Policy:

To be eligible for federal, state, and most institutional or private financial aid, a student must meet
certain eligibility requirements.

Procedure:

• File a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
• Meet all regulatory eligibility requirements for federal financial aid including, but not limited to:
  • Be U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen.
  • Have earned a High School Diploma or GED certificate.
  • Not be in default on a federal student loan or owe a refund to any federal financial aid program at any institution.
  • Have not received a conviction for any offense during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving federal financial aid under any federal or state law involving the possession or sale of illegal drugs.
  • Students enrolled in an eligible degree-seeking program at Clarkson College.
  • Enrolled at least half-time:
    • Undergraduate students: six (6) credit hours
    • Graduate students: three (3) credit hours for each semester the student wishes to be considered for financial aid
  • Enrolled in courses that fulfill the student’s degree requirements.
• Submit additional documents or information as requested by Financial Aid.
• Meet all Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements each academic term.
• Certify that federal student aid awards will be used only for educational purposes.

Additionally, federal regulations require that the annual maximum loan amount an undergraduate student may receive must be prorated (reduced) in the following circumstances: 

 1. The student is enrolled in a program that is shorter than a full academic year; or 

2.The student is enrolled in a program that is one academic year or more in length, but is in a remaining period of study (i.e., a period at the end of which the student will have completed all program requirements) that is shorter than a full academic year. 

Note: The annual loan limit for Direct Unsubsidized Loans is not prorated for students enrolled in graduate or professional-level programs. 

Loan proration requirements also do not apply to students enrolled in preparatory coursework or teacher certification coursework. This is because these students are not considered to be enrolled in a program for Title IV purposes, and the requirement to prorate loans applies only when the student is enrolled in a program (or portion of a program) that is shorter than an academic year.

It is important to understand that loan limit proration determines the maximum loan amount a student may borrow for a program or the remaining portion of a program—not the actual loan amount the student is eligible to receive. In some cases, the student’s eligibility (based on cost of attendance, SAI, and OFA) may be less than the prorated loan limit.

Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA/OB3), for Direct Loans packaged and originated for the 2026-27 academic year (AY), a student’s annual loan limit must be adjusted for less than full-time enrollment (known as the Schedule of Reductions, or SOR). This requirement applies to all undergraduate, graduate, and professional student Direct Loan borrowers for Direct Subsidized Loans, Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and graduate PLUS Loans, but it does not apply to parent PLUS Loan borrowers.

The regulatory text for 34 CFR 685.203(m)(1) in the May 1, 2026, Federal Register reads as follows:

Less Than Full-Time Enrollment. Notwithstanding any provision of 34 CFR parts 682 or 685, in any case in which a student is enrolled in an eligible program (except for a non-term program) at an institution on a less than a full-time basis during any academic year, the amount of any Direct Loan that student may borrow for an academic year or its equivalent shall be reduced in direct proportion to the degree to which that student is not so enrolled on a full-time basis, as of the date the institution determined the student’s eligibility for the disbursement in accordance with 34 CFR 668.164(b)(3), rounded to the nearest whole percentage point, as follows:

Periods of Enrollment that are Less than a Full Academic Year. For a period of enrollment of less than an academic year as defined under 668.3, the institution must calculate the Direct Loan eligibility that student may borrow for the term in which the borrower is enrolled, or its equivalent, in direct proportion to the degree to which that student is not so enrolled on a full-time basis for that term.

(A) The institution shall first determine the amount of the academic year loan limit under this section that the term represents.

(B) The institution shall then determine the borrower’s eligibility for a disbursement of a Direct Loan for the term, in accordance with 34 CFR 668.164(b)(3).

(C) The institution shall then reduce the borrower’s Direct Loan amount based on less than full-time enrollment for that term at that institution, as follows:

a. Number of credit hours enrolled for the term/Number of credit hours considered full-time for that term for the program of study X 100 = reduced annual loan limit percentage.

Clarkson College Procedures

• The Registrar’s Office will manage the Pace Evaluation process, which adjusts expected graduation dates based on student progress, enrollment status, leaves of absence (LOAs), or other interruptions in attendance. This will be completed prior to the census date.
• Upon completion, the assigned Financial Aid and Scholarships (FA) staff will run the Packaging Summary Report to identify students in the impacted group (i.e., students potentially completing their program at the end of the semester using all loan sources).
• Results will be posted to the FA Teams site in the following location:
  Documents > General > Loan Proration - 1 Term (Reports are provided for both Fall and Spring terms).
• FA Advisors will be notified by the assigned FA staff member.
• FA Advisors will then review and adjust loan offers by following the steps and example calculations outlined below.

Please note: If it is discovered that a student will not complete the full academic year after the Pace Evaluation and the FA process has taken place, and the expected graduation date has been updated to the term the student is attending, there will be no adjustments made because this was identified after a disbursement has occurred.

Next Steps for FA Advisors

1. Access the report:
   Navigate to Teams > Documents > General > Loan Proration - 1 Term (for Fall and Spring).
2. Review the students within your alpha split. (Note: Graduate students have already been filtered out.)
3. Determine the correct loan proration for each student using the following formula and examples:

Loan Proration Formula:

(Credits Enrolled for Final Term ÷ 36) × Annual Loan Limit

 Example 1 – Proration with $5,500 Loan Limit

Assuming the academic year is defined as 36 credits over 3 semesters (12 credits per term):

• 12 credits (full-time term):
  (12 ÷ 36) × $5,500 = $1,833
• 6 credits (half-time term):
  (6 ÷ 36) × $5,500 = $917

 

Example 2 – Proration with $7,500 Loan Limit

• 12 credits (full-time term):
  (12 ÷ 36) × $7,500 = $2,500
• 6 credits (half-time term):
  (6 ÷ 36) × $7,500 = $1,250

``4. Assign a task to inform the student of the revised loan offer: Task Name: FA - Loan Proration Revised Offer

    5. Upddate the report in Teams to reflect the changes: Mark the appropriate students as "Updated".