Eligibility and Verification for Financial Aid
Oglethorpe is committed to offering a variety of strategies and resources to help make the net cost of this education and experience affordable.
Eligibility
How do I know if I am eligible for financial aid?
99% of Oglethorpe students receive some type of financial aid to help finance their education. The eligibility requirements for most types of financial aid are below. You can find additional information at Federal Student Aid.
If you believe that you will not qualify for Federal Student Aid because of your legal status, learn more about Financial Aid for DACA & Undocumented Students.
Admission to a Degree Program
Being formally admitted is different from just taking classes. Most financial aid requires that you be a degree seeking student, a student that has been admitted to a program and upon successful completion of that program would earn a degree.
Ensure You are Enrolled in Enough Credits
Financial aid awards are based on the number of credits in which you are enrolled. The minimum number of credit hours required to be considered full time is 12 credit hours. (Note: If you are planning to graduate in 4 years and taking only fall semester and spring semester courses, you will need to enroll in 16 credit hours to meet the 128 degree credit hour requirement.)
Your enrollment is reviewed the week after the end of the Add/Drop each term. Your financial aid awards may be prorated (if necessary) based on the number of credits you are enrolled in by that date. This ensures your financial aid is disbursed to your student account as quickly as possible.
Your enrollment will be reviewed for the final time each term after the last date to add a class in the second 8 week session. If you have enrolled in any additional credits, you may be eligible for additional aid. If you have dropped any classes, you may lose eligibility for financial aid, and would then be billed for any aid you have already received. Please reach out to the financial aid office to determine if classes added after Add/Drop can be included when determining your eligibility for aid.
SAP Standards
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is used to define successful completion of coursework and timely progress towards completing your degree in order to maintain eligibility your financial aid.
Verification
Verification is a process that you and Oglethorpe must complete in order to award you federal student aid. Students are selected randomly and we have verify that the information submitted on your FAFSA is accurate. This process must occur before Oglethorpe can award you any of your federal student aid.
To verify that the information received is correct, we will ask you to submit the Dependent (or Independent) Verification Worksheet along with other supporting documents. If we determine that there are differences, your FAFSA information may need to be updated.
The Dependent Verification Worksheet must be completed by you and at least one parent and submitted with the requested verification to Belinda Jones, our Senior Financial Aid Counselor.
Financial aid forms
Frequently asked questions
You will receive an email from Belinda Jones indicating that you have been selected. You will also notice that none of your federal student aid appears when you look at your statement in your OASIS Student Account. If you are not sure, you can always contact the financial aid office to verify.
If you are selected for Dependent Verification, you will need to submit the Dependent Verification Worksheet and your parents will need to use the Data Retrieval Tool from the IRS or submit a copy of their tax transcript.
If you are selected for Independent Verification, you will need to submit the Independent Student Verification Worksheet and use the Data Retrieval Tool or submit a copy of your tax transcript.
The forms are linked on the Tuition and Financial Aid page.
If you have been selected and cannot find the email sent to you from Belinda Jones, you can email her at [email protected] or call her directly at 404-364-8358.
If you are unable to use the Data Retrieval Tool, you can follow the instructions listed on the IRS Tax Transcript website for requesting a copy.
