Financial Aid FAQs

Financial need is the difference between what it costs to attend WCCCD and what you and your family are expected to contribute toward your college expenses (based on the FAFSA information).  

In other words, Cost of Attendance - Student Aid Index = Financial Need. Many types of financial aid can be applied only toward the demonstrated financial need. However, there are other types of aid that can be awarded regardless of your need.

While each aid program has special requirements, you are generally eligible for financial assistance if you meet the following requirements. You must:

1. Have a financial need (except for some loan programs and many scholarship programs). Students are encouraged to apply for financial aid by the priority deadlines;
2. Have a high school diploma, a General Education Development (GED) certificate, completed homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law, or completed one of the ability-to-benefit (ATB) alternatives and enrolled in an eligible postsecondary program before July 1, 2012.
   
3. Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a student working toward a degree or certificate in an eligible program;
   
4. Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-U.S. citizen;
5. Have a valid Social Security Number;
6. Meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (continuing students only);
7. Use the Federal Student Aid only for educational purposes and for more information about Federal Aid eligibility, see the U.S. Department of Education's Student Guide. https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/eligibility/requirements

Parent Contribution: Annual income is not the only factor considered in evaluating the parent contribution. Your parent's age(s), assets, household size, and the number of family members in college are also considered.
Student Contribution: You are expected to contribute a portion of your after-tax income toward your annual educational expenses. A portion of your savings and other assets are also considered.

A student is considered independent for financial aid purposes if he or she is 24 years of age or older by December 31 of the award year, or if he or she:

1. Is an orphan or ward of the court, or was a ward of the court until age 18
2. Is a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, or on active duty
3. Is married
4. Has legal dependents other than a spouse
   
5. Unaccompanied Homeless Youth
6. In a legal guardianship until age 18

If a student does not meet at least one of these criteria, he or she is considered dependent for financial aid purposes and parent financial information must be included on the FAFSA.

Complete a Federal Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). You may complete the FAFSA application online, our Federal School Code must be listed: 009230

In order to receive financial aid, you must file a FAFSA each year and it can be done as early as December 1st.

All award information and list of required documents are located on Web Gate. You may access your Web Gate account at www.wcccd.edu. We suggest that you review your Web Gate account frequently for updates.

Students requesting Summer Pell Grant funds must fill out the Summer Pell Grant application on our website unless you attended WCCCD for both Fall and Spring semester. If you attended WCCCD for both Fall and Spring semester, your summer award (if applicable) will be awarded automatically and there is no need to fill out a Summer Pell Grant application. Students requesting Summer Loans or Work Study must submit the appropriate application to the District Financial Aid Office through Online Forms.

You should not submit tax forms and/or other paperwork unless we specifically ask for these documents since they may not be required.

• You must be enrolled at least half time in courses that count toward an eligible degree or certificate program each semester (6 credit hours)
• You must complete entrance counseling if you are a first time borrower and a Master Promissory Note (MPN) (once every 10 years) at https://studentloans.gov/
• No default or over-award status on prior loans or federal aid
• You must meet standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress
• Remember! All loans must be repaid. View repayment options at https://studentloans.gov/
• All loan requests will be reviewed on an individual basis

The Bursar’s Office is responsible for disbursement of funds and determines the amount of refund, if any, or balance owed. You may track your refund by logging on to RefundSelection.com.

Satisfactory Academic Progress is the term used to denote a student’s successful completion of coursework toward a certificate or degree. Federal regulations require that all students make continued progress toward an educational goal. The Federal Government has established the following Standards for Satisfactory Academic Progress:

• Completing a program of study within 150% of the credits required to graduate. [ If a major requires 60 credit hours for graduation, a student must complete the program in no more than 90 credit hours.]
• Successfully completing at least 67% of all attempted credits. [A student must receive a passing grade in at least 2 out of every 3 classes in which he or she is enrolled. ]
• Non-credit courses are not included in the calculation of financial aid, and are therefore not counted as credit hours attempted. Transfer credit, remedial and repeated courses will be counted as credit hours attempted. Withdrawal grades (with the exception of institutional withdrawal), and incomplete grades will be counted as attempted hours.
• Repeated and developmental courses are added into credits attempted and are used in the calculation of attempted credits verses completed credits. Up to 30 credits of combined developmental and ESL courses can be funded with federal student aid.
• Students seeking a second Associate’s Degree, who are not meeting the quantitative standard of 150%, would need to submit an appeal (please refer to the Appeal Process below) in order to have reinstatement of eligibility considered. Successfully completed credits that apply to the second degree will be considered in the appeal review.

The District Financial Aid Office will review the qualitative progress after each academic year. In order to maintain eligibility a student must:

Maintain at least a cumulative 2.0 grade point average.[A student must maintain at least a “C” average ]

Notification
Students who fail either the quantitative or qualitative test for academic progress will be notified in writing that further financial aid is denied. If you have experienced a significant circumstance which you feel has had an impact on your ability to make Satisfactory Academic Progress, you have the opportunity to file an appeal with the District Financial Aid Office. Appeals that do not include proper documentation are considered incomplete and will be denied. All appeals must contain substantive evidence as supporting documentation. Written Statements will not be accepted as supporting documentation.

• Medical/illness in immediate family
• Domestic/family issues/marital issues
• Loss of employment
• Second academic degree

• Statement from doctor
• Obituary or funeral program/Death Certificate
• Police report or social agency report
• Termination or layoff notice
• Social services or court documents
• Legal documentation
• Copy or proof of first academic degree