Financial Aid for Winter Courses

If you enroll in a Winter Session course between the Fall and Spring semesters, you may qualify for financial aid. Below is important information to help you understand how Winter Session financial aid works.

Eligibility

The Winter Session is financially attached to the Fall term. This means that Winter financial aid is paid from your current academic-year eligibility. However, Winter Session charges are billed as the Winter Session term. Your Winter Session enrollment intensity is calculated separately, based only on the number of registered Winter Session credits.

Enrollment

All Winter Session courses are 3-4 credits, and this is the maximum number of credits a student may take during the Winter Session.

For Federal financial aid purposes, enrollment intensity is defined as:

• Full-time: 12+ credits
• Three-quarter-time: 9-11.5 credits
• Half-time: 6-8.5 credits
• Less-than-half-time: 0.5-5.5 credits

Since Winter Session courses are 3 or 4 credits, enrollment in a Winter Session course meets the Less-than-half-time enrollment criteria. This is important because enrollment intensity may affect the amount of federal aid you are eligible to receive.

Before additional aid can be awarded:

1. You must first use any remaining Federal Direct Loan eligibility for the current award year associated with your Fall term.
2. If you still have an outstanding balance and unmet financial need, you may contact the Office of Financial Aid to determine whether:
   • You qualify for remaining loan eligibility, or
   • You may be considered for limited discretionary funding (if available).

Please note that not all students will have remaining loan eligibility. In addition, Winter Session aid availability depends on your overall annual aid limits and financial need.

Every student’s financial situation is different; therefore, we encourage you to contact your campus One Stop Student Services Center before registering for a Winter Session course.