Financial Aid

Financing a college education can be an overwhelming experience. As costs continue to rise, LBC | Capital continues to provide a variety of financial aid options. LBC | Capital participates in the federal and state aid programs. The College also offers many scholarships, as well as other opportunities, to help students finance their education.
For complete details on financial aid opportunities, visit the Financial Aid & Tuition section of the website for traditional undergraduate education or adult education undergraduate.

The academic year for purposes of federal student aid is defined as 32 weeks of instructional time (fall and spring semesters) and 24 credits earned at full-time status. The summer term is optional and treated as a trailer- attached to the end of the previous academic year.

Aid is typically disbursed approximately 3 weeks after the start of the semester after confirming student’s enrollment. Changes may occur if a student’s enrollment changes.

Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress
In order to maintain eligibility for the federal financial aid programs a student must meet the following requirements of satisfactory academic progress:

Qualitative Requirement: Grade Point Average

These cumulative GPAs should not be confused with GPAs required for graduation. Check graduation requirements in the catalogs and program handbooks.

Students who are not successfully completing courses at the minimum levels as outlined are considered to be making unsatisfactory progress and will not be eligible for financial aid for the following semester.

Quantitative Requirement: Students must successfully complete a minimum of 67% of the credit hours attempted after each semester.

Maximum Time Frame for Completion of Education Objective:
Undergraduate students must complete their degree program within 150% of the published length of their degree program. For example, a student enrolled in the four-year program should complete the degree in 12 semesters (6 years); a student enrolled in the two-year degree program should complete the degree in 6 semesters (3 years); a student enrolled in the one-year certificate/diploma should complete the degree in 2.5 semesters (1 1/2 years).

Evaluation of Academic Progress
Students' academic progress will be reviewed at the end of each payment period (semester). Students who are not successfully meeting the minimum levels, as outlined above, have not made satisfactory academic progress. The first time a student fails to make satisfactory academic progress at the end of a payment period, they will be placed on a “Financial Aid Warning.” The student may continue to receive Title IV aid for one payment period, and no appeal is necessary for this semester.

Subsequent failures to meet financial aid satisfactory academic progress will result in an SAP Not Met status ineligibility to receive Title IV aid. Students have the opportunity to appeal.

Appeal Process
Students may appeal financial aid termination status. Such appeals should be made within 45 days after the date of notification and must include appropriate documentation. The appeal may be completed through the online portal on lbc.studentforms.com. Examples of mitigating circumstances which would be considered upon appeal as adequate reasons for reinstatement may include but are not limited to:

• student illness, accident or hospitalization
• death or illness of parent or relative
• other family emergencies or unusual circumstances

The appeal must include why the student failed to make satisfactory academic progress, and what has changed that will allow the student to make satisfactory academic progress for the next semester.
If the appeal is granted the student will then be placed on “Financial Aid Probation” and will be allowed to receive Title IV aid for the next payment period or be placed on academic plan that will ensure the student is able to meet satisfactory academic progress by a specific point in time.

Financial aid eligibility will be reinstated once the student reaches the required minimums or upon successful appeal.

Course and Enrollment Factors in Evaluating Academic Progress

Audit Courses: Audit courses neither earn credit nor influence grade point average. They are not eligible for financial aid.

Change of Major: If students change majors, the credits earned under all majors will be included in the calculation of attempted, earned, and maximum timeframe credits, as well as GPA calculations.

Incomplete Courses: Incomplete courses do not earn credit nor influence grade point average in the semester they are listed as incomplete. Incomplete courses either turn into an “F” grade if not completed or into a different letter grade when completed. Once the course is complete and a grade is entered, a review of academic progress will occur at the next time of formal evaluation.

Remedial Courses: Remedial courses will count toward determination of enrollment status, will be eligible for financial aid, and are included in determining completion rates.

Repeated Courses: Students may repeat a failed course numerous times until it is passed. Students may repeat previously passed courses only once. Repeated courses will count toward determination of enrollment status and previously passed courses will be eligible for financial aid only once. Repeated courses are computed in the completion rate.

Requirements for a Part-Time Student: Students who are part-time (below 12 credits) must complete 67% of credits attempted per year in order to maintain academic progress. Cumulative grade point average requirements are the same as the full-time students.

Summer Courses: Students may make up credit deficiency, increase cumulative GPA, or progress more quickly through their program by attending summer courses. Credits earned during the summer term, and corresponding GPA, will be evaluated following the summer term to determine academic progress for the past academic year.

Transfer Students: The credits that are transferred are calculated into the overall credits earned total but are not factored into the cumulative GPA when a student transfers into LBC. Therefore, new transfer students will start at a satisfactory academic progress level. A student’s progress will be evaluated after each semester (payment period.) Transfer credits are included in determining completion rates.

Withdrawn Courses: Withdrawn courses neither earn credit nor influence grade point average. Withdrawn courses may affect completion rate if course is dropped after the add/drop period set by the Registrar. Students may retake courses from which they have withdrawn which will count toward determination of enrollment status in that semester and will be eligible for financial aid.

Failure Non-Attendance (FN) Courses: FN courses do not earn credit, but they influence grade point average. FN courses may affect completion rate if the grade is received after the drop/add period set by the Registrar’s Office. Students may retake courses from which they received an FN which will count toward determination of enrollment status in that semester and will be eligible for financial aid.

Federal Financial Aid Refund Policy

The Financial Aid Office is required by federal statute to determine how much financial aid was earned by students who voluntarily or involuntarily withdraw prior to completing 60 percent of a payment period or term.

Once 60 percent of the enrollment period has elapsed in a non-modular program, or if a student has successfully completed 50 percent of a term in a modular program, the student in most cases is considered to have earned their federal aid. For example, if students pass sub-term 1 but withdraw from sub-term 2, they may be eligible to keep all or some of their federal aid.

In either scenario, a school must still complete a return of Title IV funds calculation in order to determine the student’s eligibility to receive or keep federal financial aid funds. The calculation is based on the percentage of earned aid using the following Federal return of Title IV funds formula.

The federal return of Title IV funds formula is the percentage of payment period or term completed (I.e. the number of days completed up to the withdrawal date) divided by the total days in the payment period or term. (Any break of five days or more is not counted as part of the days in the term.) This percentage is the percentage of earned aid.

Funds are returned to the appropriate federal program based on the percentage of unearned aid using the following formula:
Aid to be returned = (100 percent of the aid that could be disbursed minus the percentage of earned aid) multiplied by the total amount of aid that could have been disbursed during the payment period or term.

If a student earned less aid than was disbursed, the financial aid office is required to return a portion of the funds. When Title IV funds are returned, the student borrower may owe a debit balance to the institution.

If a student earned more aid than was disbursed to him/her, the institution would owe the student a post-withdrawal disbursement which must be paid within 120 days of the student's withdrawal.

The institution must return the amount of Title IV funds for which it is responsible no later than 45 days after the date of the determination of the date of the student's withdrawal.

Excess funds will be returned in the following order:

• Unsubsidized Federal Direct Loans
• Subsidized Federal Direct Loans
• Federal Parent (PLUS) Direct Loans
• Federal Pell Grants for which a Return of funds is required
• Federal Supplemental Opportunity Grants for which a Return of funds is required
• Other assistance under this Title for which a Return of funds is required (e.g., State, institutional and private aid)

Please note that enrollment changes can have a significant impact on Title IV eligibility.