Policies

Return of Federal Title IV aid policy

Cancellation of unearned federal aid is a federal requirement.

If you withdraw from all of your courses, you may be required to repay a portion of your aid to the university.

We are required to determine the amount of aid you have earned based on the last day you attended.
When aid is canceled, it is removed from your student account, creating a bill you must pay WSU.

The WSU Withdrawals and Return of Title IV Policy applies to leaves of absence in addition to withdrawals.

Withdrawals

You are considered to have withdrawn from the MD program for Title IV purposes in the following instances:

You do not complete all the days in the payment period or period of enrollment that you were scheduled to complete.
If you stop attending a course that does not span the semester we must have written notification at the time of the withdrawal that you will attend another course that begins in the same payment period no later than 45 days after the end of the course that you stopped attending.
You take a leave of absence. For financial aid purposes, all leaves of absence are treated as a withdrawal effective the first day of the leave and a return calculation of federal student aid will be performed. A return calculation could result in having to repay all or a portion of your financial aid back to Wayne State University.

If you drop all or do not attend any classes before the first day of the payment period 100% of your aid will be canceled.

For students subject to a return of Title IV Aid, the following will occur:

If you officially or unofficially withdraw from WSU prior to completing 60% of the payment period, the federal aid you received in the MD program will be returned in the following order:

Federal Stafford Unsubsidized Loan
Federal PLUS Loan

Contact the Office of Student Financial Aid to discuss the implications of a leave of absence, withdrawal or dismissal before it occurs.

Required exit loan counseling

All federal loan recipients are required to complete Exit Loan counseling when they cease to attend school or enroll less than half time.

To complete the REQUIRED Exit Counseling process, login at studentaid.gov.

When you login, you will see your student loan history, including a summary of your federal loans, information concerning your loan servicer(s) and materials on debt management and loan repayment.

Grace periods on federal student loans range from 0-9 months depending on the loan. If you are unable to make payments, you have other options, which include the following modified repayment plans, deferment, forbearance and loan consolidation.

Federal Perkins, Health Professions and Institutional loan fund recipients may review the loan repayment and exit requirements at wayne.edu/bursar/loan-repayment.

Contact your loan servicer with any questions about your loans. The WSU Financial Aid Office is available if you have questions.

Leave of absence

WSU School of Medicine has a formal policy regarding leave of absence (LOA). For financial aid purposes all leaves of absence are treated as a withdrawal effective the first day of the leave and a return calculation will be performed. A return calculation could result in having to repay all or a portion of your financial aid back to Wayne State University.

Students who have received financial aid and are considering a leave of absence are required to schedule an appointment with a Financial Aid Officer to review the financial aid consequences of a leave.

Returning from a leave

Satisfactory academic progress (SAP) policy requires that you complete all coursework with a passing grade. Withdrawal from courses, even if due to a leave of absence, will negatively impact your satisfactory academic progress. In order to be considered for aid when you return from a leave you must submit a SAP Appeal.

No financial aid disbursements will occur while on a leave of absence. If you return during the same semester, your aid eligibility will be reviewed and could be reduced based on your remaining courses for the semester.

Tuition adjustments

Tuition and fee charges are sometimes reduced when you withdraw. If this creates a credit balance, you may request cancelation of this portion of your student loans to reduce your outstanding loan debt. The written request must be within 120 days of the disbursement date.

Contact the School of Medicine Enrollment Management Service Center if you have questions about your tuition charges related to a withdrawal.

Financial aid satisfactory academic progress policy

In order to receive financial aid, you must make satisfactory academic progress (SAP). If you do not meet the minimum requirements, you could lose your eligibility.

Federal regulations require the financial aid office to apply reasonable standards for measuring whether you are making progress toward a degree. Making progress toward a degree is important for your academic success and a key factor in reducing student debt.

Satisfactory academic progress (SAP) is a term used to describe successful completion of coursework toward a degree or certificate. This policy applies to all students who receive federal and state financial aid, WSU scholarships, grants, departmental awards, tuition pledge programs and some awards from external university sources.

Satisfactory academic progress standards in the MD program

To maintain SAP, a student must meet the following standards.

Minimum Qualitative Requirements

Satisfactory completion of all course requirements and examinations.

Pace of Progression 67%

At least 67% of all credit hours attempted must have successfully passing grades. The pace of progress is calculated by dividing cumulative hours that have been successfully completed by the cumulative hours attempted.

Maximum Time Frame within 150%

Complete a degree or certificate program in no more than 150% of the average published length of the program in credit hours. School of Medicine (SoM) MD degrees generally require four years of coursework. Per SoM academic policy, attempted coursework must be complete within seven years.

SAP evaluation frequency

Satisfactory academic progress is monitored at the end of each academic year. Students who are not maintaining SAP will be placed in lose their eligibility to receive financial aid. As progress is measured annually, there is no warning semester. If you are denied aid, you may appeal.

Outstanding grades may change or delay your SAP status decision. Aid will not be disbursed until your SAP status has been determined.

If you submit a SAP appeal and it is approved, you will be put on financial aid probation for one semester. If you fail the satisfactory progress check after the end of the probationary period, you may only continue to receive aid if you are meeting the requirements of your academic plan. Financial aid can only be used to pay for courses required for your degree or eligible program.

The financial aid satisfactory academic progress policy is separate from the academic regulations at the School of Medicine.

Notification

You can view your SAP status at any time in the Financial Aid Portal in Academica. If you are an active student with a FAFSA on file, you will be notified by email if you fail to meet SAP standards. If not all of your grades are posted when we run the SAP evaluation, be aware that your status may be delayed or changed.

After your completed SAP Appeal is reviewed by the Financial Aid Office, you will receive a decision via email to your WSU email account. Status will also be posted in the Financial Aid Portal. Appeals are reviewed on a rolling basis as they are submitted. Incomplete appeals will be denied. We will make every attempt to notify you of an appeal decision within 15 business days.

How to appeal

When you lose financial aid eligibility for failing to make satisfactory progress, you may appeal that result based on: injury or illness, the death of a relative, or other special circumstances. You should not assume that a SAP appeal will be approved. Decisions of SAP appeals review are final. Be aware, that if you enroll for classes and a SAP appeal is not approved, you remain responsible for paying all charges without financial aid. To appeal:

Complete the Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal and Academic Action Plan form.
Attach a letter from your promotion committee that states the steps necessary for remediation and /or graduation.
Attach a one-page explanation statement and supporting documentation.
Submit all documents to the Office of Student Financial Aid.

The SAP appeal must include an explanation statement. Your explanation MUST contain the following:

Explain what happened - why you were unable to maintain satisfactory progress
Explain what has changed - the corrective measures you have taken or will take to achieve and maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Repeat coursework

If you repeat a course, credit hours for each registration will be added to your attempted credit hours total. However, only the most recent grade received in the course will be included in the calculation of your qualitative measure. Note: Federal financial aid will pay for only one repeat of a previously passed course.

Leave of absence

A student may be granted a personal or medical leave of absence for a variety of reasons. The approved period of leave may be excluded from the seven-year maximum to complete the program as mentioned above (maximum timeframe). However, a student will not be allowed to take more than seven years from the time of matriculation to complete the requirements for the MD degree, including leaves of absence, without approval from the WSU School of Medicine Promotions Committee.

A leave of absence is considered a withdrawal for financial aid purposes. If you take a leave of absence and do not complete scheduled coursework, you will not be meeting satisfactory academic progress standards and will need to file a SAP appeal if you want to be reconsidered for financial aid eligibility.