Federal Loans

As of November 1, 2006 the Hazelden Graduate School of Addiction Studies participates in the Federal Student Aid (FSA) programs administered through the U.S. Department of Education. There are many financing options available to students through FSA once they have been accepted into the school.

Hazelden Graduate School of Addiction Studies offers federal subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford Loans and Grad Plus loans. You have the right to select the lender of your choice when borrowing a student loan. The graduate school does not recommend any lender. However for your assistance we do offer a preferred lender list. The lenders on this list were chosen in order to provide both regional and national lender availability to our students. Your loan will be processed using your lender of choice. For more information on Federal loans, please go to The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) website at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Masters students
To qualify for Federal Student Aid you must be enrolled as at least a one half-time student. Graduate students may qualify for subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford loans, and Grad PLUS loans.

Full-time enrollment = 9 credits per semester
Half-time enrollment = 5 credits per semester

Certificate students
To qualify for Federal Student Aid you must be enrolled as at least a one half-time student. Certificate program students may qualify for Pell grants, subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford loans, and parent PLUS loans.

Full-time - students must complete 900 hours in twenty-six instructional weeks.
Half-time - students must complete a minimum of 600 hours in twenty-six instructional weeks.

Applying for Federal Financial Aid
The first step to applying for any of these programs is to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This form can be accessed on line at www.fafsa.ed.gov. Please click on the "Before you Begin" section and read through it to help you get organized.

040443 is Hazelden Graduate School of Addictions Studies school code. You must enter this code on the FAFSA in order for your information to be sent to the Financial Aid Administrator who will complete your award package.

You can sign your FAFSA on the Web electronically if you have a U.S. Department of Education PIN number. You can request a PIN at www.fafsa.ed.gov or go directly to www.pin.ed.gov. The U.S. Department of Education will send you a PIN via e-mail.

Once you have completed, signed and submitted your FAFSA, the U.S. Department of Education will send you a Student Aid Report (SAR) and the Financial Aid Administrator will be sent an ISIR, which has the same information as the SAR. The SAR will indicate your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). This amount will be used to determine which federal loans you are eligible to receive.

The Dept of Education will select and identify to the financial aid office student's that must go through a process called Verification. If the student is selected for the verification process the school financial aid office will ask for copies of completed and signed federal income tax returns. The student will also be supplied with and required to complete a Verification Worksheet to be sent to the financial aid office. If any discrepancies are found through the verification process the student is responsible to make the corrections on their FAFSA application. The financial aid office will make the corrections on the student's FAFSA only with signed authorization from the student. Any corrections made to the FAFSA may affect the calculated EFC which in turn may have an impact on the financial aid amount awarded.

The Financial Aid Administrator (FAA) will prepare an Award Letter that will outline what loans, and amounts, you are eligible to receive. You will be asked to indicate which loans and amounts you are accepting and then you must return the signed Award Letter to the FAA.

A cover letter will be sent with the Award Letter, which will give you instructions on what additional steps you must take to complete your loan process. You may be required to provide additional documentation that will be used to verify the information you provided on the FAFSA. The cover letter will provide the websites to access to complete the Federal requirement of Entrance Counseling. You must complete Entrance Counseling once for the Stafford loans and again if you will be applying for a GRAD Plus loan. On each web site you will be directed to complete the Entrance Counseling module, which will walk you through the responsibilities, associated with taking out an educational loan. After the counseling is completed you must continue on to select your lender and to electronically sign a Master Promissory Note. Once this process is completed the Financial Aid Administrator will be notified. When you have completed all the steps outlined on the cover letter, the Financial Aid Administrator will certify the loans and send you a confirmation letter, which will include the loan disbursement schedule.

If you have questions on Federal Loans, please contact Dixie Christensen at:
DChristensen@Hazelden.org or 651-213-4014.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy (SAP) for Students receiving Federal Student Aid
To comply with federal regulations the following policies and procedures governing standards for Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) are in effect for all students receiving financial aid while attending Hazelden Graduate School of Addiction Studies. Students who fail to meet these SAP standards will be considered ineligible for federal financial aid.

SAP is measured by:

1) Grade Point Average (GPA) – Qualitative measurement
2) Maximum timeframe –Quantitative measurement

Students enrolled in the Master program who receive Federal Student Aid must maintain a GPA of 3.0 and complete a minimum of 10 credits each academic year. The program must be completed within 60 months. Students must also complete at least 50% of the credits they attempt each semester. A student may enroll in the same course a maximum of 2 times.

Students enrolled full-time in the Certificate of Addiction Counseling program receiving Federal Student Aid must maintain a GPA of 2.5 and complete at least 900 hours in each academic year (26 weeks). The program must be completed within 46 weeks. Students must also complete at least 50% of the hours they attempt each semester. A student may enroll in the same course a maximum of 2 times.

Students enrolled part-time in the Certificate of Addiction Counseling program receiving Federal Student Aid must maintain a GPA of 2.5 and complete at least 600 hours in each academic year. The program must be completed within 68 weeks and not more than 2,367 hours. A student may enroll in the same course a maximum of 2 times.

At the end of each semester GPA will be calculated for Masters and Certificate students. Satisfactory Academic Progress will be reviewed for each student at this time to determine if SAP has been met. Students who receive Federal Student Aid and who do not maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress will be placed on financial aid probation for the upcoming semester. The student will continue to receive aid while on probation. If at the end of the probation semester the student fails to meet the Satisfactory Academic Progress standards, both GPA and timeframe, the student will be ineligible for financial aid the following semester. Once the students GPA is brought up to a 3.0 for Masters or 2.5 for Certificate students, the student will again become eligible to receive Title IV federal funding.

The Financial Aid Administrator will advise students in writing, via their Hazelden e-mail account, if they are failing to achieve Satisfactory Academic Progress and put on probation for the upcoming semester. If the student does become ineligible for future financial aid disbursements the Financial Aid Administrator will notify the student via e-mail. Included in this e-mail will be with information on what is required to again become eligible for federal financial aid.

Students who have exceeded the maximum timeframe allowed for their program will be suspended from receiving financial aid.

Appealing your SAP status
Appealing ineligibility for federal financial aid can be appealed through the Academic Appeals Policy and Procedure. This begins by the student first consulting with the faculty member or clinical supervisor with whom the student has an academic complaint. If the issue is unresolved further steps include consulting with the academic advisor, then the dean, and finally a subcommittee of the Student/Faculty Affairs Committee. All complaints will be resolved as expeditiously as possible.

Grants
Through the generosity of donors, there may be grants available to students directly from the Hazelden Foundation. Grants will be administered through information reported on the FAFSA.  Grant Application

Scholarship Search Web Sites

• www.fastweb.com
• www.collegenet.com/mach25
• www.freschinfo.com
• www.gocollege.com

GI Bill Education Benefits for Veterans
The Hazelden Graduate School of Addiction Studies has been approved by the Minnesota State Approving Agency for GI education bill benefits. For questions regarding payment or Veteran Eligibility, please call the Toll-free number (800) 442-4551 or visit the website for GI Bill Education Benefits at http://www.gibill.va.gov.

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