All student financial aid must be re-evaluated for students who decide to withdraw from the university or who drop below full-time academic status before the end of the semester. If, after completing the federal refund calculation, a return of student financial aid funds is required, such funds will be returned to the student financial aid program from which they came. Federal and state student financial aid must be returned on the basis of federal- and state-mandated formulas. If the student received financial aid from private programs, this financial aid will be adjusted in accordance with the regulations governing the private program. Institutional aid will be adjusted in accordance with the institutional refund policy for tuition and fees. A student will retain the percentage of their institutional aid that corresponds to the percentage of tuition and fees not refunded at the time of withdrawal. The student is responsible for repayment of any balance due on the student account after the necessary financial aid adjustments are made and the institutional refund policy has been applied to the account charges, as applicable.

Simpson University is required by the Department of Education (DOE) to return any unused portion of federal financial aid, including loans. The DOE requires students to physically attend class or otherwise actively participate in academically related events in order to maintain eligibility for financial aid. Regardless of whether or not a student chooses to officially withdraw from courses through the Registrar’s Office, if they cease attendance or active participation, for any reason, a return of Title IV funds calculation is required.

In the event a student is considered to have withdrawn, federal financial aid eligibility will be recalculated on a per diem basis. If this calculates to 60 percent of the term or greater, no federal aid will be returned. Additional details are available here.

A student may charge bookstore purchases to the student account using a bookstore voucher when certain conditions are met. If all conditions listed below are met 10 days prior to the start of the semester, a book voucher will be automatically issued for use at the Simpson University Bookstore. If the following conditions are met at a later date, a student can request a bookstore voucher from Student Financial Services, if needed.

Bookstore vouchers will be issued:

• No more than two weeks before the start of classes and within the first month after classes begin
• After any financial aid eligibility issues have been resolved
• After the verification process is complete, if selected
• If actual registration corresponds to anticipated registration
• If Satisfactory Academic Progress is confirmed
• For any loans being borrowed, after all necessary processes for the particular loan have been completed, including but not limited to: loan request/confirmation, Master Promissory Note, and entrance counseling
• There is an actual credit on the student account, or a confirmed anticipated credit
• For third party coverage of text books, after the third party authorization is submitted to Student Financial Services
• *Students are not obligated to use the book voucher process provided to secure their textbooks.

Simpson University will apply Cal Grant B Access payments to outstanding charges on a student’s account. After all student account charges are paid in full, excess funds are then released to the student. Students receiving Cal Grant B Access payments may choose to have the money released directly to them rather than applied to their student account charges. Students who wish to make this choice must submit their request in writing to Student Financial Services. The request will remain in effect until such time as the student rescinds the request in writing with Student Financial Services. The written request will affect future disbursements of the student’s Cal Grant B Access payments. The request cannot direct payment of funds to anyone other than the student.

After the first two weeks of a semester, all accounts with actual credits are reviewed. Excess funds are released no earlier than the third Friday of the semester. All disbursements will be issued via a reloadable Simpson University Discover® Prepaid Card, direct ACH deposit to a designated bank account or by check. Federal regulations stipulate that any excess financial aid funds be used for educationally related expenses in the following categories: tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, transportation, living expenses, and loan fees.

The Office of Financial Aid is required by federal regulations to monitor all students’ academic progress toward completing their degree. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is evaluated at the end of each term, including summer. All transferred credits are included in the calculation. It also includes credits taken with or without receiving financial aid.

There are three components included in the evaluation of SAP:

*To determine pace, divide the number of earned credits by the number of attempted credits.
Pace example: Student, Samy, registers for 15 units. After the fourth week of school, Samy withdraws from a 3-unit course. At the evaluation period, Samy has completed 12/15 credits. Samy’s pace is 80%. Samy is meeting this component of SAP.

**The evaluation will include all attempted credits, including withdrawals or incompletes, regardless of any program changes. If you have exceeded the 150% time frame, your financial aid will be suspended immediately.

Financial Aid SAP Status

Students are required to meet all SAP requirements to maintain eligibility. If a student is not meeting one or more requirements, they will be notified via email of the following SAP status:

Financial Aid Warning

The first time the student does not meet the GPA or pace SAP requirements, the student will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for one term. The student is still eligible to receive financial aid while on warning. At the end of the one-term warning period, if the student is still not meeting the SAP requirements, their aid will be suspended for the subsequent term.

Financial Aid Suspension

Students are placed on financial aid suspension after two terms of not meeting SAP requirements. The student may continue to attend Simpson University at the student’s expense until the student regains eligibility or is approved through a financial aid appeal.

Financial Aid Appeals

Students who fail to meet the above requirements after the semester of warning are disqualified from receiving further federal, state, or institutional financial aid. A student may submit a completed appeal form to the Office of Financial Aid documenting extenuating circumstances which impacted academic performance. Appeals are due by the second Friday of the semester and are reviewed by committee. Students will be notified in writing of the committee’s decision. If approved, a student will be placed on probation.