You’re receiving financial aid, but how can you make sure that you remain eligible?
Remember, financial aid is earned. Even if you’re financially eligible for aid, there are other requirements you have to meet in order to continue receiving aid! If you don’t meet these requirements, it could result in a reduction or loss of aid.
The four criteria you need to meet to ensure you maintain your eligibility for aid are:
- Enrollment
Several financial aid programs have enrollment requirements. That means that in order to receive financial aid from specific aid programs, you must be enrolled in and attending a certain number of credits each semester!
See below for examples of funds that require full-time, half-time or part-time enrollment each semester.
| Full-Time | Half-Time | Less than Half-Time |
| Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) | Federal Direct Subsidized Loans | Federal Pell Grant (Pell is prorated based on enrollment) |
| Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) | Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans | |
| Stockton Promise | Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loans | |
| Garden State Guarantee | Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loans | |
| SEOG | ||
| SGIA | ||
| Institutional Scholarships |
For more information on enrollment requirements for specific aid programs, visit stockton.edu/finaid.
- Academic Engagement
Students are only able to receive financial aid for the courses they attend. Students must attend their courses and submit their coursework to ensure that they remain eligible for aid. Instructors confirm student attendance or participation in an academic activity each semester. If students are not attending or participating in their courses, financial aid could be adjusted.
Learn more about the academic engagement process and implications for aid at stockton.edu/academicengagement.
- Number of Course Attempts
Students are only eligible to receive Title IV Aid (federal financial aid) for any previously passed course one time. This means that once a student passes a course, financial aid will only pay for the student to take that course one more time, regardless of whether they pass or fail the course the second time.
Learn more about repeated coursework at stockton.edu/finaid.
- Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
To receive financial aid, students must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward the attainment of a degree. SAP consists of maintaining the criteria below.
| GPA: Students must maintain a certain cumulative GPA | PACE: Students must complete a certain percentage of the courses they attempt. | Maximum Timeframe: Students must complete their program of study in the maximum timeframe allowed by the federal government. |
| 2.0 or higher for undergrads | 67% | |
| 3.0 or higher for grads | ||
| Note: Students must maintain a 3.0 or higher GPA to continue receiving institutional scholarships. | Note: The maximum timeframe for degree completion is 150% of the program’s published length of academic program, measured in credit hours. |
Students who do not meet each of these criteria will not receive financial aid until they regain academic progress. However, students who have experienced extenuating circumstances beyond their control may appeal to be reinstated on a probationary basis.
Learn more about SAP requirements at stockton.edu/sap.
While it may seem a little nerve wracking that there are so many requirements you need to meet in order to receive aid and maintain eligibility, we are here to help guide you! Whenever you are thinking about making changes to your enrollment, attempting courses more than twice or just have concerns about how something will impact your aid, reach out to us! We’re here for you, Ospreys! Visit stockton.edu/contactfinaid to email or schedule a phone appointment with a member of our staff!