirements and procedures for officially withdrawing from school.

If you have questions about your Title IV program funds, you can call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FEDAID (1-800-433-3243). TTY users may call 1-800-730-8913. Information is also available on Student Aid on the Web at https://studentaid.gov/.