Am I Registered for the Right Number of Credits?
You must be registered for the appropriate number of credits each quarter in order to receive your aid. All financial aid awards are initially based on full-time enrollment of 12 or more credits. If you happen to be registered for 12+ credits but do not plan to remain enrolled full-time, you should notify the Financial Aid Office in writing each quarter. We recommend you let us know as soon as possible, prior to the tuition due date for the quarter or at least prior to when aid disburses (two days before the quarter begins.) In most cases, financial aid grants will be reduced proportionately to your credit load. Loans, work-study and some grants are not available to students taking fewer than 6 credits.
- Full Time: 12+ credits = 100% of the grants awarded
- 3/4 Time: 9-11 credits
- 11 credits = 92% of the grants awarded
- 10 credits = 83%
- 9 credits = 75%
- 1/2 Time: 6-8 credits
- 8 credits = 67% of the grants awarded
- 7 credits = 58%
- 6 credits = 50%
- Less than 1/2 Time: 1-5 credits*
- *5 credits = 42% of the grants awarded
- *4 credits = 33%
- *3 credits = 25%
- **2 credits = 17%
- **1 credit = 8%
*Not eligible for Federal Student Loans, Work Study, SEOG, PC Grant, PC Tuition Waiver.
**In addition to the above-listed types of aid, also not eligible for State grants (WA College Grant, WA Bridge Grant, College Bound Scholarship, Passport to College Scholarship, etc.)
What is the Refund Selection Kit and Why is it Important to Make a Refund Choice?
Peninsula College delivers your refund with BankMobile Disbursements, a technology solution, powered by BMTX, Inc.. For more information about BankMobile Disbursements, please visit this link: http://bankmobiledisbursements.com/how-it-works/
How Will the Financial Aid Office Communicate With Me?
The Financial Aid Office will communicate with you primarily through email. It is therefore VERY important that you keep Pirate Central updated with your current email address.
It is your responsibility to notify Pirate Central of changes to your phone number, email, or address so that we can communicate with you. Contact info changes can be made online in through ctcLink in your Student Portal.
My Financial Aid Refund Won't Arrive Until the First Day of the Quarter. How Do I Get My Books?
In accordance with school policy, Financial Aid refunds are not released to BankMobile Disbursements until one business day before the first day of the quarter. Depending upon the refund preference you select by using your BankMobile Disbursements Refund Selection Kit, you won't have your funds until the first day of the quarter at the very earliest. Some types of refund preference can take longer to receive your funds.
Many students opt to purchase their books earlier (before the first day of the quarter) and reimburse themselves when their Financial Aid refund arrives. Other students wait until they have their refund before they buy their books. It is very typical for financial aid recipients to purchase their books at the beginning of the quarter, after they have their refund.
If the only type of aid you are receiving is federal, state, or institutional grant or loan funds, then you are not eligible for a bookstore account at the Bookaneer Bookstore.
If you are receiving funds from an outside source, such as WorkSource, tribal funding, scholarship, Worker Retraining, BFET, or another type of outside agency sponsorship, you may be able to charge your books using an account at the Bookstore. Please be advised that it takes our office up to 24 hours to process last-minute bookstore accounts/changes. We strongly recommend that your agency contacts our office at least 7 days prior to the first day of the quarter so we can set up your account on time.
The Tuition Deadline is Coming Up, and I Haven't Heard Back About My Financial Aid. What Should I Do to Make Sure I Don't Get Dropped From My Classes for Non-Payment?
College policy is to drop students from classes if they have not paid their tuition by the deadline. (You should not assume that the College will drop you for non-payment of tuition or that the College will drop you within the tuition refund period. It is your responsibility to contact Student Services and officially drop/withdraw from your classes if you do not plan on attending.)
If you met the Financial Aid deadline for a quarter, but your application has not been reviewed, the Financial Aid Office will hold you in your classes until we have determined your eligibility. If you later find out you are ineligible for aid, we will remove the hold, and you will be required to pay your tuition charges immediately or make other payment arrangements.
If you have been awarded aid already, but the aid has not been applied towards your tuition, the Financial Aid Office will hold you in your classes until we apply your aid towards your tuition charges. It is your responsibility to make sure you are enrolled in the correct number of credits and meet all other requirements to receive your aid so your tuition can be paid.
If you have some aid, but not enough to cover all of your tuition charges, it is your responsibility to pay the difference owed. Unpaid tuition charges could cause you to be blocked from receiving services from the college and/or referral to a collection agency.
If you missed the Financial Aid deadline or your aid was canceled due to ineligibility, it is your responsibility to pay your tuition prior to the tuition deadline. Many students who miss the deadline opt to enroll in the tuition payment plan so they are not dropped from their classes. If you are interested in the payment plan, please contact Business Services at (360) 417-6232. The Financial Aid Office is not able to hold you in your classes if you miss a deadline and/or are not eligible for aid.
I Missed the Financial Aid Deadline. When Will My Application Be Reviewed?
Late applications are reviewed after the quarter has started. Due to start of the quarter processing, we don't begin reviewing late applications until approximately 2 weeks after the start of the quarter.
Once we begin reviewing late applications, we review them in the order they were completed. We are sorry, but we do not have a way to estimate when your application will be reviewed or how many applications are ahead of yours.
If you are eligible for aid, the funds will be applied toward your tuition and fees; if funds are leftover, you will receive the remainder of your aid as a refund according to the refund preference you selected through BankMobile Disbursements. If you made an out-of-pocket payment to cover all or a portion of your charges, the Business Office will refund you (by credit card or by check) for the portion of the payment that your financial aid covered. You may check the ctcLink Financial Aid Tile through your Student Portal to see if you have been awarded. Ineligible students will be notified in writing.
Why Was I Awarded Aid for Fewer Quarters Than I Expected?
In accordance with federal and state regulations, students must complete their program of study within a maximum time frame in order to remain eligible to receive financial aid. The Time Limit Policy is explained as part of the Satisfactory Academic Progress policy.
Some students were awarded aid for fewer quarters than they were expecting because they have reached their time limit, or because they have exhausted their eligibility for that source of funding. Others were awarded aid for fewer quarters than they were expecting because they are so close to reaching the time limit that we cannot consider them for additional aid until they provide information to our office via the time limit appeal process. Time limit appeal forms are available in the Financial Aid Office.
Why Were Some of My Classes Not Covered by Financial Aid?
Running Start, high school completion, basic skills classes (BASED), audit classes, Tech Prep courses, WorkFirst courses, non-credit courses, continuing education courses and Family Life Education courses are not eligible for financial aid funding. Credits from these courses will not count toward your minimum credit requirement to receive financial aid funds or towards your completed credits for Satisfactory Academic Progress purposes.
In addition to this, classes that are not required for the completion of your program of study cannot be funded by financial aid due to federal regulations.
I Need to Drop a Class. How Will That Impact My Financial Aid?
If you drop a class before the quarter starts but aid has already disbursed, you will owe a repayment of financial aid. If you drop a class on or before the Census day (usually the 10th day of the quarter - refer to the Academic Calendar) you may owe a repayment of aid if your enrollment level has changed from what it was when your aid was disbursed.
Example:
Susan is enrolled in 15 credits for Fall and was awarded financial aid at full-time status. She decides to drop a 5 credit class within the first two weeks of the quarter; she's now in 10 credits, but received aid for Fall at full-time status. The Financial Aid Office will decrease her awards for Fall to match her 10 credits. (That's a decrease of her grants from 100% down to 83%.) She will owe a repayment of the difference in aid, and will receive an email from the Financial Aid Office after the Census day to notify her of the balance due.
Please check the Satisfactory Academic Progress Chart to review your options. If you are on Financial Aid Probation or Financial Aid Warning status, dropping (or otherwise not completing) a class may cause future aid to be canceled. Dropping a certain number of credits may cause future aid to be canceled even if you are not on Probation or Warning status. You can check to see if you are on Financial Aid Probation or Warning in the ctcLink Financial Aid Tile through your Student Portal. If you have questions about the Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements, please contact the Financial Aid Office.