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There are a number of financial aid programs available to assist students attending Blinn College. For information about financial aid, students should visit www.blinn.edu/financial-aid or contact the Financial Aid Office via email at finaid@blinn.edu .Students can request a call from a Financial Aid Staff member during business hours by texting “Blinn finaid” to 979-202-0543.
How to Apply
To apply for federal, state, or institutional funding, students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at studentaid.gov. The Blinn College Federal School Code is 003549. Students and parents are encouraged to use the IRS Data Retrieval Process when completing the FAFSA. The Data Retrieval Process allows the applicant to view and transfer IRS tax return data directly from the IRS website into the appropriate fields on the FAFSA. Using the Data Retrieval Process may help students avoid having to submit additional documents to the financial aid office.
Most, but not all, programs require a student to demonstrate financial need. Awards may include grants, work-study jobs and student loans. Students with demonstrated need are always considered for gift aid first, then student loans. Students may accept or decline all or any part of their award offer. Students who have been enrolled at other postsecondary institutions must supply the Blinn Admissions Office with an academic transcript from each of those institutions (even if no aid was received).
To receive the maximum consideration for limited financial aid resources, students should submit the FAFSA as soon as possible. The FAFSA opens on October 1st. There is priority processing deadline of May 1 st each year. Students must have all required information submitted and financial aid packaged to be prepared for the Fall payment deadline. or by October 1st for the Spring semester. Summer awards may be available for incoming and continuing Blinn students who accept their Summer Terms and Conditions by April 15th. Please visit our website at www.blinn.edu/financial-aid/ for more details on all the financial aid programs available at the Blinn College.
Establishing and Maintaining Eligibility
In addition to establishing financial eligibility, the student must be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, as a “regular student” in an eligible program of study and must maintain satisfactory academic progress. A “regular student” is one who has graduated from high school, has a GED, or has completed a secondary school education school under State law. A student in an “eligible program of study” is one who is seeking a degree or certificate at Blinn College and is enrolled in courses leading to that goal.
Summer Transient students that are not seeking a degree at Blinn College are not eligible for aid. Students who are co-enrolled at Blinn and another college may not be eligible to receive aid. Recipients are expected to enroll and attend as at least halftime students.
Disbursement of Aid
Each semester, financial aid disbursement begins around the 12th day of classes, or “day of record”. Students who have satisfied all application and disbursement requirements and met the conditions of the award at least two weeks to prior to the beginning of registration, will have financial aid automatically credited to their student account as payment.
All students who have accepted a loan must complete entrance counseling and Master Promissory Note requirements before loan funds will be requested. Student loan funds for first time freshman borrowers cannot be released until 30 days after classes begin.
If the student has financial aid remaining after all charges are fully paid, an institutional refund will be issued to the student. Financial aid funds must be used for education related expenses. Students whose financial aid credit is not sufficient to cover charges must be prepared to pay the difference.
Students who withdraw from school prior to receipt of aid funds will not receive those funds. Any indebtedness they incur from registration will be the student’s responsibility.
Revisions and Cancelations of Aid
Blinn College reserves the right to review, revise, or cancel all financial aid at any time due to changes in the student’s financial and/ or academic status or failure to comply with federal or state laws and regulations, including financial verification, audit procedures, and institutional policies. In addition, all financial aid is subject to revision based on the funds received by the College from the federal or state government and any changes to federal or state laws, regulations, or policies.
If the student registers for classes on financial aid credit and the student reduces the number of enrolled hours, financial aid will be adjusted to reflect semester registration. If the reduced enrollment results in less eligibility for aid, the student will be responsible for any charges due.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Federal regulations require Blinn College to implement Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policies to ensure that students receiving federal student aid are making adequate progress toward completing their degree programs. Satisfactory Academic Progress will be monitored for all periods of enrollment whether or not the student has received financial aid. The satisfactory academic progress policy applies to all Federal, State and institutional aid, including Federal and State loan programs. Private loans that require school certification may also be subject to SAP policies.
Blinn’s financial aid SAP policies are similar, but not identical, to the College’s Academic Standing policies. Students should review both sets of policies and ask for clarification as needed. Questions about financial aid SAP policies should be directed to the Financial Aid Office; questions about the College’s Academic Standing policies should be directed to the Registrar’s office. Specific information about the Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress standards are available here: http://www.blinn.edu/financial-aid/keeping-your-aid/sap.html
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Withdrawal
For any student receiving Federal Title IV Funds that officially or unofficially withdraws or fails to earn a passing grade in all courses, federal regulations require a refund calculation to be performed. The calculation of the return of these funds may result in the student owing a balance to the college. In addition, any future aid will be canceled.
Withdrawing from classes will impact the student’s Satisfactory Academic Progress and may cause the student to be ineligible for future financial aid. All students should contact the financial aid office prior to withdrawing.
Vocational Rehabilitation Aid
The Texas Rehabilitation Commission offers assistance for tuition and required fees to eligible students in Texas colleges and universities. Eligibility for such assistance is based on permanent disabilities. Applications should be made to the Texas Rehabilitation Commission, 1002 W. Main, Brenham, Texas 77833.
Veterans Educational Benefits
The Veteran Services Office, housed in the Financial Aid Office, provides assistance and information to veterans and dependents of veterans. Students may review information and steps to apply for and receive VA and Hazelwood benefits by going to http://www.blinn.edu/veteran-services/index.html.
Certification requests must be made by the veteran or their eligible dependents two weeks before the payment deadline for each semester so that the Veteran Services Office can certify enrollment to the Veteran Administration (VA).
All students are responsible for paying all tuition and fee charges that are not paid directly to Blinn College under Chapter 33 (post 9/11) or Chapter 31 (Vocational Rehabilitation) benefits.
Payment for tuition and fees will be due at the time of registration unless a payment plans or satisfactory arrangements have been made. The fees may include but are not limited to parking, books, late registration, class change fees, housing and meal plans.
It is the responsibility of the veteran or veteran’s eligible dependent to contact the Veteran Services Office concerning enrollment certification or any change in enrollment status.
VA Education Benefit Programs
VA Education Benefit Programs
Payment of Charges
Once all required documentation is received (see above Requirements for Certification), students utilizing Chapter 31 (Vocational Rehab) or Chapter 33 (Post 9/11) will have a third party payment applied to cover the tuition and fees of their degree certified hours.* These students will not have any penalty imposed on them, including late fees or denial to classes or campus facilities, nor will they be required to borrow additional funds, due to any delay in disbursement of funding from the VA. Students will be responsible for the payment of any courses that are not considered degree certified.
* Degree certified hours are courses that have been verified to meet a requirement on the veteran or eligible dependent’s degree plan as required by the VA.
Educational Objectives
The veteran or their eligible dependent must choose an associate degree or certification program and must decide on a major within the associate degree plan after completing 32 semester hours. The VA will compute benefits based only on those courses required for the selected course of study. Courses taken at other institutions must be evaluated prior to enrollment certification from Blinn College. The VA will only permit payment for courses that have been taken and passed with a “D” or better at a previous institution.
In order to qualify for maximum educational benefits, the veteran or veteran’s eligible dependent must enroll in a minimum of 12 semester hours in a long semester or four hours in a short semester.
A veteran or veteran’s eligible dependent must notify the Veteran Services Office before changing their course of study. The veteran or veteran’s eligible dependent must also notify the VA of a change of program or place of training.
Standards of Academic Progress
Students utilizing any VA educational benefits must maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA. Under the guidelines of the Veterans Administration, the Veteran Services Office at Blinn College monitors and notifies the VA any time a student, utilizing VA educational benefits, is not maintaining a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 or better. Students should refer to Blinn College’s Academic Good Standing and Scholastic Probation or Suspension rules in the Admissions and Records section of the catalog for academic requirements and consequences.
Veterans who transfer from another institution without the required 2.00 GPA, must visit an advisor in the Veteran Services Office to determine if they are eligible for certification. Veterans who are placed on scholastic suspension will not be certified again until they receive written approval from the VA. Additional information can be found in this catalog under the heading Scholastic Probation.
Recipients must notify the Veteran Services Office and the VA when dropping a class. A veteran or veteran’s eligible dependent who drops a class or classes during the semester may expect to receive an overpayment statement from the VA requiring the veteran to repay that portion of the benefits received.
Hazlewood Act
The Hazlewood Act, (Article 2654B-1), aids Texas veterans who have exhausted all of their VA educational benefits. A legal resident of Texas is exempt from all tuition and fees, excluding student services fees, if they meet certain criteria. Please contact the Office of Veterans Affairs at veteran.services@blinn.edu for more information.
Hazlewood Act
Veteran Services Forms
All forms that are available for receiving any VA or Hazlewood educational benefits are available on the Veteran Services Office forms website. You can contact the Veteran Services Office at veteran.services@blinn.edu.
Veteran Services Forms
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