Financial Aid FAQs

 

Frequently Asked Questions

The amount of financial aid that is initially awarded to your account is based on full-time enrollment, and it is the maximum amount possible after reviewing your Cost of Attendance (COA) Budget, financial need, and the availability of funds.  If your financial aid is not enough to cover your costs, you will need to make payment arrangements through your WeevilNet account or with the Cashier’s Office.  In addition, this financial aid may not be used for deposits, standardized testing, physical examinations, or any other fees that you must pay prior to registration.  You must be fully admitted, enrolled, and attending/participating in the classes you are enrolled in before your financial aid will be disbursed and paid to your account.  It is your responsibility to notify the Office of Financial Aid of any change in your enrollment.  If you do not notify our office, your aid will be adjusted on or shortly after the Census Date (11th class day for Fall and Spring, 5th class day for Summer).  If you finalized/confirmed your bill and your aid is adjusted after the Census Date, you may be responsible to pay for the balance that is no longer covered.  Changes in enrollment may reduce, eliminate, or add aid eligibility.  Eligibility for Financial Aid must be re-established each year by renewing your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at fafsa.gov

Any money received to help pay your bill at UAM including, but not limited to:

  • Pell Grant
  • Other Federal and State grants
  • UAM Institutional or Foundation scholarships
  • Private scholarships from external organizations
  • Loans, federal or private
  • Work-Study, federal or institutional
  • Veterans Affairs Benefits
  • Assistantships
  • Third Party funds such as El Dorado Promise, Arkansas Workforce, or Rehabilitation Services

  • The amounts and types of your aid were determined on the basis of your enrollment and the financial aid information from your FAFSA, or assumed if no FAFSA is submitted.
  • Your awarded financial aid cannot exceed the Cost of Attendance (COA) Budget for the semester.  This is an estimated cost of all expenses incurred by the average student in your categories (e.g.: enrollment status, undergrad or graduate, in-state or out-of-state, on-campus or off-campus, etc.).
  • One-half of the total aid for the school year will be made available to you for the fall semester and one-half for the spring semester, unless the award is specified otherwise and is allowable.
  • Summer financial aid eligibility is determined if you enroll in a summer term. If you have questions about your remaining eligibility for the summer semester, please contact the Financial Aid Office.

  • Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is the policy that all UAM students must follow in order to continue to be eligible for most forms of financial aid.
  • SAP and Academic Standing are two different policies.
    • You may meet SAP, but not be in good Academic Standing with Academic Affairs.
    • You may be in good Academic Standing, but not meet SAP with Financial Aid.
  • There are five SAP statuses
    • Meets – You are meeting SAP.
    • Warning – You have not met SAP for one semester.
    • Probation – You appealed your SAP status due to extenuating circumstances and it was approved for the following semester you attend at UAM.
    • Academic Plan – You appealed your SAP status due to extenuating circumstances and it was approved as long as you follow an assigned academic plan.
    • Not Meets – You are not meeting SAP.  This occurs after two semesters of not meeting SAP or by earning a W,F, or I grade in all classes for one semester.
  • There are two standards you must meet to meet to comply with SAP policy.
    • The Qualitative Standard is a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA.
    • The Quantitative Standard is successfully completing at least 67% of your total attempted hours (includes all attempted, remedial, repeated, transfer classes and classes you’ve earned a W,F, or I grade), and being able to complete your program within the Maximum Time Frame allowable.
  • For an explanation of these standards and more, please click UAM SAP Policy or contact the Financial Aid Office.
  • If you do not meet these standards, you will be given an opportunity to appeal at the end of the semester you are placed on Financial Aid Denial.
    • If approved, you will be able to continue to receive financial aid if you meet the SAP Policy by the end of the following semester you attend at UAM.
    • If denied, you will have to come back into compliance with the SAP Policy before eligibility will be reviewed again.

  • You may not have met the renewal requirements for your scholarship. Contact the Financial Aid Office or the organization granting the scholarship for renewal requirements on your specific scholarship.
  • Scholarships from outside organizations not shown on your WeevilNet Financial Aid section have either not been received, or we must provide verification of enrollment before a check is sent to us.  Please contact the Scholarship Coordinator for further questions.
  • State scholarships from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education (ADHE) (Arkansas Academic Challenge, Workforce Challenge, Future Grant, etc.), are sent to the Financial Aid Office in rosters as ADHE processes applications. These rosters are not available to UAM until a few weeks before classes start.  If you have accepted a scholarship with ADHE and it is not on your account by the first day of classes, please contact the Financial Aid Office.
  • You may need to endorse a scholarship check.  If so, an e-mail will be sent to your student e-mail account stating that we have a scholarship check that needs to be endorsed by you before we can apply it to your account.

Remaining credit balances, if any, will be refunded to eligible students. Not every student will have a credit balance and not all anticipated credit balances will occur at the same point in the term. Types of aid as well as tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, and other charges will vary between students based on enrollment, on‐campus purchases, and housing/meal plans. Please monitor your financial aid and refund status via WeevilNet. Multiple processes by various departments are required in order for your financial aid to move from anticipated aid to your student account. We ask for your patience and that you keep in mind that there may be times when WeevilNet displays your aid as authorized, but not disbursed or disbursed but not applied to your student account. More information regarding refund dates can be located at https://www.uamont.edu/financial-aid/important-links.html

  • If you do not enroll for the fall semester, your awards will be cancelled for the entire year.  You may request financial aid for the spring when you re-enroll (or are readmitted, if you still meet all eligibility requirements and funds are available for the spring semester.
  • Your aid may be adjusted if information submitted on your FAFSA or other documents are found to be incorrect.
  • Also, the University reserves the right to adjust your award if:
    • you receive financial support from a source other than the aid listed on your award letter;
    • you do not maintain enrollment and regular attendance in classes you registered for at the beginning of the semester;
    •  an error was made.

  • All financial aid on your account will go to pay your financial obligations to the University for the current term before cash disbursements (refunds) are made to students, unless the award specifies otherwise.
  • If a prior term balance is owed, it is the student’s responsibility to make the necessary payment arrangements with the Cashier’s Office.  Current year federal financial aid can pay no more than $200 of a balance due from a prior year.

  • There are two types of withdrawal: Official and Unofficial
    • An Official Withdrawal is when you complete a withdrawal or drop form and return it to the Registrar’s Office.
    • An Unofficial Withdrawal is when you stop attending class without completing a withdrawal or drop form.
  • You should contact the financial aid office before you officially withdraw from a class to discuss how it will affect your financial aid package and borrowing history if you have borrowed loans.
  • If a student completely withdraws from the University (Officially or Unofficially), all or part of the financial aid awards may have to be repaid.

  • If withdrawal, (Officially or Unofficially) occurs BEFORE classes begin, all financial aid awarded must be returned.
    • Please refer to Tuition and Fees Refund Dates  or contact the Registrar’s Office for information regarding Tuition and Fees refund during the first week of classes.
  • If withdrawal, (Officially or Unofficially) occurs AFTER classes begin, a portion of the aid may need to be repaid by the student to the University.
  • This may result in owing a balance to the University for the portion of your bill that financial aid was covering, as well as any refund that you recieved.
  • Please contact the Office of Financial Aid if you are thinking about withdrawing.  Note that simply contacting our office is not Officially withdrawing.
  • Future eligibility for aid may be suspended if arrangements are not made for repayment  with the consent of the Cashier's Office.
  • The calculation of your repayment will be made on the basis of University and/or federal regulations at the time of your withdrawal.  More information is on our Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy page UAM SAP Policy.

  • For employment information, please contact the Office of Career Services at 870-460-1454 or visit their office on the 2nd Floor of the Student Success Center.
  • There are two types of Work-Study, Federal and Institutional.
    • Federal is awarded based on your FAFSA application.  Not everyone is eligible for Federal Work-Study.
    • Institutional does not affect financial aid; therefore, all students may qualify for Institutional Work-Study as long as they meet SAP (even if a FAFSA is not filed) and a job is found by the student.
  • Financial Aid offered as Federal Work-Study is an estimation of the amount you may expect to earn during the term(s) indicated based on your FAFSA information.
  • A work study award does NOT guarantee the student’s employment on campus.
  • Federal Work-Study is awarded to those who qualify have applied through the Workday system, and have been hired.
  • Students are allowed to work up to a maximum of 20 hours a week, but are not guaranteed the hours depending on the hiring department’s needs and budget.
  • Student workers are paid every two weeks.
  • If employment is found and you choose not to work for any reason, the University assumes no obligation to substitute other types of aid.

  • Your Student Aid Report (SAR) that can be viewed after completing your FAFSA at the FAFSA.gov website, will tell you if your application was selected for verification.  There may be circumstances where you are not selected by the U.S. Department of Education, but are still selected by the Financial Aid Office.
  • You will receive a email from the Financial Aid Office at your address listed on WeevilNet. It will include the forms to be completed and a list of financial documents if required.
  • You can also see this information on your WeevilNet To-Do list and print any needed forms from the UAM Financial Aid webpage under Financial Aid Forms.
  • We cannot award federal financial aid until verification has been completed, so please provide the required documents as soon as possible.

  • W-2
  • IRS Tax Return Transcript (not a tax return)
  • 1040X (if amended tax)
  • Child support documentation
  • High school transcript
  • The U.S. Department of Education gives the University the authority to request any documentation necessary to verify information. 

  • We encourage all FAFSA applicants to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (IRS DRT) to transfer official IRS tax return information into their FAFSA on the web application. This is the most efficient way to complete the verification process.
  • We cannot accept 1040, 1040A, 1040 EZ forms as proof of filing.
  • If, however, you were unable to use the IRS DRT, applicants may be asked to submit an IRS Tax Return Transcript. IRS Transcripts are usually available within 3 weeks of e-filing or 11 weeks after submitting a paper return.
  • It can take more than two weeks to receive a Tax Return Transcript by requesting it to be mailed if you are not able to request it online.

  • Go to www.irs.gov/Individuals/Get-Transcript. Click “Get Transcript Online” or “Get Transcript by Mail”.  Choose “RETURN TRANSCRIPT”.
  • Tax Transcripts may also be requested using the IRS Automated Phone Tool at 800-908-9946, by mail using the IRS paper form 4506 or 4506T or the IRS2Go App.

  • If you decide not to attend UAM, please notify the Financial Aid Office at finaid@uamont.edu.
  • If you are planning to transfer to another school and currently have financial aid awarded for another semester, please complete a Request to Cancel Financial Aid form so that your new school can award a financial aid package.
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