As a participant in Financial Aid Title IV programs, MassArt must adhere to federal regulations and eligibility requirements. In order to receive financial aid, a student must meet all of the following requirements:

• Be a U.S. citizen, or eligible non-citizen
• Possess either a high school diploma or GED
• Be enrolled at MassArt as a matriculated student (accepted into a degree or eligible certificate program)
• Be enrolled for at least 6 credits (part-time) for each semester during which the student wants to receive aid (exception: some matriculated students who are less than 6 credits may still receive a Pell grant)
• Be registered with the Selective Service if a male born after 1/1960 and are at least 18 years old
• Must not be in default on any federal student loan programs
• Maintain satisfactory academic progress (please see the section concerning maintaining satisfactory academic progress)

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Students must maintain satisfactory academic progress in order to receive financial aid funds. In simple terms this means that students enrolled full-time must earn at least 12 credits per semester and students who are part-time must earn at least 6 credits. Students who fail to meet this requirement lose their eligibility for financial aid. Students are allowed up to six years of full-time financial aid eligibility in order to complete this requirement (prorated for part-time work.) Undergraduate students who fail to meet satisfactory academic progress may appeal to have their eligibility reinstated by making an appointment with Academic Advising. Graduate students should make an appointment with the Associate Dean of Graduate Programs. Students may appeal if there have been unusual circumstances, such as a medical illness, death of a family member, etc. MassArt's Office of Student Financial Assistance notifies all students who are not meeting satisfactory academic progress after the spring semester has concluded and grades have been sent.

Grade levels

The amount a student is eligible to borrow in the Stafford Loan program is determined by the amount of credits earned each academic year. Please see below:

• In order to be considered a sophomore, a student must have earned 30 or more credits.
• In order to be considered a junior, a student must have earned 60 or more credits.
• In order to be considered a senior, a student must have earned 90 or more credits.

Transfer students will be awarded based on the grade level determined by admissions, regardless of the number of accepted transfer credits. All returning students will be reviewed at the end of each academic year. Students that have not earned enough credits will receive a revised award letter.

International Students

Since the college relies on federal and state programs for financial aid, international students are not eligible for financial aid. MassArt does work with some loan programs for which international students may apply with a co-signer (either a U.S. citizen or permanent resident). Below is a list of alternative loan programs that MassArt students have borrowed through. Please visit their websites for more information.

www.studentloan.com (Citibank CitiAssist loan)
www.bankofamerica.com/teriloans (Bank of America TERI Loan)
www.mefa.org (Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority)
www.salliemae.com (Sallie Mae Signature student loan)
www.citizensbank.com/edu (Citizens Bank alternative loan)
www.Key.com/college (Key Bank alternative loan)
www.wachovia.com/education (Wachovia Education loan)