Policies
30-day Delay Policy
All financial aid funds will begin disbursing approximately 30 days after the start of class. All financial aid refunds will be processed after disbursement. The 30 days begin on the first day of the semester. You should be prepared for this delay, including arrangements for living expenses. Book vouchers will be available for eligible students through the first week of the semester to assist with book costs. If your finalized financial aid awards equal or exceed your balance due and you have no remaining requirements for the financial aid process, your tuition and fees will be deferred, and your enrollment will be exempt from cancellation due to nonpayment.
Satisfactory Academic Progress
Federal regulations require that financial aid recipients maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward an eligible degree or certificate in order to remain eligible for Title IV Federal Financial Aid (this includes Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal College Work Study, Federal Direct Student Loans and Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loans).
Satisfactory Academic Progress standards are evaluated by the following criteria:
| 1. Pace of Completion | 2. GPA |
3. Maximum Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Successful completion of 75% of attempted credits. This includes all enrollment periods, whether or not financial aid was requested or received. For example, if a student attempts 15 credit hours but only completes 9 credit hours, they will have only completed 60% of the attempted hours. | Maintain an overall cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher for all coursework taken at Manhattan Tech, including all general education courses and repeats. | Complete program within 150% of the published length. For example, a student enrolled in a 40 credit-hour technical certificate may be eligible for Title IV Federal Aid for a maximum of 60 credit hours. A student enrolled in a 62 credit-hour AAS may be eligible for Title IV Federal Aid for a maximum of 93 credit hours. |
At the end of each enrolled semester, including summer, Satisfactory Academic Progress is determined by the Office of Financial Aid in an automated process once grades are official. Students not meeting SAP are notified in writing that they are either on warning or are no longer eligible for Title IV Federal Aid for future semesters. A student may be placed on warning following the first term that they do not meet SAP requirements. While on warning, the student may receive financial aid for one semester. A student loses financial aid eligibility the semester following the warning semester if they fail to come into compliance.
Title IV Federal Aid may be reinstated when SAP requirements (listed above) are met, or by appeal. In order to appeal, a student must complete the Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal Form and submit it with appropriate documentation. Once an appeal is reviewed by the SAP appeal committee, the decision is final, and the student will be notified. Students changing majors or seeking additional degrees must complete an appeal form if the change or additional degree results in the student not meeting eligibility requirements. It is a student's responsibility to monitor their own progress each semester. Academic standing may be different than Satisfactory Academic Progress status.
A student who has lost Title IV Federal Aid eligibility may still enroll and pay tuition and fee charges from their own resources unless academic policies prohibit it.
Note: Once a student submits a request to the SAP appeals committee and a decision has been reached, the student is ineligible to resubmit an appeal for the same term.
Payment of Tuition, Fees, and Other Costs
Tuition and fees are due at the beginning of each semester and are determined by the number of credit hours the student is enrolled in. A student who has not met this obligation within 10 days after the due date may be dismissed from Manhattan Tech. This does not apply to students with financial aid eligibility and plan to use those funds to pay tuition and fees. For those students, payment will be expected from the first financial aid disbursement.
Tuition and Fees Refund Policy
Students enrolled in undergraduate courses may be eligible for a refund of tuition/fees upon official withdrawal from a course or complete withdrawal from Manhattan Tech. Refunds are calculated based on the day a Drop/Add form is received by the Manhattan Tech office, not when the student stopped attending class. Failure to attend a class does not constitute official withdrawal.
*It is recommended that a student who received financial aid talk with the financial aid office before dropping a class to discuss any ramifications.
Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) Policy
Students awarded federal financial aid who completely withdraw from Manhattan Area Technical College are also subject to the Department of Education’s Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) policy. For students receiving financial aid who withdraw completely before attending 60 percent of the semester, Manhattan Tech is required to calculate how much federal student aid funds must be returned. This student may be billed for remaining balances resulting from the mandatory return of funds to the U.S. government. The amount of federal aid 'earned' is determined by the withdrawal date and a calculation based on the federal formula. Generally, federal assistance is 'earned' on a pro-rata basis. The withdrawal date is calculated based on the date the withdrawal form is submitted unless the College has other information that demonstrates the withdrawal or last day of attendance was an earlier date. According to the policy, a calculation is performed when a financial aid student withdraws from all classes, receives a zero GPA, or is entitled to a post-withdrawal disbursement. It could also determine how much a student is entitled to receive as a post-withdrawal disbursement if the student earned federal aid and was not yet paid. Funds that this calculation may impact include Subsidized and Unsubsidized Direct Loans, Parent PLUS loans, Pell Grants, and Federal SEOG Grants.
