Undergraduate Enrollment and Financial Aid Eligibility

Your enrollment can affect your eligibility for federal and state funding, now and in future semesters. Plan in advance, as many semesters as possible, so you can most effectively use your financial aid to complete your degree. This is a quick reference page to make you aware of possible issues. This does not encompass all eligibility requirements for all aid.

Courses must be required for your degree:

Eligibility for grants, Federal Work-Study, WV PROMISE, and loans (including student and parent loans) is based on the number of hours of enrollment in coursework that is required for your degree.
Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized and Parent (PLUS) Loans require enrollment in a minimum of 6 hours that are required for your degree.
Pell Grant eligibility is pro-rated based on the number of enrolled hours required for your degree.
WV Promise eligibility requires continuous full-time status in coursework required for your degree (scholars do not have to be full-time in their final two semesters of scholarship eligibility).
WV Higher Education Grant requires full-time status in coursework required for your degree.

Strategies to maximize aid eligibility:

Enroll in 12 hours that are required for your degree each semester and then add on other classes needed for a minor or second major.
Plan in advance, as many semesters as possible, so you can avoid semesters in which the only courses you are taking count toward a minor or second major.
Be sure enrollment in the last semester prior to graduation includes at least 6 hours required for your degree to ensure eligibility for student/parent loans.

Double major or dual degree:

Students who are double majoring will qualify for financial aid for coursework required to complete both majors IF both majors are being sought simultaneously.
Students who are seeking two degrees and have completed all degree requirements for one of their declared degrees will no longer qualify for Pell Grant, SEOG, WV PROMISE, or WV Higher Education Grant whether or not they have actually graduated.
Students may, in some cases, qualify for federal loans or Federal Work-Study for coursework required to complete the second degree.

Academic minor:

Students can receive financial aid for coursework required for an academic minor only IF the minor was declared prior to completion of the degree.

Repeat coursework:

The repeat coursework rules for financial aid eligibility differ from the Registrar's academic regulations found in the Concord University Academic Catalog (D and F Forgiveness Rule).

Students CAN receive financial aid for repeated coursework (as long as it's required for the degree):

IF they have already passed the course with a "D" or better and they are repeating the course for the first time; OR,
IF they have taken the course and failed it; OR,
IF they have taken the course and withdrawn from it.

Students CANNOT receive federal aid for repeated coursework required for their degree:

IF they have already passed the course two times with a "D" or better and they are repeating the course again; OR,
IF they have already passed the course with a "D" or better and then repeat the course and earn an "F."

Repeat coursework rules do not apply to courses in which students are expected to enroll on a continuing basis, such as some music courses.
First bachelor's degree:

Pell Grant, SEOG, WV PROMISE, and WV Higher Education Grant ends when the courses for the first bachelor's degree are completed, whether or not the student chooses to graduate at that time.

Subsequent bachelor's degree:

Students can still receive Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized and/or Parent (PLUS) Loans for courses required for a second bachelor's degree, as long as they enroll in a minimum of 6 hours of required courses each semester.
Pell Grant, SEOG, WV PROMISE, and WV Higher Education Grant does not extend to courses required for a subsequent bachelor's degree.

Remedial coursework:

Students who are admitted into a degree program and who are taking remedial coursework can receive federal aid for the remedial hours, up to a limit.
The limit on remedial coursework for federal aid purposes is 30 semester hours.

Undeclared major:

Students who are admitted into a degree program (i.e., not admitted as a 'special student') but who have not yet declared a major can receive federal aid for courses taken as long as the courses count toward their degree.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP):

Students must meet the Concord University Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy to receive federal aid.
All courses attempted, whether or not they were eligible for federal aid, are included in the determination of the student's SAP status.