Special Circumstances
Although the process of determining a student's eligibility for financial aid is the same for all students, an adjustment sometimes can be made if a student has special circumstances. Special circumstances may include a reduction in income due to loss of employment, death, or disability of a wage earner; divorce or separation; loss of social security benefits; unusual medical expenses; etc. In addition, a student who does not meet the federal definition of an independent student for financial aid purposes may be able to document those exceptional circumstances in order to be considered an independent student.
Reduction of Income
The Financial Aid Office has a Reduction of Income Information Form, which is used to collect information from the student and/or parent who experienced a loss of $10,000 or more in income/benefits from the prior calendar year or have unreimbursed medical expenses, which exceed 7.5 percent of the family's adjusted gross income. Reduction of Income Forms which are approved by the Financial Aid Office will be used to re-evaluate a student’s financial aid eligibility. Additional information about the Reduction of Income Form can be found by clicking on the tab, “Reduction of Income Form” or by contacting the Financial Aid Office.
Dependency Appeal Process
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) clearly defines who is a dependent or independent student for financial aid purposes. However, there are rare instances when the Financial Aid Office determines that a dependent student should complete the FAFSA as an independent student (even though the student does not meet any of the independent student criteria) due to very unique circumstance occurring in the student’s family household. The Financial Aid Office makes this determination based on information provided to our office on the Dependency Appeal Form. Additional information about the dependency appeal process can be found by clicking on the tab, “Dependency Appeal Process” or by contacting the Financial Aid Office.
If you think you have special circumstances that you want to discuss with a financial aid counselor, please feel free to contact our office.