Course Retake Policy - Impact on Federal Aid

Federal regulations state that a student may receive federal aid for only one additional attempt of a previoulsy passed course. A "passed" course is defined as any grade higher than an "F," regardless of institutional or program requirements for a higher grade.

If a student retakes a previously passed course more than once, the course will not count toward their Title IV enrollment status. Since Pell Grant amounts are based on enrollment intensity, this may result in a reduced Pell Grant award.

• Enrollment Intensity is the percentage of a student's enrollment status relative to what's considered full-time. At Union, enrollment in three credit-bearing courses is considered full-time for federal aid purposes.
• If one or more repeated courses no longer count, the student may be considered less than full-time (e.g., half-time), which directly impacts Pell Grant award levels.
• Federal Direct Loan eligibility is based on maintaining at least half-time enrollment. As long as as student's Title IV enrollment status is at least half-time, loan eligibility will not be affected, even if their Pell Grant is reduced.

The following examples assume the student remains at least half-time, so federal loan eligibility is not affected.

• All repeated coursework is counted in SAP calculations (GPA, pace, and maximum timeframe).
• Courses not counted toward enrollment status will reduce Pell Grant award levels, but do not affect affect institutional merit/grant aid.
• Federal loans are not affected as long as the student remains enrolled at least half-time, even if Pell enrollment status is reduced. At Union, half-time status means students must be enrolled in two credit-bearing courses that count towards their Title IV enrollment status.
• This policy explains the impact of course retakes on federal loans; institutional policies on retakes are separate and can be found in the Academic Catalog.