Financial Aid FAQ

Helena College > Financial Aid > Financial Aid FAQ
ANNOUNCEMENT: STUDENT LOAN PAYMENTS TO RESUME

Federal Student Aid and the Biden-Harris Administration have announced the student loan payment pause has ended. As of September 1st, interest will begin to accrue, and payments will resume in October. Ensure you stay in contact with your Student Loan Servicer!

If you do not know who your loan servicer is, access your account via https://studentaid.gov. You will need to login with your StudentAid.Gov Account (formerly FSA ID) and password (the same as the FAFSA). Please see the Financial Aid Office if you have any questions regarding this process. We will assist you as best as we are able with the available information diseminated by the U.S. Department of Education.

Contact the Financial Aid Office prior to withdrawing or dropping a class to see what effect it will have on your financial aid award and future eligibility.

Questions about charges or checks should be directed to the Business Office.

How do I apply for financial aid?

  • Fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa.  You must be admitted as a degree-seeking student at Helena College in order for any financial aid to be offered.
  • The student (and parent, if dependent student) will need to create a StudentAid.Gov Account (formerly Federal Student Aid ID (FSA ID)) and Password at https://studentaid.gov/. Two separate email accounts will need to be utilized to successfully create the accounts for both the student and parent. These will need to be in place at least 3 business days prior to completing the FAFSA.

How do I make sure Helena College gets my financial aid information?

  • On your FAFSA, include the Helena College school code, 007570.

I completed my FAFSA online. Why haven’t I heard from Helena College?

  • The 2024-2025 FAFSA has been delayed processing by the U.S. Department of Education. You will not be able to submit any corrections, or know what your Student Aid Index (SAI - formerly EFC) is or what aid for which you might be eligible.
  • The FAFSA is only step one of the financial aid process.
  • The Financial Aid Office will wait to complete an aid offer until you are accepted as a degree-seeking student, and are in good academic standing.
  • Once your aid offer has been created by the Financial Aid Office you will be notified via postcard and email that your aid is available on your MyHC account and is ready for you to accept or decline whatever amount of aid you need.  You should accept only the funds you need.  Accepting too much aid can result in unnecessary, long-term debt. Make sure to check the bottom of the 5th tab Accept Award to make sure the Financial Aid Office does not need you to complete any other forms.
  • The following document outlines how to accept you aid: How to Accept Aid

What is a financial aid “priority date”?

  • The priority date is when your FAFSA should be submitted in order to allow time for your aid offer and all other processes to be completed in order to finalize your billings statement with financial aid before the fee-payment deadline. It will also help you obtain more of the first-come, first-serve type of aid monies.
  • The priority date for Montana Colleges is December 1st, annually.
  • You can complete your 2024-2025 FAFSA starting January  1 , 2024 using your 2022 tax information.

I missed the priority date; can I still apply for financial aid?

  • Yes, you can still apply and be considered for aid. However, you may need to make payment arrangements with the Business Office to keep your classes from being dropped. If you are eligible for aid, it will be processed once your file has been completed.

What if I missed the priority date and do not have the money to pay my tuition in full?

  • You may sign up for a Deferred Payment Plan through the Business Office. Of course, you will be expected to make the payments by certain dates until the tuition is covered, or until your financial aid has been processed.

What is the cut-off for filing my FAFSA if I intend to use financial aid to pay for my schooling?

  • If you would like financial aid funds to pay for and be in place prior to the start of the term, it is recommended you file your FAFSA at least one month prior to classes starting.  This is due to the processing time of the U. S. Department of Education and the institution to calculate how much aid for which you are eligible.
  • You will also need to respond to any document requests from the Financial Aid Office, with completed verification information, in order to complete your file and allow the funds to be disbursed in a timely manner.

I have not lived with my parents for quite some time and I support myself, why is their information needed to apply for aid?

  • If you are under the age of 24 and do not meet any other requirements set forth by the U.S. Department of Education on the FAFSA form, you are deemed a dependent student and will need your parent’s tax information in order to apply for financial aid. Parental informaiton on your FAFSA form does not require your parent to pay anything towards your education.
  • To be deemed independent you must:
    • Be at least 24 years old as of the date you filed your FAFSA, or
    • Be married, or
    • Have children or other legal dependents, or
    • Be an active duty member of the armed forces or a veteran.
  • There are only a few extraordinary circumstances that could possibly allow you to appeal for a dependency override.  Please see a Financial Aid Administrator for further information.

The school I attended last year granted me a dependency override, am I okay since they have already approved this?

  • Not necessarily. Each institution has the right to evaluate your dependency request circumstances and come to their own conclusion. 
  • If granted, your status may remain the same as long as you remain at the same institution for consecutive semesters.

The tax information I provided on my FAFSA does not reflect my current financial situation. Can my financial aid be re-evaluated?

  • For most students, the FAFSA does a good job of evaluating their family's financial strength. However, it does not do a good job of dealing with students who experience unusual circumstances. Recognizing that, the U.S. Congress has given authority to financial aid administrators to use their professional judgement to account for conditions that are out of the norm.
  • Any adjustments made are at the discretion of the Executive Director of Compliance & Financial Aid and must be supported with documentation that can withstand an audit. The Executive Director's decision is final and is not appealable.
  • Professional judgements can be completed for Child/Elder Care Expenses, Income Reduction, Medical Expenses, Extended Family Expenses, or other reasons.

What is “Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)”?

SAP measures completion of coursework toward a certificate or degree. Federal regulations require us to monitor your progress. If you fall behind in coursework, or fail to achieve standards for GPA, and completion of classes, you may lose eligibility for federal and state aid. What is required to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress?

  • Maintain the required cumulative 2.0 grade point average (GPA) for the number of hours you have attempted, and
  • Pass at least 70 percent of the credit hours attempted, and
  • Complete a degree or certificate program in no more than 150% of the number of credits required for the degree program.
  • Do not completely withdraw from classes, unless there are mitigating (unusual) circumstances. Any credits attempted, regardless of the grade/outcome are counted against the percentage of passage rate requirement. The SAP regulations list the GPA and required pass percentage. See the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy (PDF). It is also much better to withdraw than to receive a failing grade as this affects for your GPA and pass rate.

What is verification?

  • The U. S. Department of Education randomly selects and requires us to verify the accuracy of FAFSA data. We may ask you to submit documents, such as a federal income tax transcript, to our office before you receive aid. If you don’t, it may mean cancellation of financial aid. Aid will be delayed until documents have been received and processed.

I said I was interested in student loans on my FAFSA application. Why wasn’t a student loan processed for me?

Applying for loans at Helena College requires additional processes. You must:

How will dropping a class affect my financial aid?

  • Some examples of what dropping a class may do:  If you withdraw from all your classes before 60% of the semester has passed, you could owe money back to the school and the U. S. Department of Education, depending on when the drop took place
  • Dropping a class can also affect your Satisfactory Academic Progress, which requires you to complete a certain percent of your credits to stay in good standing.
  • If you have accepted a loan and are dropping a class that puts you below half-time enrollment, you become ineligible for federal student loans.

How do I apply for Summer Financial Aid?

  • If you have already accepted aid for either the fall or spring semesters and are registered for summer classes, the Financial Aid Office will automatically send you an aid offer for the summer semester. This is normally done in April prior to the start of the summer semester. 
  • You may meet with a Financial Aid Administrator if you would like to inquire prior to registering for courses; however, the actual offer will not be created until you are enrolled.

I just accepted my financial aid offer online, am I done?

  • No, 24 to 48 hours after you accept, or after your verification is completed, you will need to log back into your MyHC account to finalize your bill for the Business Office, EACH semester.
  • This needs to be done even if your financial aid will completely cover your bill.  This lets the school know that you intend on attending classes. 
  • Without this step you risk having your classes dropped and your financial aid delayed, each semester. You also risk accruing a late charge.

My financial aid was terminated.  Does this mean I can’t attend classes next semester?

  • No, this just means that you will need to find an alternative way to pay for your classes, or file an appeal to have your financial aid reinstated.  The deadline in order to file an appeal is two weeks prior to the start date of the term for which you are seeking your financial aid.  There are no appeals entertained for the summer term.
  • You are able to attend classes utilizing your own funds if you have not been placed on academic suspension.
  • Please visit with the Financial Aid Office if you have any further questions regarding the appeal process.

I completed my Master Promissory Note (MPN), is this all I need to do to receive my loans?

How is financial aid disbursed?

  • The first financial aid disbursement will take place 7-10 days after the 15th instructional day.  Funds are disbursed on your behalf to the Business Office.  The Business Office then applies these funds towards your charges (tuition and fees).
  • If your financial aid is more than the amount of charges on your account, you should receive a disbursement check in the mail.  (Please make sure your mailing address is up-to-date on your MyHC account.)
  • The first disbursement will consist of all of your grants, scholarships, and half of your student loan for the term.
  • The second half of your student loan will disburse 7-10 days after successful mid-term grades are posted.

What if I need my financial aid to pay for books and supplies?

  • The Business Office will create a book voucher, book advance, and/or tool voucher available to any student that will have aid greater than the amount due.
  • A Book Voucher allows a student to obtain books on the online Helena College Bookstore prior to financial aid disbursements. If a student would like to obtain books/supplies elsewhere they will need a book advance. Similar with tools, a student will obtain an advance to help cover costs until aid is disbursed.
  • You may inquire in the Business Office regarding a voucher or an advance.
  • The vouchers and advances may be available two to three weeks before the start of the semester. 

Other than a loan, is there any other aid available to me?

  • Yes, there are scholarships listed on the Financial Aid page of the website.
  • There are scholarships due EACH month of the academic year.
  • Bookmark the scholarship page and visit it at least twice a month to see which scholarships are due the following month.
  • You can’t receive a scholarship unless you apply.
  • Be very aware of deadlines and where to submit applications.

Helena College does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, religion, sex, marital status, color, age, physical handicap, national origin, service in federally or state defined uniform service, veteran status, political ideas, genetic information, gender identity, gender expressions, sexual orientation or physical or mental handicap in the administration of all aid programs. 

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