Financial Aid

Application for Financial Aid

New students interested in receiving financial aid should:

Apply and be accepted for admission to North Park University.
Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for federal or state grants, loans, and/or work study.
First-year students applying for music, art, journalism, or theatre scholarships should contact the Admissions Office for information.
Financial aid packages will be sent to a student after they have been admitted, and North Park University has received their completed FAFSA.

Costs and Financial Aid

North Park University offers eligible students federal, state, and institutional financial aid. Federal programs available include the Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Work- Study, Federal Stafford Loans, and Parent (PLUS) Loans. State grants include the Illinois Incentive to Access and the Illinois Monetary Assistance Program. In addition, North Park has a generous institutional assistance program including academic scholarships, music scholarships, art scholarships, theatre scholarships, journalism scholarships, and need-based grants.

For additional information about the music, theatre, journalism, and art scholarships, see the North Park University website. To apply for all other financial aid, students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA, www.studentaid.gov). Once a student has completed the application process and North Park has received the results of the FAFSA, they will be notified of the aid for which they qualify.

The costs below reflect the base cost of North Park before financial aid. Over 90% of students at North Park receive financial aid, which significantly reduces the cost of attendance. For first-time traditional undergraduate students at North Park University for the 2024-2025 academic year, the cost of attending is the following:

Tuition:	$36,070
Food/Housing:	$12,040 (based on double room in residence hall and 20-meal food plan)
Books:	$1,000 (estimate)
Personal Expenses:	$2,100 (estimate)

Financial aid may include a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and/or guaranteed campus employment. The financial aid package will include all aid for which the student qualifies. However, a student may elect to accept any or all of the financial aid offered. If a student, however, feels that their financial situation has changed since initially completing the FAFSA, or if there are extenuating circumstances, the student may appeal their financial aid by completing an appeal form, which is available from the Center for Student Engagement. A committee reviews all financial aid appeals and responds to students in writing. A detailed copy of the Financial Aid/Scholarship Reduction Policy can be obtained from the Center for Student Engagement.

https://www.northpark.edu/campus-life-and-services/residence-life-and-housing/current-students/housing-policy/

Eligibility Requirements for Federal and State Financial Aid

To be eligible for federal or state financial assistance, a student must:

Be enrolled at least half-time (6 semester hours or more per semester) as a degree-seeking student. To receive full federal financial aid, a student must be registered for 12 credit hours per semester. To receive full state financial aid, a student must be registered for 15 or more credit hours.
Be a citizen or eligible non-citizen of the United States of America. Eligible non-citizens are students who are permanent residents and have an I-151 or I-551 (Alien Registration Receipt Card) or who are of refugee status and have an I-94 (Arrival- Departure Record) with appropriate endorsement.
Not owe a refund or be in default on any federal programs covered under Title IV of the Higher Education act of 1965, as amended.
Be making satisfactory academic progress toward a degree. North Park’s satisfactory academic progress policy is available in the Office of the Registrar and in general follows the academic policies outlined in this catalog.

Eligibility Requirements for Institutional Financial Aid

Students must be enrolled in 12 or more credit hours per semester to receive institutional financial aid.
Students who live in campus housing and receive financial aid will have their institutional financial aid reduced if they move out of campus housing. A detailed description of the Financial Aid/Housing Policy can be obtained from the Center for Student Engagement.
Students who receive certain academic scholarships must maintain a specified GPA or their scholarship will be reduced. A detailed copy of the Financial Aid/Scholarship Reduction Policy can be obtained from the Center for Student Engagement.

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Criteria:

To be eligible for federally and state funded financial aid programs, all student financial aid recipients must meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standards. The Standards of Academic Progress are evaluated and students are notified when they don’t meet the SAP requirements at the conclusion of each period of enrollment. North Park University evaluates students’ SAP both qualitatively and quantitatively by reviewing the following three areas of performance:

Requirements:

Grade Point Average. The following minimum grade point average must be maintained:

Hours Earned	Min. GPA
0-29	1.6
30-59	1.8
60+	2.0

Pace of Completion: Students must progress toward completion of their declared degree/certificate while maintaining a minimum 67% completion rate. The completion rate is calculated by dividing the cumulative number of credit hours a student has successfully completed by the cumulative number of credit hours a student has attempted.
Maximum Time Frame: Students may receive financial aid until they attempt 180 semester hours of credit from North Park and/or transfer schools. This policy will consider all enrollments at North Park and other colleges/universities whether or not financial aid was received. The SAP standards require students pursuing a second bachelor’s degree to complete their program within the required 180 semester hours.
Attempted Credits:
- Failures and Incompletes: Failures and incompletes are counted toward hours attempted and will be included in computing GPAs.
- Withdrawals: If a student has withdrawn from a class (Drop or Withdrawal), it is not included when calculating grade point average. It is included in attempted hours and counted as an attempted hour that was not completed. Thus, it will negatively impact earned credits.
- Audits: Audited courses are not aid eligible and are not included in any financial aid satisfactory academic progress measurement. All other courses, including pass/fail courses that are passed, will be counted as credits completed.
- Repeat Classes: Repeat credits are credits awarded when a student repeats a course in order to improve a grade. A student may repeat a class as allowed by the institution. For the first three courses, the new grade can replace the initial grade. For additional courses beyond 3, the grade will be the average of the two grades. All repeated credits are counted as hours attempted and included in the percent of completion and maximum time frame calculations. For an individual course, a student may receive financial aid for only one repeat attempt. NOTE: Title IV eligibility for repeated courses is subject to the July 1, 2011, Program Integrity Regulations.
- Transfer Credits: When a student transfers into North Park, the credits accepted by North Park are not included in the cumulative North Park GPA. The credits are counted as attempted credits so they are included in the maximum time frame and counted as credits completed. After a student has matriculated to North Park, if he/she takes additional courses at a different university and wishes to transfer those courses to North Park, both grade and hours attempted will be counted in the North Park transcript and SAP calculations.

Procedures:

Monitoring SAP
- The Financial Aid office will monitor SAP at the end of each academic year/spring semester.
- Students who meet all of the SAP requirements are considered to be in Good Standing.
- Students who are determined to be Not in Good Standing will be issued written notification sent to the student’s North Park University email account. They will be notified of their standing and placement on: Financial Aid Suspension, Financial Aid Probation.
- Students will be notified by email to their North Park University email account if they are returned to Good Standing and placed on Financial Aid Reinstatement.
- Some students on Financial Aid Probation may be required to make an Academic Plan. Those plans will be monitored by the Financial Aid Department in consultation with Student Engagement.
Suspension, Appeal, Probation, Reinstatement Status

Suspension:

Students who have not met one or more of the SAP standards will be placed on Suspension. Without an approved appeal, students who are on Suspension are not eligible for federal / state financial aid for their next period of enrollment.
Students who have been placed on Suspension may appeal to have financial aid reinstated.
Students wishing to be removed from Suspension must complete and submit an Appeal form, available from the Center for Student Engagement.
There are 3 possible results from the appeal process: (1) Appeal is denied; (2) Appeal is granted and student is placed on Probation; or (3) Appeal is granted and student is placed on Probation with an Academic Plan.
If it is determined prior to the probation term that the student will not meet the requirements of SAP in one academic term, the student will be required to have an approved academic plan on file.

Probation/Probation with Academic Plan:

Students placed on Probation and Probation with Academic Plan will be eligible for federal/state financial aid.
Students will be evaluated at the end of the Probation semester. To continue to receive financial aid in the next semester of enrollment, students will be expected to have met the SAP standards or met the requirements of their Academic Plan.
Students on Probation with an Academic Plan: If the financial aid committee determines that the student could not meet the SAP standards in one semester while on Probation, the Financial Aid Committee will require the student in consultation with financial aid and Student Development prepare an academic plan that will enable the student to achieve SAP in a prescribed period of time.

Reinstatement:

Students who have met the SAP standards at the end of their probation period will have their financial aid reinstated and are considered to be in Good Standing.

Appeal Procedure for Students Placed on Suspension:

For an appeal to be considered, the student must either be able to meet the Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress by the end of the next period of enrollment; or the student must be placed on an academic plan which, if followed, will ensure that the student will be able to meet SAP at a future date. The Academic Plan will be developed in cooperation with the student, financial aid, and academic services.
A completed Appeal Form needs to document extenuating circumstances such as death of a relative, illness or injury, or other special circumstances addressing why the student failed to make SAP, and to state what has changed in the student’s situation that will allow the student to achieve SAP.
Appeals are reviewed by the Financial Aid Committee. Students are informed of the decision via email within 7-10 business days of submitting their appeal. The decision of the Financial Aid Committee is final.

Timetable for Awards

Applications for financial aid, as for admission, are considered on a rolling basis. All applicants for aid whose applications are complete and who have been admitted to the University will be considered and notified.

Since applications for admission and applications for financial aid are two separate procedures, and since notification concerning admission and financial aid awards are made separately, a student will receive notification of admission before the notification of financial aid awards. In some cases, admission may be granted but financial aid denied.

Students should complete the FAFSA after October 1. Accepted incoming students can anticipate receiving their financial aid package after November 15. It is to the new student’s advantage to complete application for financial aid (FAFSA) by May 1. An exception to this timetable may be made for the student who first enters in the spring semester. In such cases, action will be taken as soon as the necessary procedures are completed.

Financial aid is renewable annually, subject to demonstration of continued need and satisfactory academic progress. Returning students must reapply annually for financial aid by completing the FAFSA online at www.fafsa.ed.gov. It is recommended that the FAFSA be filed as soon as the student and his or her parent(s) have filed their federal income taxes in the spring.

Return of Funds Policy

Students who receive any federal financial aid and who withdraw, drop out, are dismissed, or take a leave of absence prior to completing 60% of a semester will have their financial aid recalculated based on the “Return of Title IV Aid” formula derived from the 2009 Reauthorization of Higher Education Act. There are no refunds for any withdrawals after the 60% point in a semester.

Recalculation is based on the percent of aid a student has earned using the following formula:

Federal Financial Aid is returned to the federal government based on the percent of unearned aid using the following formula:

Percent earned = Number of completed days up to the withdrawal date** DIVIDED by the total days in the semester. Aid to be returned = (100% - percent earned) TIMES the amount of aid disbursed.

When aid is returned, the student will owe a balance to the University. The student should contact the Center for Student Engagement to pay the balance.

Worksheets and examples demonstrating the amount of financial aid retained and the amount returned are available from the Center for Student Engagement.

Federal financial aid is returned in accordance with federal regulations.

**Withdrawal date is defined as the actual date the student began the institution’s withdrawal process, the student’s last date of recorded attendance, or the midpoint of the semester if the student leaves without notifying the institution.

Veterans’ Benefits

North Park is approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Applicants who qualify should contact the Center for Student Engagement for detailed information.