Throughout the Financial Aid process, you may need to verify, appeal, or adjust your application. If so, the following forms will be needed.
If you were selected for verification for the 2023 – 2024 academic year, use one of the following forms:
Note: you cannot use your 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ forms as Income Verification. If you are required to turn in a Federal Tax Return Transcript, you can request one via www.irs.gov.
If your financial situation has changed and the information on your FAFSA no longer represents your current circumstances, you can contact our Office to review.
Our Office of Financial Aid gives students their maximum Direct Loan eligibility. If you want to limit the amount borrowed, you can decline all or a portion of the loan amount.
Alternative loans are available from private vendors. Per the federal Truth in Lending Act, the lending agency must have a signed, self-certification form.
Students whose financial aid is suspended (due to academic progress), can appeal the decision.
As important as it is to receive financial aid, it is equally important to maintain it. Per the Higher Education Act and USF’s own standards, financial aid recipients must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress in order to keep their financial aid eligibility.
Standards for Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) at USF include the following:
Students must have the following cumulative GPA, per number of credit hours
| Completed Credit Hours | Cumulative GPA |
|---|---|
| 0-15 | 1.6 |
| 16-30 | 1.7 |
| 31-45 | 1.8 |
| 46-59 | 1.9 |
| 60+ | 2.0 |
| Graduate Students | 3.0 |
To maintain an appropriate pace of progression, students must earn a minimum of 2/3 (67%) of the credit hours attempted. For example, a student enrolled in 15 credit hours must complete 10. Repeat courses and courses that earn the following grades will not be counted toward graduation, but ill count as attempted credits: W, WP, WF, F, or I. Hours accepted for transfer will be counted as both earned and attempted hours in the calculation.
Students are permitted to repeat a failed class but can only repeat a previously passed course (any grade other than W, WP, WF, F or I) one time and receive financial aid for it. For example, if a student wants to repeat a passed class in order to improve the grade, she/he may do so one time.
Students must remain within the maximum timeframe to receive financial aid. Undergraduate students may not exceed 150% of the published length of the educational program. For example, if you are seeking a bachelor’s degree with 120 credit hours required, you can earn 150 percent of the length of the program or 180 credit hours and still be eligible to receive financial aid. All courses in which you receive a grade will be counted toward the duration of
eligibility. Grades include but are not limited to: F, I, W, WP, WF, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, D, P. Once you exceed the 150 % rule, you will no longer be eligible for financial aid assistance. However, institutional aid may be limited to eight semesters.
The Office of Financial Aid reviews enrollment records at the end of each term (fall, spring, summer). If a student does not meet the above-stated criteria, the student is put on Financial Aid Warning. The student has until the end of the next term to improve his/her status. If, at that time, the student does not meet the minimum GPA and two-thirds progression requirements, the student is placed on Financial Aid Suspension. Students will be notified in writing and will be directed to a SAP appeal form.
Students who are suspended, must appeal to have their financial aid reinstated. Appeals are submitted via the SAP Appeal Form along with supporting documentation prior to the beginning of the next term of attendance. Circumstances that may merit appeals include but are not limited to the following:
The appeal must include a detailed description of why the student did not meet standards and what has changed that will allow her/him to meet them at the next evaluation. A successful appeal will result in either one semester of Financial Aid Probation or an approved Academic Plan for Financial Aid Funding signed by the student and academic adviser or SASS staff member.
Academic Plans may be used for multiple terms and are required if it will be mathematically impossible to meet SAP after the end of the next term. An Academic Plan must ensure that the student will be able to meet SAP standards by a specific future point in time.
Approved Academic Plans will be evaluated at the end of each term. Failure to meet the criteria of the Academic Plan will result in Financial Aid Suspension. Appeals will be reviewed by the director of Financial Aid, who will consult with appropriate staff or faculty members as needed. Students are allowed to appeal a maximum of two consecutive terms.