The Student Financial Services Office at OSU-Okmulgee is organized to help students who, without financial assistance could not continue their education beyond high school. Approval of student financial aid awards depends upon two major factors: (1) the financial need of the student and (2) the availability of student aid funds at OSU-Okmulgee.

The first step in obtaining financial assistance at OSU-Okmulgee is to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Applications are available through the Student Financial Services Office. The fastest and easiest way to apply for financial aid is by filing electronically. You can file your FAFSA electronically in Student Financial Services, free of charge.

To be eligible for consideration for student financial aid through any program, an applicant must:

• 1. be enrolled as a regular student on at least half-time basis, in an eligible program of study; NOTE: Students enrolled less than half-time may be eligible for PELL Grants only;
• 2. be a citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States, a citizen of Northern Mariana Islands, or a permanent resident of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands or other eligible noncitizen;
• 3. maintain satisfactory progress in an eligible program of study;
• 4. not be in default on any student loan or owe a repayment on any Title IV grant received for attendance at OSU-Okmulgee;
• 5. be registered for the draft, if you are a male born on or after January 1, 1960, at least 18 and not currently a member of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Federal Pell Grant - Eligibility for a Federal Pell Grant does not directly affect eligibility for other aid. However, OSU-Okmulgee requires application for a Federal Pell Grant before consideration for other aid can be made.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant - FSEOG is an award to help you pay for your education after high school. It's for undergraduate students with exceptional financial need (with priority given to Federal Pell Grant recipients) and it doesn't have to be paid back.

Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant Program - OSU-Okmulgee participates in the Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant Program that is sponsored by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. Applicants must be residents of the state of Oklahoma. Tuition Aid Grants are made on the basis of demonstrated financial need and are funded with a combination of state and federal funds. Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grants are not available for the Summer Term.

Federal Work Study Program provides part-time employment for students with financial need who want to earn part of their educational expenses. As a participant in the FWS Program, OSU-Okmulgee attempts to arrange part-time employment for students on campus. Federal Perkins Loan Program is available for OSU-Okmulgee students enrolled on at least a half-time basis and who need a loan to meet educational expenses. OSU-Okmulgee students may borrow up to a total of $1000 per semester. Repayment begins nine months after the student graduates or leaves school. The interest rate on a Perkins Loan is 5%. Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan is based on financial need. The loan amount will depend on your financial need, which the school's financial aid office will determine. The interest rate is variable and capped at 8.25%. No payments are required on the loan until you have been out of school 6 months.

Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan is a student loan that is not based on financial need. The loan amount will depend on the cost of attendance at OSU-Okmulgee and the amount of other aid you are receiving. The student is responsible for paying the interest on the loan while in school. Principal payments are not required until you have been out of school for 6 months.

Federal PLUS Loans are for parent borrowers. Plus loans provide additional funds for educational expenses and are made by a lender such as a bank, credit union, or savings and loan association. The interest rate on the Federal PLUS is variable with accrual of interest beginning sixty days after the final disbursement. Repayment of the loan begins sixty days after the final disbursement.

Scholarships may be offered to graduating high school seniors interested in attending OSU-Okmulgee and to current OSU-Okmulgee students. Several on and off-campus organizations and individuals also offer scholarships to OSU-Okmulgee students.

Short Term Emergency Loans - OSU-Okmulgee maintains loan funds provided by contributions from the public. These loan funds are designed to provide emergency assistance. The Bursar's Office administers the general loan funds. Borrowers are limited to one loan at a time, with $40 maximum and a 30-day payback period. Additional emergency loans are available from Student Services through the Sponsored and Disabled Student Services office. Specific policies for qualification and support-documentation are required. Departmental loan funds are administered by individual departments. The lending department establishes limitations and payback periods.

Students eligible to receive financial benefits under any federal, state or public agency program (e.g.: veterans, Native Americans, PITC, etc.) should work through Sponsored Student Services to facilitate and coordinate this process.

All financial aid funds at OSU-Okmulgee are disbursed to students through the Bursar's Office (Cashiers). The Bursar's Office is located in the Administration Building on the east side of the OSU-Okmulgee campus. Bursar's Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. Any funds remaining after your account has been paid in full will be disbursed to you by check. Financial Aid checks are available on Thursdays beginning the third week of school.

Federal Pell Grant, Federal SEOG, OTAG, Federal Perkins Loan and Stafford Student Loan funds are automatically credited to your student account.

Federal Stafford Loans (subsidized and unsubsidized) will be credited to your student account according to the loan disbursement schedule provided to you by your student loan lender on your Notice of Loan Guarantee and Disclosure Statement.

Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant (OTAG) Program funds are disbursed to students as OSU-Okmulgee receives those funds from the OTAG office. Notices will be placed outside of the Student Financial Services Office, as well as other points across campus when OTAG funds are available for disbursement to students. OTAG most generally will not be available for you at the same time you receive your other financial aid awards. Student employees at OSU-Okmulgee working through the Federal Work-Study program are paid every two weeks.

Students who experience special circumstances that could have an effect on financial aid eligibility can request a professional judgment review of those circumstances by contacting Student Financial Services. Special circumstances eligible for consideration include: medical/dental expenses not covered by insurance, unusually high child care costs, recent unemployment of a family member, and certain one-time lump sum payments which inflate the family income for a particular year.

Approval of professional judgment requests rest solely at the discretion of Student Financial Services. Student Financial Services reserves the right to deny any professional judgment request. Approval of professional judgments will be contingent on the submission of appropriate documentation to support the special consideration request.

OSU-Okmulgee has a Repeat Course Policy that allows a student to repeat a course and have only the second grade earned count in the calculation of the grade point average, even if the second grade is lower than the first grade.

Although this repeat policy can benefit your grade point average, it can only benefit you for federal financial aid purposes if the course you are repeating was failed the first time you attempted it. If you received a passing grade (D or better) the first time you attempted the course, federal financial aid will not be used to pay for the course the second time.

As a financial aid applicant, you are required to complete a minimum number of credit hours each semester and maintain a minimum grade point average as indicated below:

Students, who withdraw from classes, fail classes or receive incomplete grades, place their financial aid eligibility in jeopardy by not meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirements. College credits earned through the advanced standing exam do not count in the required hours for your satisfactory academic progress.

If you do not meet the satisfactory academic progress standards listed above, you will be placed on financial aid probation during your next semester of enrollment at OSU-Okmulgee. While you're on financial aid probation you must complete the minimum required hours (listed above) in addition to making up any deficiencies you might have incurred during the previous semester. In addition to passing the required number of credit hours, you must also maintain a 2.0 GPA.

Students who fail to reduce their academic deficiencies during their semester of financial aid probation will be placed on financial aid suspension during their next semester of enrollment. While on financial aid suspension, you will not be eligible to receive any federal or state financial aid and you will be expected to pay your educational expenses with your own personal funds.

Students attending OSU-Okmulgee have nine (9) semesters in which to complete their first Associate in Applied Science Degree. Students taking longer than nine semesters will not be eligible to receive financial assistance beyond the ninth semester of attendance. Students are eligible to receive financial assistance for pursuing no more than (3) three Associate in Applied Science degrees from OSU-Okmulgee. A student's financial aid eligibility will be terminated after the third Associate in Applied Science degree has been received.

All available Federal Work-Study (FWS) job openings are posted on a bulletin board outside of Student Financial Services in the Administration Building at OSU-Okmulgee. Most FWS positions are on campus and all positions pay the minimum wage. Your FWS work schedule will be developed around your class schedule so as not to interfere with the time you need to be in the classroom. As a FWS student employee, you will work up to 15 hours per week.

If Student Financial Services has notified you on your award letter that you have been approved to earn funds through Federal Work Study and you are interested in finding on-campus employment, here's what you need to do:

• 1. Stop by the Student Financial Services Office to complete the necessary paperwork to begin your employment. You will need to bring your social security card and your driver's license to Student Financial Services.
• 2. After completing your paperwork, you will be given a Federal Work-Study Employee Referral Authorization form.
• 3. Choose the job from the FWS job board that interests you most. You're then ready to be interviewed for the position you have chosen. Simply take your FWS Employee Referral Authorization form to the supervisor responsible for filling that position.
• 4. If you are hired, your supervisor will work with you to develop a work schedule. If you're not hired for the first position you apply for, you can choose another position from the FWS job board. Please contact Student Financial Services if you need help in locating a part-time job.
• 5. It takes approximately four weeks after you begin your job before you receive your first paycheck through the FWS program. Please remember this as you budget your expenses while at school. Thereafter, you will be paid every two weeks on Friday.

Fee/tuition refunds are made to those students who withdraw completely from Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee in accordance with Oklahoma State Regents' policy.

All costs are subject to change without notice and will be confirmed upon request.

Sometimes things happen that can prevent students from finishing a semester after classes have started. Beginning Fall 2000, the federal government implemented a new law called the Return of Title IV Funds. This new law affects all students who use federal financial aid funds to pay for educational expenses and then find it necessary to completely withdraw from school. It is important for you to understand the financial impact a complete withdrawal can cause.

Any student who receives assistance through the Pell Grant, Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, Perkins Loan, Subsidized Stafford Loan or Unsubsidized Stafford Loan program and then completely withdraws from OSU-Okmulgee may be required to repay money to these federal financial aid programs. For students who completely withdraw before the 60% point of the semester, OSU-Okmulgee is required to calculate the percentage of financial aid you were entitled to use to pay educational expenses incurred while you were enrolled. Students will be required to repay any financial aid that they were not entitled to use.

Students who withdraw from OSU-Okmulgee after the 60% point of the semester will not be required to repay any of the financial aid funds received prior to their withdrawal. Students who withdraw before the 60% point of the semester can expect to repay a large portion of the financial aid funds received.

Under the Return of Title IV Funds law, refunds to financial aid accounts must be made in the following order:

• 1. Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans
• 2. Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans
• 3. Federal Perkins Loans
• 4. Federal PLUS Loans
• 5. Federal Pell Grant
• 6. Federal SEOG Grants
• 7. Other Federal Aid Programs

For more information visit the Student Financial Services site.