Student Rights
Rights
Right to Appeal: Students have the right to appeal any decision or change in their Financial Aid Award. All appeals must be submitted in writing to Student Financial Aid Services.
Right to Confidentiality - The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that provides for the confidentiality of student records. In order for our office to release information to persons other than the student, the student must have a Consent for Release of Student Information Form signed and on file.
Right to Entrance Counseling: Students can access loan entrance counseling on studentloans.gov. You will need to first sign in using your FSA ID, then click on "Complete Counseling" then "Entrance Counseling" to begin the process. A record of your completed loan entrance counseling will be sent to the school you list in the School Information section.
Right to Exit Counseling: These sessions answer questions regarding loan repayment, consolidation, deferments, forbearance, and defaults. Exit counseling information may be accessed on the federal student loan site.
Right to In-School Deferment: If students have borrowed money through the Perkins, Stafford or William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan programs, an in-school deferment is available to them as long as they are enrolled in a degree-seeking program at least half-time (6 credits per semester for undergraduates and 5 credits per semester for law or graduate students).
Right to a Grace Period on Stafford Loans: If students have borrowed money through the Stafford or William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program, they have a right to one six-month grace period on each loan. The grace period will begin when the student is no longer enrolled at least half-time in a degree-seeking program.
Right to Prepay Student Loans without Penalties: If students have borrowed money through the Stafford or William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program they have the right to prepay those loans without incurring any penalties.
Responsibilities
Address and Telephone Changes: Students are responsible for updating their address in VandalWeb whenever a change in their address occurs. They also must notify their loan servicer if they: change addresses, change their telephone number, change their name, or drop below half-time status.
Fraud and Abuse: Any student who fraudulently manipulates the financial aid programs or processes for personal gain, or commits fraud on an application for financial aid will be reported directly to the U.S. Department of Education. Cases of suspected fraud will be reported for possible prosecution.
Making Satisfactory Academic Progress: Students are expected to make satisfactory academic progress (SAP) toward their degree. Students who are not making SAP after the Spring semester will receive a financial aid suspension for the following academic year. All students are monitored for SAP, and failure to meet requirements will result in a financial aid suspension if the student applies for financial aid.
Loan Repayment: Students are responsible for repaying any student loans they borrow even if they do not complete their academic program, are dissatisfied with the education they received, or are unable to find employment after graduation.
Junk Mail: Many students have been receiving unsolicited mailings from companies offering to consolidate their student loans. Students can stop this unsolicited mail and prevent their names from being sold to other companies by contacting the Federal Trade Commission at 1-888-567-8688 and then selecting option 1 to have their name removed for 5 years or option 3 to have their names removed permanently. We encourage all students to call this number or go online and stop their names from being sold.