Complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or a Renewal FAFSA online at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa. The application should be done each year as soon as possible after October 1st. It is recommended that it is completed in time for us to receive it by the posted fall current year deadline. It is also recommended that students and parents use the IRS Data Retrieval (DRT) tool available on the FAFSA website. In order to use this tool, tax returns need to be submitted about four weeks before the FAFSA is completed.

Middle Georgia State University's code is 001581.

Financial aid eligibility must be established each academic year. Priority is given to students whose files are complete by posted semester deadlines each year. Meeting these deadlines allow adequate processing time to better ensure funds are awarded by the beginning of the semesters as well as consideration for all types of financial aid, including limited funds such as Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (SEOG) and Federal Work Study (FWS).

No. You should complete your tax forms (1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, etc.) and then use that information to complete your FAFSA.

Yes. Students may complete the FASFA on-line in the Financial Aid Office at the Macon, Cochran and Warner Robins campuses with financial aid representatives close by to help. Financial Aid representatives are also located at the Dublin and Eastman campuses to assist if needed. (Please bring applicable year tax returns for use in completing the FAFSA.)

Awards are made in the order in which files are completed. Generally, processing time from the date all required documents are received is up to 6 weeks. However, during peak processing periods, processing time can be longer.

Withdrawing from all classes will negatively impact your completion rate and possibly affect your eligibility for future aid. Additionally, if you withdraw from all courses during the semester, you may be required to return some of your financial aid.

Verification is a processprimarily initiated by the U.S. Department of Education, where the information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is compared with the student (and parent/spouse) tax information and/or other documents that were used to complete the FAFSA. The Department of Education randomly selects applicants for this process. Once MGA receives the results from your FAFSA, you will have to complete and/or upload additional documentation if your application is selected for verification. Verification does lengthen the time to process a student's file; therefore, it is imperative that you respond immediately . You will need to login to our CampusLogic page to complete your verification requirements.

The US Department of Education asks several questions in step 3 of the FAFSA to determine if a student will be considered independent for federal financial aid purposes. Please refer to the current year FAFSA for a list of these questions. If you cannot answer YES to at least one of these questions according to instructions provided, you must include your parent's (including adoptive parents and step-parents if applicable) information. You cannot use grandparents' or other relatives' information even if you live with them. If you have questions about parents' information or to discuss if you possibly meet the requirements to apply for a dependency override, please contact one of our financial aid offices for assistance.

Students in the United States on an F1 or F2 student visa, a J1 or J2 exchange visitor visa, or a G series visa (pertaining to international organizations) are not eligible to receive federal financial aid. Those students may, however, be eligible for institutional scholarships. There are other non-citizen visa types that may be eligible for federal financial aid. Generally, eligible non-citizen categories include: (1) a permanent resident with an Registration Receipt Card (I-551); (2) a conditional permanent resident (I-551C); (3) an eligible non-citizen with an arrival record (I-94) from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service showing any one of the following designations: 'refugee', 'asylum granted', 'indefinite parole', 'humanitarian parole', or 'Cuban-Haitian entrant'.

Generally, awards are for fall and spring semesters. Students wishing to apply for summer semester aid will need to contact the financial aid office for information related to summer requirements.

All students are offered federal student loans based on eligibility at the time their file is reviewed. Students are required to accept or decline loan awards via their SWORDS account. 

No, you can do both at the same time. However, financial aid cannot be awarded until you have been officially admitted into the college.

As of February 2022, MGA’s Draft Cohort Default Rate for FY 2019 is 4.1.
As of September 2021, MGA’s Final Cohort Default Rate for FY 2018 was 10.4.

First, check your financial aid account via SWORDS to determine if the College has received your Institutional Student Information Report (ISIR) or if additional documents are needed. If the College has not received the ISIR, you should go on-line at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa to check your FAFSA submission or call 1-800-433-3243, the Federal processor.

If you review your Student Aid Report from the Department of Education and determine that changes need to be made, you can make corrections on-line at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa. You will need your PIN number to make corrections on the web. If you are unsure of whether a correction is needed or required, please contact the financial aid office for assistance.

If you don't have a FSA ID or you have forgotten it, you may request a FSA ID or duplicate to complete a FAFSA online at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa/filling-out/fsaid If you are a dependent student, your parent must have their own FSA ID to sign the application also.

To receive loan funds, students must be enrolled at least half-time (6 or more semester hours). If at any time during the loan period the enrollment status drops to below half-time, the loan is terminated and no additional payment can be made.

Middle Georgia State Financial Aid Course Repeat Guidelines

If a student receives a ‘W' or an ‘F' in a course:

• A student is allowed to repeat the same course and receive federal financial aid until a ‘D' grade or better is earned for the class (normal SAP policy still applies in such cases).
  • Once the student has achieved a ‘D' grade or better, they can repeat the same course a second time and still receive financial aid. If a student withdraws before completing the course that they are being paid Title IV funds for retaking, then it is not counted as their one allowed retake for that course.
  • If a student passed a class once and then is repaid for retaking it and fails the second time, that failure counts as their paid retake and the student may not be repaid for retaking the course a third time.

If a student elects to take a repeat class for the same course a third time:

• Once a ‘D' grade or better has been earned, the class cannot be factored into federal financial aid enrollment eligibility.
• This rule applies whether or not a student received federal financial aid in earlier enrollments of the course.

If a student has exceeded their attempts on receiving federal financial aid for a class:

• It is irrelevant for financial aid purposes if a student is required to retake a class to meet major/program GPA requirements.
• It is irrelevant if a student has a personal desire to receive an improved grade.

If a student who received an incomplete in a course in a prior term enrolls in subsequent term:

• To complete the coursework in the subsequent term to erase the incomplete in the prior term, the student is not considered to be enrolled in the course for the subsequent term, therefore not eligible for Title IV aid.
• If a student is retaking the entire course for credit in a subsequent term, the hours in the course count toward the student's enrollment status, and the student may receive Title IV funds for retaking the course.

Course Example	1st Class Attempt	2nd Class Attempt	3rd Class Attempt	Would 3rd Attempted Class Be Eligible for Federal Financial Aid?
MATH 1101	F	D	ENROLLED	YES
MATH 1101	D	C	ENROLLED	NO
MATH 1101	D	F	ENROLLED	NO
MATH 1101	C	W	ENROLLED	YES
MATH 1101	W	F	ENROLLED	YES
MATH 1101	F	F	ENROLLED	YES
MATH 1101	D	W	ENROLLED	YES
MATH 1101	F	D	W	eligible for aid on a 4th attempt
MATH 1101	F	W	ENROLLED	YES

How do I apply for HOPE/Zell Miller scholarship if I am a transfer student or have reached one of the HOPE checkpoints (30, 60, 90 hours attempted) and would like to be reviewed for eligibility? You will need to complete the MGA HOPE/Zell Miller Evaluation Request Form located on the financial aid’s office forms page to initiate the review. IMPORTANT-In addition to submitting this form, you must file a GSFAPPS or FAFSA on or before the last day of the school term or your withdrawal date, whichever occurs first, in order to be paid for that term.

Students awarded the HOPE or Zell Miller Scholarship by their Home School should contact their Home School’s financial aid office to request certification of the student’s HOPE or Zell Miller Scholarship eligibility to the Georgia Student Finance Commission’s (GSFC) SURFER Website so MGA’s financial aid office can then access that information and award the HOPE or Zell Miller Scholarship to the student based on his/her MGA enrollment and the Home School's certification information.

You will need to submit a HOPE and Zell Miller transient form to MGA’s financial aid office for processing. The form is located on our webpage at https://www.mga.edu/financial-aid/forms-2324.php.

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