Financial Aid
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Here you will find forms, policies, and other imporant information regarding financial aid and student accounts. For further assistance, please contact the Office of Financial Aid.
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Cares act disclosure
On March 27, 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, providing roughly $14 billion to institutions of higher education.
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Private Student Loans
Private student loans are additional loans a student can use to help cover their educational expenses.
Refunds
The government has established a statutory schedule to determine the amount of federal Title IV funds a student has earned as of the date he or she ceases attendance.
Important Policies
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy for Financial Aid; Qualitative Standards; Quantitative Standards; Percentage Completion; Units Completed and Attempted; Repeated Courses; Failure to Maintain Standards; The Appeal Process
Withdrawal from School and Financial Aid – Return to Title IV
We understand that outside circumstances may sometimes impact a student’s ability to complete the semester.
1098T Tax Form Information
Please understand that the Office of Student Accounts cannot offer tax advice.
Net Price Calculator
This calculator is intended to provide estimated net price information to current and prospective students and their families based on what similar students paid in a previous year.
Private Student Loans
Private student loans are additional loans a student can use to help cover their educational expenses. If a student does not have enough credit history established, they may need a credit-worthy co-signer. We strongly encourage students to take the time to research several lenders before making a decision. Fast Choice offers students the opportunity to simultaneously cost-compare lenders. Students who decide to take out a private student loan will also be required to complete a private student loan counseling session online through Fast Choice. Online counseling helps students know their rights and responsibilities in regards to private student loans. Students are also required to complete a Self Certification Form when applying for a private student loan. In order to complete Section 2 of this form, the student will need to contact the financial aid office.
Below are the steps needed to apply for a Private Student Loan. Please be aware that the Fast Choice website may timeout and the process will need to be restarted if the site is not being actively used.
- Complete the online counseling called “Borrowing Essentials” on the Fast Choice website. Please note this is an interactive online counseling session and you will need to closely read and continue each page of the counseling session until it is completed. Only after you complete your online counseling session will you be allowed to take the next steps of the process.
- Learn about loan options. Click “continue” until you reach the “How Your Loan Options Are Determined” page. Read and click on the box stating that you have read and understand this policy and continue to “Loan Options”. At this point, you are then able to begin researching and comparing private student loans.
- Compare private loan lenders. You can research and compare various private student loans at the Fast Choice website. To compare three lenders at the same time, choose the “Apply Now” option for each lender.
- Mail the Private Education Loan Applicant Self-Certification Form to the private loan lender of your choice. All students who choose to take out a private student loan are required to fill out this form and mail to the lender. To complete the Self Certification Form, you may need to contact the financial aid office to provide information for Section 2 of the form.
Refunds
The government has established a statutory schedule to determine the amount of federal Title IV funds a student has earned as of the date he or she ceases attendance. The amount of federal Title IV program assistance earned is based on the amount of time the student spent in academic attendance; it has no relationship to the student’s incurred institutional charges.
Once institutional and/or student liability has been determined, the refund is distributed to the federal programs in the following order:
- Direct Federal Unsubsidized Loan
- Direct Federal Subsidized Loan
- Direct Federal Parent PLUS Loan
- Federal Pell Grant
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
- Other federal, state, private, or institutional student financial assistance
- Student
Once a student’s account has been completely billed, the financial aid is applied as follows:
- Federal grant (Pell, FSEOG)
- California State Aid (if eligible – applies to tuition only)
- Scholarships
- Federal Loans – Student
- Federal Loans – Parent
- Private Student Loans
Order of refunds to students if there is an overage of aid:
- Private Student Loan
- Federal Parent Loan (if approved by parent)
- Federal Student Loan
- Federal Pell Grant
- Scholarships (dependent on criteria)
If a parent takes out a parent PLUS Loan the refund of the parent PLUS loan would go to the parents unless the parent indicates the refund go to the student.
Important Policies
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy for Financial Aid
Students applying for financial aid must demonstrate satisfactory academic progress (SAP) in their degree program. Academic progress is measured by Qualitative (grade based) and Quantitative (time based) standards set forth by the federal government and shall be used to determine eligibility for participation in student financial aid programs at Life Pacific University. Each student’s academic progress will be evaluated at the end of every semester as part of determining their eligibility for financial aid. The federal government mandates that students must be making satisfactory academic progress toward a degree in order to maintain financial aid eligibility.
Qualitative Standards
In order to receive financial aid, students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 in progressing toward the associate of arts and/or bachelor of arts degree offered by the university. At the time of review, a student’s official cumulative GPA is evaluated to determine whether qualitative standards are being met.
Quantitative Standards
To quantify academic progress, students must not exceed the maximum time frame in which to finish their educational program.
Percentage Completion
The maximum time frame for completion is 150% of the published length of the program. For instance, if the published length of a program is 128 units, 150% of 128 units are 192 units. The student must complete his or her program by the time he or she reaches 192 attempted units. Therefore, in order for students to complete their program within the maximum time frame students must complete a minimum of 67% of all units attempted.
Units Completed and Attempted
All units transferred in from another college or university must be counted as hours toward completion of the student’s program as both hours attempted and hours completed. Completed units are enrolled units for which credit is received. Courses in which a student receives a grade of F, IN, WP, or WF will not be counted as completed units toward satisfactory academic progress purposes, but will be counted as attempted units. Furthermore, if a student completes the academic requirements for a program but has not yet received a degree, the student is no longer eligible for aid.
Repeated Courses
Students may receive financial aid for repeated courses taken to improve a grade and raise the cumulative GPA. However, all prior attempts will still be considered as attempted units for financial aid purposes.
Failure to Maintain Standards
The academic progress of aid applicants is reviewed at the end of each semester/payment period. Students failing to meet the minimum qualitative or quantitative standards required for maintaining satisfactory academic progress will be placed on financial aid warning and will continue to receive Title IV aid for one payment period/semester. The student will be notified of their status and requirements necessary to meet SAP by the end of the next semester/payment period. If at the end of the next semester (time of review) the student has not met SAP standards, the student will no longer be eligible to receive financial aid.
The Appeal Process
Appeals for re-establishing eligibility may be based on extenuating circumstances that prohibited the student from meeting SAP standards during the warning period. Examples of extenuating circumstances include:
- Death of an immediate family member
- Documented illness
- Major accident or injury (self, child, or parent)
- Victim of a crime or unexpected disaster
The student must submit an appeal letter to the Office of Financial Aid that addresses the following:
- Why the student failed to meet SAP standards
- What has changes the student has/will make to allow them to meet the SAP standards by the next evaluation.
A committee will review the appeal and contact the student once a decision has been made. The committee will decide one of the following:
- If the student will be able to meet SAP standards by the end of the next semester/payment period, financial aid will be reinstated, OR
- If the student will be required to meet with a representative of the Academic Office or the Registrar’s Office in order to create an academic plan that will ensure the student is able to meet SAP standards by a specific point in time. Financial aid will be reinstated so long as the student is meeting the requirements of the academic plan, OR
- If the appeal will be denied and the student will no longer be eligible to receive financial aid until the student has successfully completed enough units to prove SAP standards can be met.
Withdrawal from School and Financial Aid
Return to Title IV
We understand that outside circumstances may sometimes impact a student’s ability to complete the semester. After the add/drop period, when a student stops attending all their classes during the semester, depending on the circumstances, it may be classified as a “withdrawal,” or “dismissal” from the university. For charges assessed and financial aid eligibility listed below, a dismissal will be handled the same as a withdrawal from the university.
Official Process: Withdrawal or dismissal
If a student needs to completely withdraw from school, there is a process to ensure requirements are met if a student has received federal aid. Before ceasing attendance during the semester, we advise students to consider how much they might be charged, how much financial aid they might receive, and how it may impact their ability to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).
The first step a student needs to take is to contact the Office of the Registrar. There is an online form provided by the Office of the Registrar, that a student can submit electronically if they need to withdraw, https://www.lifepacific.edu/registrar; A student may also contact their office directly.
Once the form is submitted to the Registrar’s office, the financial aid office will be notified and then will proceed to work on a Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation. Whenever a student withdraws from school or drops a course, there is a penalty phase at the time of the withdrawal or dropped course. The withdrawal date established by the Registrars Office is the date used by the Financial Aid office to determine the percentage of Title IV aid earned by the student.
Unofficial Withdrawals
When a student withdraws, whether it is an official withdrawal or unofficial, the amount of aid earned by the student must be determined. If the amount disbursed to the student is greater than the amount earned, unearned funds must be returned. Students who fail to earn a passing grade in at least one class will be evaluated to determine if they withdrew unofficially (stopped attending classes) or they must prove they participated in an academically related activity past the 60% point of the payment period. In most cases, if a student cannot prove they were in attendance past the 60% point of the payment period, the institution can use the midpoint of the payment period (semester) as the last date of attendance for calculation purposes.
Withdrawing Prior to the 60 Percent Point in the Semester
Charges:
Tuition: Prorated per day
Fees: all fees are non-refundable
Room/Board: pro-rated daily
Institutional Aid:
May be pro-rated depending on type of Institutional aid criteria. Financial aid files need to be complete prior to last date of attendance for consideration of keeping institutional aid.
State Aid:
Cal Grant Award: Prorated per day (assuming the student has completed everything required, and his or her admission file and financial aid file are complete prior to the last date of attendance). Will not be used to reimburse the federal government. If applicable, will be returned to CSAC prior to all other awards, other than Return to Title IV funds. Student understands that receipt of prorated amount will use an entire semester’s worth of Cal Grant eligibility.
Withdrawing on or After the 60 Percent Point in the Semester
Charges:
The student will be charged in full.
Financial Aid
The student will receive full financial aid (assuming the student has completed everything required, and his or her admission file and financial aid file are complete prior to the last date of attendance).
The Federal Government’s “Return to Title IV” (R2T4) Policy
If a student withdraws from all courses in a traditional 15-week semester or does not complete all the sessions of a modular (sequential) course schedule, in some cases the student only earns a portion of the financial aid already received. LPU is required by federal law to use a prescribed formula to calculate the unearned portion of the financial aid received and return it to the federal government’s Title IV programs.
Traditional 15-Week Semester R2T4 Policy
The percentage of Title IV financial aid earned is determined by dividing the number of days the student completed in the semester, by the total number of days in the term. If the student attended 60 percent or more of the days in the semester, the student could keep all the aid originally received. If less than 60 percent, the government determines how much Title IV aid the student earned (the percentage multiplied by the total amount of Title IV aid received).
Calculation of Amount of Title IV aid earned by student.
The earned portion of federal aid is calculated on a daily basis using calendar days from the first day of instruction. Based on the date of withdrawal, drop, or dismissal, the Financial Aid Office will determine the amount, if any, of “unearned” federal financial aid received by the student. The calculation to determine the percentage of the enrollment period completed by the student is as follows:
Enrolled days / total number of days in the semester = % of Aid Earned
The result will equal the percentage of the enrollment period completed. The amount of federal financial aid that was paid or could have been paid to the student will be based on this percentage. Any aid received more than the earned amount is considered unearned. If a student receives more financial aid than the amount earned, the unearned portion will be returned to Department of Education and the student will be billed for the overpayment. If in the R2T4 calculation it is determined a student owes money to the Department of Education, the student is only obligated to return 50% of the Federal Pell Grant and SEOG funds due to the Tile IV grant protection built into the R2T4 calculations.
Examples of Title IV Calculations
Example 1: Joshua is an undergraduate student. His fall semester is 105 days long. It begins on August 31 and ends December 17. On September 30th, Joshua drops all his classes. Joshua attended 35 days of the fall semester and has earned 33 percent of his federal financial aid (35 days divided by 105 days = 33.3 %)
Joshua’s cost of attendance is as follows:
| Fall Semester Charges | Costs |
| Tuition | $8,292.00 |
| Fees | $425.00 |
| Housing | $2,075.00 |
| Meal Plan | $2,550.00 |
| Total | $13,342.00 |
Joshua’s financial aid package consists of net amount disbursed or amount that could have been disbursed:
| Award | Amount |
| Net Federal Direct Subsidized Loan | $1,732.00 |
| Net Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan | $990.00 |
| Pell Grant | $3,148.00 |
| SEOG | $150.00 |
| Net Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan | $7,662.00 |
| Total | $13,682.00 |
As Joshua has completed only 35 days of his semester, he earned 33.3 percent of the $13,682.00. According to the federal calculation, 66.7 percent of his federal aid, equaling $9,126.00 must be returned to the Department of Education.
Life Pacific University is required to return the following:
| Award | Amount |
| Net Federal Direct Subsidized Loan | $1,732.00 |
| Net Federal Direct Subsidized Loan | $990.00 |
| Net Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan | $6,404.00 |
| Total | $9,126.00 |
Joshua will receive $6,633.60 in tuition credit. The credit will be applied to the balance owed on Joshua’s account and he will be billed for any difference owed to LPU.
Example 2: Daniel is an undergraduate student. His fall semester is 105 days long. It begins on August 27 and ends December 14. On October 30th, Daniel drops all his classes per the Registrar’s office. Daniel attended 65 days of the fall semester and has earned 62 percent of his federal financial aid (65 days divided by 105 days = 62 %)
Daniel’s cost of attendance is as follows:
| Semester Charges (10 units) | Costs |
| Tuition | $6,910.00 |
| Fees | $425.00 |
| Total | $7,335.00 |
His financial aid package consists of:
| Award | Amount |
| Net Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan | $5,690 |
| Total | $5,690 |
Based on Daniel’s attendance (61.9% of the term), Daniel has earned 100% of his federal financial aid for the term and will not have to return any funds. In addition, Daniel withdrew after LPU’s withdrawal percentage period and will not receive any credit for tuition.
When students withdraw from the college, Return to Title IV calculations must be completed to determine the aid they are eligible to keep and/or if aid must be returned to the Dept. of Education. Students who have received aid more than the earned amount, must have the portion of unearned aid returned to the Department of Education. LPU promptly deals with instances of Return of Title IV funds in compliance with Department of Education regulations. This may result in an outstanding balance that is due to LPU. If you do have a balance left to pay after the R2T4 calculations, the Student Accounts office will be contacting you with some payment plan options.
Traditional Undergraduate:
Institutional Financial Penalties for Withdrawal and Classes Dropped – Fall 2020
| Withdrawal Date | Dates | Tuition Penalty |
| Before Add/Drop Deadline | Prior to September 10th | No Tuition Penalty |
| Through 3rd week of class | Prior to September 21st | 20% Tuition Penalty |
| Through 5th week of class | Prior to October 5th | 40% Tuition Penalty |
| Through 7th week of class | October 19th – November 13th | 100% Tuition Penalty |
| After 7th week of class | October 19th – November 13th | 100% Tuition Penalty |
| Last Day for Withdrawal | November 13th |
*All penalty schedules are updated each year and can be found on the Academic Calendar section on the website or in the catalog.
Post-Withdrawal Disbursement
In some cases, a student may be eligible to receive a “post-withdrawal” disbursement after the student completely withdraws from the university when the amount of aid earned is less than the amount of aid disbursed. In such cases, the Financial Aid Office will notify the student of the “post-withdrawal” disbursement in writing.
There are some Title IV funds that a student may have been scheduled to receive that cannot be disbursed to a student once they have completely withdrawn because of other eligibility requirements. For example, if a student is a first-time, first year, undergraduate student and has not completed the first 30 days of their program before they withdraw, they will not receive any Federal Direct Loan funds that they would have received, if they had remained enrolled past the 30th day.
If a student is qualified to receive a post withdrawal disbursement, meaning they are eligible for a portion of their federal aid, then the student will be notified and provided with a post-withdrawal disbursement authorization form from the office of financial aid. It is the student’s responsibility to complete and submit their form prior to the release of the post-withdrawal disbursement.
All unearned funds will be returned to the department of education within 30 days of the students last date of attendance. After the completion of the R2T4 calculation if the results end up with a student having a credit balance, the refund will be disbursed to the student no later than 14 days after the calculation of the R2T4.
Return of Funds
Federal Title IV financial aid is returned in the order mandated by the U.S. Department of Education. No program can receive a refund if the student did not receive aid from that program. Funds must be returned within 45 days of the established withdrawal date. Federal guidelines mandate that we return federal funds in the following order:
- Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan
- Federal Direct Subsidized Loan
- Federal Direct PLUS Loan
- Federal Pell Grant
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
1098T Tax Form Information
Please understand that the Office of Student Accounts cannot offer tax advice. If you have questions about the 1098T form and tax credits, please contact your tax preparer or follow the links to the IRS website provided at the bottom of this page.
Helpful Links
What is the purpose of a 1098T form?
A 1098T form is for a student or parent of a student to use to claim a Hope and Lifetime Learning Education Credit when they file their taxes. The HLLEC is based on tuition and related expenses required for enrollment or attendance at an eligible institution. For more information, please go to the links at the bottom of this web page.
When are the 1098T forms mailed?
The Office of Student Accounts mails out the 1098T form for the prior tax year by the end of January. Please note that estimates will not be given to those who file taxes early. Due to the confidential nature of the data included on the 1098T and to prevent identity theft, the Office of Student Accounts will not email this form.
To which address will my 1098T form be mailed to?
Undergraduate Students:
The forms are placed in student boxes on campus for resident students.
Degree Completion / Graduate Students and Recent Alumni:
The forms will be mailed to the permanent addresses provided to the university.
Change of address? Contact the Registrar’s Office
Why is Box 1 on the 1098T blank?
The IRS requires institutions to complete Box 1 or Box 2 on the form. Life Pacific University will provide information for Box 2 (the amount billed for qualified tuition and related expenses).
Office of Financial Aid
Office Hours:
Monday – Thursday 9am-4pm PT, Closed 12-1pm PT, Friday 9am-12pm PT
Closed during Chapel every Tuesday and Wednesday 10:15am-11:20am PT
Call: (909) 706-3031
Email: financialaid@lifepacific.edu