As a financial aid recipient, a student has the following rights:
- Access to accurate and timely information on financial aid deadlines and procedures.
- Access to personal financial aid records and information as defined by the Buckley Amendment of 1974.
- The choice of accepting all or only part of the assistance offered.
- Access to a review of the award package should the student’s financial situation change. Included in this right is the opportunity to appeal.
Along with these rights students have the following responsibilities:
- To provide accurate information to be used in the aid process. Misrepresenting information is a violation of the law and could result in indictment under the U.S. Criminal Code.
- To inform the Student Aid and Scholarships Office of any significant changes to a student's financial situation (scholarships, gifts, earnings, funding, etc.) in excess of $200 that were not listed in the application, or any other change in circumstances, such as a change in student status or marital status, that may influence the award. Failure to report these changes can result in federal legal action to recover aid funds.
- To understand the loan obligation. With a loan as part of the student's package, future earnings are pledged to pay present school costs. Loan conditions should be read carefully; ask questions.
- To maintain academic satisfactory progress and attendance toward the completion of the technical training program.
- To repay any financial aid received when students were not eligible.
- To continue receiving financial aid, students must reapply each academic year.
About Your Financial Aid Award
You may find your current academic year financial-aid award information by logging on to CTC link. The financial-aid awards listed are organized in the portal by quarter and each type of financial aid is listed separately. If any quarter of the current academic year is not listed, this means you were not awarded aid for that quarter.
Were You Awarded for Fewer Quarters than You Expected?
As stated in our Satisfactory Academic Progress policies, there is a maximum number of credits students can attempt and still be eligible to receive financial aid. If you were awarded for fewer quarters than you were expecting, it probably means that we could not award you for the entire year because you will reach your attempted credit limit before the end of the year. “Request for Additional Financial Aid Credits“ appeal forms are available at the Student Aid and Scholarships Office.
Courses Not Eligible for Financial Aid Funding
The following courses are not eligible for financial aid funding:
- Running Start
- Continuing Education
- Certified Nursing Assistant
- High School completion
- High School Equivalency Exam
- Adult Basic Education
- Programs that are less than two quarters in length
- Audit classes.
In addition, the credits from these courses will not count toward the minimum credit requirement to receive financial aid funds or towards completed credits for Satisfactory Academic Progress purposes.
Are You Registered for the Right Number of Credits?
In order to receive your aid each quarter, the number of credits you are registered for in the student registration system must match the enrollment level in the financial aid computer system. Financial aid awards are initially based on full-time enrollment of 12 or more eligible credits. Therefore, if you are registered for 12 or more eligible credits, you do not need to do anything.
If you do not plan to enroll in 12 or more eligible credits for a quarter, you should notify the Student Aid and Scholarships Office in writing after you have completed your registration for that quarter. Request to Revise Financial Aid forms are available online by clicking on the link or in the Student Aid and Scholarships Office. If you do not notify us at least 7 days prior to the start of the quarter, you will experience a delay in receiving your aid.
For students taking less than 12 eligible credits, Federal Pell Grants and State Need Grants will be reduced proportionately to match the students’ enrollment level. However, Pell grant, loans, and work study are not available to students taking fewer than 6 eligible credits. Students with full-time Pell awards of $201 or less per quarter may not be eligible to receive Pell at a reduced enrollment level.
How to Avoid Problems and Delays in Receiving Your Aid
- While receiving financial aid, a student can only be pursing one certificate or degree at a time, as found in the CPTC catalog.
- Complete all registration activity at least 7 days prior to the beginning of the quarter, and make no changes to your registration after that time.
- Either register for a full-time course load (12 or more credits) or notify the Student Aid and Scholarships Office in writing at least 7 days prior to the beginning of the quarter that you have registered for less than 12 credits.
- Meet all Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements.
- Meet all Student Aid and Scholarships Office deadlines.
- Read all materials available to you online by the Student Aid and Scholarships Office and keep copies for your records.
Description of Aid Programs
Grants
Clover Park offers both federal grants and state grants. Grants are considered a form of “gift aid” because they do not have to be repaid provided students attend their classes, do not reduce their enrollment on or before the 5th business day of the quarter, do not make a 100% withdrawal, do not stop attending their classes, and do not complete zero credits for a quarter. The minimum enrollment required to receive most grants is 6 credits.
Work-Study
Work-study offers students the opportunity to gain valuable work experience while earning money for college. Both on-campus and off-campus positions are available.
Students receive their work-study funds in the form of a paycheck from their employer based on their hourly wage and the number of hours they have worked in any given pay period. Because work-study funds must be earned, they are not available at the beginning of the quarter to help students pay their tuition and fees or purchase their books. The minimum enrollment requirement to receive work-study is 6 credits.
If you are interested in participating in Clover Park’s work-study program, please visit the Work-Study information page for more details.
Student Loans
Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loans are “need-based” loans. The term “subsidized” means the federal government pays interest on the loan on the student’s behalf until the student enters repayment. The minimum enrollment requirement to receive this loan is 6 credits.
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans are “non-need based” loans. The term “unsubsidized” means the federal government does not pay interest on the loan. Students are responsible for paying all accrued interest. Interest can be paid while the student is in school, or it can be deferred until the student enters repayment. If deferred, the unpaid interest that accrues is added to the loan amount the student borrowed, a process known as “capitalization.” The minimum enrollment requirement to receive this loan is 6 credits.
- Students who are first-time borrowers at Clover Park are subject to a 30 day delay policy and with processing time will not receive the first disbursement of their loans until approximately the 35th calendar day of the quarter. This applies only to the first quarter that students receive loan funds.
- Students who wish to reduce their loan amount or cancel their loan must notify the Student Aid and Scholarships Office in writing by completing the Request to Revise Financial Aid Award form.
- The disbursement dates sent to borrowers by the U.S. Department of Education are the dates the college will receive the loan funds, NOT the date the loan funds will be available to students.
- Student loans must be repaid. Students enter repayment 6 months after they stop being at least a half-time student.
- Student loan recipients must complete Exit Counseling during their last quarter at Clover Park. Exit Counseling provides students with the information they need before they enter into repayment, including the different repayment options available to them and what to do if they ever have difficulty making their loan payments. To complete the Exit Counseling requirement, log into the studentaid.gov/ website.
- Loans approved for one single quarter will require two disbursements. One at the beginning of the quarter and one midway through the quarter. This requirement may change from year to year.
Will You Owe Any Money Out-of-Pocket for Your Tuition and Fees?
If the total of your grants and loans is less than your tuition and fee charges, you must pay the difference.
If the total of your grants and loans is greater than your tuition and fee charges, you will receive a financial aid disbursement to your Clover Park Plus Card for any financial aid funds that remain after your tuition and fees are paid.
How do you receive a financial aid disbursement?
If you are eligible to receive a financial aid disbursement once your tuition and fees have been paid, Clover Park Technical College delivers your refund with BankMobile Disbursements, a technology solution, powered by BMTX, Inc. Visit this link for more information: https://bankmobiledisbursements.com/how-it-works/.
Nursing Pre-Requisites (LPN)
Students taking pre-requisites for the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) program are not eligible to receive financial aid grants unless the student has received a conditional acceptance letter from the Nursing Department. In accordance with financial aid regulations, they will be considered for student loans only. While receiving student loans for nursing pre-requisites, students can only take courses that are required for entrance into their program, and only for a maximum of up to 12 consecutive months, if you take a quarter off during this 12 consecutive month period, you will lose your loan eligibility until you are admitted into the LPN program. (Certified Nursing Assistant Program is not eligible for Federal Direct Loans.)
10th Day Enrollment Policy
Enrollment levels for all students who received financial aid (either financial aid paid tuition or fee charges and/or a financial aid disbursement was received) will be re-checked after the end of the 10th business day of the quarter. There are 4 enrollment levels: full-time (12 or more credits), ¾-time (9-11 credits), ½-time (6-8 credits), and less than half-time (1-5 credits). What does this mean for you?
If you increase your enrollment level on or prior to the 10th instructional day of the quarter, your financial aid grants will be revised, as appropriate by notifying the Student Aid and Scholarships Office in writing or by completing the Request for Revision of financial aid form. A revised award will be available to view on the Financial Aid Student Portal.
If you decrease your enrollment level on or prior to the 10th instructional day of the quarter, your financial aid grants will be revised, as appropriate, and a revised award will be available to view on the Financial Aid Portal. This will occur even if your aid has already been disbursed. If your aid was already disbursed, you will owe a repayment of aid to the college.
If your grant aid is revised in accordance with this policy, your number of “attempted credits” will be based on the number of credits you were enrolled in as of 11:59 pm on the 10th business day of the quarter.
Repayment of Financial Aid Funds for Students Who “Drop to Zero”
Students who either withdraw from all classes, stop attending all classes, or a combination of both before completing 61% of the quarter (measured in calendar days), or students who complete zero credits, may be required to repay a portion of the financial aid they received for that quarter. Repayments are computed in accordance with federal and state regulations. Repayments can be owed to the college, the U.S. Department of Education, and/or the Washington Student Achievement Council. Students who owe a repayment are notified in writing. The complete repayment policy can be found on the financial aid webpage.
The first day that students can “drop to zero” (either withdraw from all classes, attend classes for the last time, or a combination of both) without owing a repayment as a result are:
- Spring 2020
- May 20, 2020
Satisfactory Academic Progress
A copy of the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policies are available to you online at the financial aid webpage. It is very important that students read these policies carefully as adherence to the policies determines whether or not students will remain eligible to receive financial aid.
Repeated Courses
Students can repeat courses for which they receive financial aid. Each time a class is repeated, whether or not financial aid paid for the course, the credits are counted toward the time limit requirement. Each time a developmental course (Math and English courses below the 100 level) is repeated, whether or not financial aid paid for the course, it counts toward both the time limit requirement and the 45 credit limit on developmental courses.
Changing Your Program of Study
Students who start pursuing a new program of study without completing their first program are considered to have changed programs. If the program of study is changed ONCE, the attempted credits from the first program will not be counted toward the credit limit requirement for the new program.
Students who change programs TWO OR MORE TIMES, however, may not be able to complete their new program within the maximum allowable time frame for financial aid. This is because when students change to a third program (or fourth, etc.); the attempted credits count will not start over. All credits attempted starting with the student’s 2nd program of study will be counted toward the credit limit requirement.
Maximum Number of Programs for Which Students Can Receive Financial Aid
Students can receive financial aid for a maximum of two programs of study. However, only one of the programs can be a degree program. This means that students can receive funding for either two certificate programs, or one certificate program and one degree program. Students are considered to have received financial aid for a program even if they did not receive financial aid for all quarters of the program.
If a student completes one certificate and one degree program, and 100% of the requirements for the certificate are also required for the degree, the student is considered to have completed only one program (the degree program) for financial aid purposes.
Refunds
Refunds for students whose tuition and fees were paid all or in part by financial aid funds are calculated according to the refund schedule that appears in the CPTC Catalog. Financial aid recipients will only receive a refund if the amount of the refund exceeds any amount the students owe back to financial aid funds as a result of reducing their number of credits.
Refund checks are mailed to students by the Business Office.
Title IV Student Complaint Process
The Higher Education Act (HEA) prohibits an institution of higher education from engaging in a “substantial misrepresentation of the nature of its educational program, its financial charges, or the employability of its graduates.” 20 U.S.C. §1094(c)(3)(A). Further, each State must have “a process to review and appropriately act on complaints concerning the institution including enforcing applicable State laws.” 34 C.F.R. § 600.9. The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) maintains a process to investigate complaints of this nature brought by community and technical college students in the State of Washington. For more information, contact the SBCTC Student Services Office at 360-704-4315.
