Student Eligibility

To receive aid from any of the federal student aid programs
discussed in this publication, you must meet all of the
following criteria:

• have financial need, except for some loan programs.
• have a high school diploma or a General Education
  Development (GED)* Certificate, pass a test approved
  by the U.S. Department of Education, meet other standards your state establishes that are approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or complete a high school education in a home school setting that is treated as a home school or private school under state law. See your financial aid administrator for more
  information.
• be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a regular student* working toward a degree or certificate in an eligible program.* (You may not receive aid for correspondence or telecommunications courses unless they are part of an associate, bachelor's, or graduate degree program.)
• be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen.*
• have a valid Social Security Number. If you don't have a
  Social Security Number, you can find out more about applying for one through the Internet at www.ssa.gov
• meet satisfactory academic progress* standards set by
  the postsecondary school you are or will be attending.
• certify that you will use federal student aid only for
  educational purposes.
• certify that you are not in default* on a federal student loan and that you do not owe money on a federal student grant.
• register with the Selective Service,* if required.
• If you are a male 18 through 25 years of age and you have not yet registered with the Selective Service, you can give the Selective Service permission to register you by checking a box on the FAFSA. You can also register through the Internet at www.sss.gov
  The law suspends aid eligibility for students convicted under federal or state law of sale or possession of illegal drugs. The period of ineligibility for each student continues until the eligibility date arrives or the student completes an acceptable drug rehabilitation program. If you have a conviction or convictions for these offenses, call 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) to find out how, or if, this law applies to you. Even if you are ineligible for federal aid you should complete the FAFSA, and answer Question 35 of the FAFSA, because schools use this information in awarding nonfederal aid.
• If you leave Question 35 of the FAFSA blank you will automatically become ineligible for federal student aid. When you apply for aid from the SFA programs, the U. S. Department of Education verifies some of your information with the following federal agencies:
• Social Security Administration (for verification of Social
  Security Numbers and U.S. citizenship status),
• Selective Service System (for verification of Selective Service registration* status, if applicable),
• U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (for verification of eligible noncitizenship status, if applicable),
• U.S. Department of Justice (for verification that an applicant has not been denied federal student aid by the courts as the result of a drug-related conviction),
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (for verification of veteran status, if applicable)
  
  
  

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