Aid Eligibility

Students who receive financial assistance from programs administered by the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions (OSAA) have special responsibilities that include:

• Being actively enrolled.
• Students that want Federal Financial Aid must complete the FAFSA in a timely manner.
• Reporting annually to OSAA all outside aid including that received through the Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarships, National Health Service Corps Scholarships, outside scholarships or local awards.
• Maintaining good academic standing.
• Providing documentation, corrections, and/or additional information requested by OSAA.
• Attending an exit interview prior to graduating for all federal loans received while attending the UND SMHS.
• Reading, understanding, and keeping copies of all disclosures and signed forms.
• Notifying the OSAA of a change in name and/or address as well as updating directory information in Campus Connection.
• Maintaining appropriate behavior at all times.

• Please note that any scholarship funds received directly from a donor must be reported to the Medical Student Financial Aid office to be included as part of your financial aid awards. This may cause an adjustment to your existing awards. Please contact the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions, SMHS Room W101 or saa@und.edu with any questions or concerns.

Students who fail to honor these special responsibilities may compromise their financial aid eligibility.

Federal regulations require that students must maintain satisfactory academic performance standards and must be eligible to re-enroll in the next academic term. Satisfactory progress is determined by annual or individual review or both by the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences Medical Student Academic Performance Committee (MSAPC). The students must complete a full academic load as approved by the MSAPC with satisfactory grades each semester or complete successfully full-time coursework at another institution as prescribed by the MSAPC.

All students will be registered by the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions. Students must be registered for financial aid to be disbursed. Disbursement dates can be found on the Academic Calendar section of the Medical Student Handbook.

Federal law suspends federal student aid eligibility for students convicted under federal or state law of possession or sale of drugs.

Federal regulations stipulate that any student who is in default for the repayment of a grant or loan (whether it be through the institution, an outside lending agency or a state agency) is not eligible to receive funds that are obtained from the federal government.

Eligibility for resident student status (and the resulting avoidance of an obligation to pay nonresident tuition) is a technical matter that is controlled by a special North Dakota law and State Board of Higher Education guidelines. Students whose eligibility may be open to questions, especially former long-term North Dakotans or those who have moved to North Dakota from another state, should be sure to familiarize themselves with these guidelines and their requirements regarding place of residency, voting, drivers licenses, auto licenses, state income tax filing, etc. For eligibility information and guidelines visit UND One Stop Student Services. If you are a Minnesota resident and a new first medical student, no action is needed. Minnesota students will be charged Minnesota Tuition rate.

Advising is available by appointment daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday to answer any questions or concerns that you have. Drop-ins are welcome to address short questions. Students are specifically encouraged to make an appointment to review financial needs prior to matriculation (per January–June of your acceptance). Entrance advising is required for first-time borrowers for the Federal Direct, Primary Care Loan, and Federal Grad Plus programs. Students are also recommended to see the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions after their second year to review loan repayment information. Exit advising is also required at graduation. Students should be aware that some loans are now dependent on either their creditworthiness or obtaining a cosigner.

Those students who desire a reconsideration of their financial aid award should make an appointment with the advisor in the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences Office of Student Affairs & Admissions in order to document the information that will be used in the reassessment. In the majority of circumstances, adjustments for increased budgets will be limited to Unsubsidized Federal Direct loans/Grad Plus/Private Alternative loans.

Loan funds have been established to assist students by providing money on a short-term basis. You may apply for a Short Term Loan at the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions. Generally, they are to be paid back within 30 days. A $5 processing fee is assessed to all Short Term Loans. Students cannot have more than one short-term loan out at a time. These loans are repayable at UND Student Account Services Office.

Either the U.S. Department of Education or UND may randomly select your application for an audit process called Verification. Verification is the process that we use to check the accuracy of the information that a student has given when applying for federal financial aid. The selection of an application for verification review does not mean that we believe your information is incorrect.

Students may be asked to verify information such as income; federal income tax paid; household size; number of family members enrolled at least ½ time in postsecondary education; and any untaxed income or benefits received.

During the time a student is completing the verification process, no funds may be disbursed. If you received federal financial aid because you reported incorrect information, you will have to repay any portion of the aid you should not have received. Also, any person who intentionally makes false statements or misrepresentations on a federal aid application is violating the law and is subject to fine or imprisonment or both.

This verification is required by federal regulations. We are required to adhere to these procedures. An outline of the UND policies and procedures that govern verification will be provided by the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions upon request.

Files containing information regarding individual students are not open to the general public under the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. The release of such information shall only be made in conformance with the University’s policy as contained in Section 6-3A (1) of the Code of Student Life and the Release and Records Policy, which may be obtained from the Office of Student Affairs & Admissions.

Any student who drops a class before 9% of the period of enrollment for the class is completed shall receive a 100% refund of tuition and fees for the credit hours attributable to the class or classes dropped. Any student who drops a class before 35% of the period of enrollment for the class is completed shall receive a 75% refund of tuition and fees for the credit hours attributable to the class or classes dropped. And any student who drops a class before 60% of the period of enrollment for the class is completed shall receive a 50% refund of tuition and fees for the credit hours attributable to the class or classes dropped. This process includes mandatory student fees (ND SBHE 830.2).

Before a student can enroll for classes during any enrollment period, they must complete the Financial Obligation Agreement, which references the tuition and fee refund policy. For additional information about the Financial Obligation Agreement, please visit the website.

Completely withdrawing from all of your courses at UND may mean that you are eligible to get a refund on your tuition and fees. However, if you are a financial aid recipient, you might also be required to return some of your financial aid to the federal government. If withdrawing you will be required to meet with Jenny Wolf to discuss the financial implications.

Any student with special circumstances should contact the Student Affairs & Admissions office for assistance.