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Almost everyone who files a FAFSA is eligible for some kind of financial aid as long as they meet the general eligibility requirements below.  Most aid programs are going to be based on need and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. The Red Rocks Community College awarding policy is based on federal methodology of using the EFC (Expected Family Contribution) as derived from the FAFSA to determine who is eligible for need based assistance. In order to receive federal and state forms of aid a FAFSA must be completed for each academic year that you attend RRCC.

Requirements:

• Be a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen as defined by the U.S. Department of Education
• Be classified as a Colorado resident for tuition purposes to be eligible for state financial aid and the Colorado Opportunity Fund.
• Have a high school diploma, GED or demonstrate ability to benefit by passing the ACCUPLACER test.
• Be enrolled as a regular student in an eligible degree or certificate program.
• Be registered with Selective Service (male students only).
• Be in good standing in accordance with RRCC’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy.
• Meet the enrollment requirements for the aid programs listed below.
• Not be in default on a student loan or owe a repayment on a Federal Pell Grant or Federal Supplemental Opportunity Grant at any educational institution.
• Not be co-enrolled in a secondary school.
• Not be receiving financial aid at another institution during the same semester that you are attempting to receive aid at RRCC.
• Not have been convicted for possession or sale of an illegal substance that would prohibit you from being eligible for financial aid.
• Questions about eligibility requirements can be directed to 1-800-4FED-AID or visit www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Factors Affecting Eligibility:

To retain each type of award, you must remain enrolled for the number of credits listed below with regular or pass/fail grading option through the end of the Add/Drop period. Dropped, audited, and retroactively dropped courses cannot be counted toward required enrollment. If you borrow a Federal Stafford loan and you drop below half-time your loan funds for that semester will be canceled and returned to your lender.  When determining the effect of a less than full-time enrollment keep in mind that all awards are made based on the assumption that students will be attending full-time. You can use the chart below to determine the change in award amount.

Enrollment Level:

* The majority federal and state aid programs require at least half time enrollment.

The following is a list of programs and their enrollment requirements:

Example:

Student A and Student B are awarded a Pell grant of $4050 for the academic year. Both are enrolled in 12 credits. Since RRCC makes awards based on a full academic year $2025 is scheduled to disburse in both the Fall and Spring semesters. During the add/drop portion of the semester Student A drops two 3 credit classes for a new enrollment of 6 credits while Student B maintains their full time enrollment of 12 credits. When disbursement begins for the semester Student A will receive a prorated Pell of $1013 reflecting their half time enrollment while Student B receives $2025.

Eligible Programs:

In order to be eligible for aid students need to be enrolled as Degree Seeking students at Red Rocks Community College in an eligible program. An eligible program is one that is at least 15 weeks in length and requires least 16 credits to complete.

Withdrawals and Cancellations:

If you withdraw from a course with a W, the withdrawn courses will still be counted toward Required Enrollment levels, but only for the following types of aid programs: Pell Grant, SEOG Grant, Colorado State Grant, CLEAP, Federal Work Study,  PLUS Loan, Stafford Loan and Alternative Student Loans.

Please review the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)  policy before withdrawing from any courses. Repeated failure to complete attempted courses can lead to a violation of SAP policy.

If you are enrolled in a class that has a late start that is cancelled, be aware that your certain aid programs will be revised based on the chart above. A cancelled class cannot be counted toward Required Enrollment levels since it will not appear on your transcript and no credit will be received.

Satisfactory Academic Progress:

You must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to be eligible for student financial aid. The SAP policy defines minimum standards for grade point average, a minimum ratio of completed credits to attempted credits, and a maximum time frame for completing a degree. For a complete description of the SAP Policy go to the SAP Policy page.

Over Awards / Changes due to aid from outside sources:

There are limits to the amount of aid that students can receive. All funds that the Financial Aid Office awards are derived from either federal or state tax dollars. Because of this we have to take strides to ensure that aid is being awarded to students with the most financial need. Every school that awards federal financial aid (Title IV aid) is required to set a standard Cost of Attendance (COA) which estimates the costs a student can expect to incur during one academic year. In simplified form students cannot receive (in certain combinations) more aid that the COA for Red Rocks Community College. In addition students cannot receive more “Need Based Aid” than the COA minus the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC).  If the Financial Aid Office is notified of an outside scholarship after an award has been made that puts a student in an over-award status, we will be required to make adjustments to the award.

All Awards Are Subject to Change

We have included the most common factors that affect a student’s financial aid. However, there are a number of outside reasons that are too specific to cover for the purpose of this web site.  Therefore it is important for students to realize that all financial aid awards are subject to change. The most common reasons for adjusting aid include the reasons listed above: insufficient enrollment, changes to enrollment after the start of the semester, over awards due to receipt of aid from other sources, and reclassification to instate tuition rates.

• Awards may also be reduced or canceled due to default on federal student loans, changes or discovery of inaccuracies in any of the information on which your awards were based, or failure to: make Satisfactory Academic Progress, maintain degree seeking status, maintain required enrollment and complete follow-up steps as required by the Office of Student Financial Aid (OSFA), or comply with other federal or university aid regulations. Some scholarships may also be canceled for failure to maintain grade point average requirements.

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