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Financial Aid and Off-Campus Study
Colorado College is committed to providing high quality off-campus study opportunities to all students. To this end, we have worked to develop a roster of affiliated and approved study options that should allow students to find a program that will meet their academic as well as financial needs. If you are planning to study off-campus and receive financial aid from Colorado College that you would like to apply to your semester or year off-campus , you will need to select an affiliated or CC-led program. If your off-campus program is provided by an approved third party provider, you may be able to utilize your federal and state financial aid, but CC aid will not transfer to these programs. Please be aware that costs vary by program, and financial aid is not available for all programs. Before committing to any program, make sure you understand Colorado College policies, and have a clear idea of the expenses involved. Colorado College and Affiliated Programs If you are participating in a Colorado College or affiliated program, in most cases you will pay regular Colorado College tuition, plus a program fee that normally covers the off-campus room and board, and may also cover field trips and other expenses. For most programs, you will be invoiced by Colorado College for tuition and the program fee, and you will pay a deposit to the program sponsor. In some cases, you will pay the program fee and deposit directly to the program sponsor. Colorado College invoices are normally sent in July for the fall semester and in November for the spring semester. Please see the Office of International Programs or Financial Aid office for detailed cost breakdowns for Colorado College and affiliated programs. Students may use their institutional and federal financial aid awards for study on Colorado College and affiliated programs. You may also be eligible to take out additional loans to cover costs that your current financial aid package does not cover. Students should discuss these borrowing options with the financial aid office well in advance. Approved Third-Party Programs If you are participating in an approved, non-affiliated third-party program, you will not pay Colorado College tuition, or room and board fees, but will instead pay the program sponsor directly. Tuition and fees may be more or less than what Colorado College charges. Students may not use their Colorado College scholarship or grant awards to pay for these programs. However, federal Pell Grants, SEOG, Stafford, Perkins, other alternative loans, and PLUS Loans will transfer to non-affiliated programs. Please reverse side for more information on transferring your federal aid. Study Abroad Administrative Fee When students study abroad on approved non-affiliated programs, they are not paying any Colorado College tuition or fees. However, many offices still provide support and services to these students. In order to defray some of the costs of these services, students studying abroad on approved non-affiliated programs will be assessed a $300 administrative fee, charged to a student's account on December 1 for spring semester programs and on May 1 for programs that begin in the fall. If the fee presents a financial burden, students should contact our office to request a special waiver of the fee. Other Financial Aid for Off-Campus Study Other scholarships are available for off-campus study, including the Gilman, Boren and CC Selig Fund awards. Please see the Office of International Programs for more information on these. In addition, high need students (usually Federal Pell Grant-eligible) may apply for the Coit/Christian Johnson Scholarship . These funds are used to cover foreign student costs when those costs exceed the cost of attendance of staying at Colorado College. Financial Aid Procedures for students on approved, non-affiliated third-party programs Colorado College students receiving financial aid (such as federal grants or loans) who plan to study off-campus through an approved non-affiliated program may be eligible to receive federal financial aid for their study abroad program. Students studying on non-affiliated study abroad programs will be eligible for federal aid only, but not CC grants . If you are studying abroad on a Colorado College, ACM, or affiliated study abroad program, do not follow the instructions in this brochure. Instead, make an appointment with the Office of Financial Aid to discuss the transfer of your financial aid package to your study abroad program. The Educational Consortium As your “home institution,” Colorado College can form an agreement called an Educational Consortium with the “host institution” sponsoring your study abroad program. This agreement will allow you to use your federal aid funds for your non-affiliated study abroad program. If you want Colorado College to process your federal aid eligibility for your non-affiliated study abroad program, you must follow the procedures outlined below. • File a Leave of Absence form to confirm your leave with the Registrar's Office by March 1 for programs that begin in the fall or November 1 for spring semester programs. • Submit a completed Preliminary Course Approval Form to the Office of International Programs, and keep a copy for yourself – you will need to submit a copy of this form to the Office of Financial Aid at CC to show that your coursework will be accepted for credit at CC. • Complete a Request to Process Federal Financial Aid form (available from the Financial Aid Office). • Provide a copy of your Letter of Acceptance for the study abroad program you will attend to the Financial Aid Office. Upon receipt of #2, #3, and #4, the Office of Financial Aid will contact the host institution and request that they sign an Educational Consortium agreement. The responsible official at the host institution will complete the agreement by verifying program costs and the dates for the semester or year you will be abroad. The responsible official will return the agreement to the Office of Financial Aid. Once the Educational Consortium has been received from the host institution, the Office of Financial Aid will determine your eligibility for federal funds and notify you of any award decision. You will be eligible for a Federal Stafford Loan if you have filed the FAFSA form, but you still must submit the loan application to the Office of Financial Aid.
Disbursement of Funds When your federal funds are received by Colorado College , they will be disbursed directly to you (or to your parents). You should notify your study abroad program that your financial aid funds will be paid to you and not to them by Colorado College . You and your parents may want to consider the advantages of a Power of Attorney for them to be able to endorse funds made payable to you. Arrangements for disbursing these funds should be made with the Student Loan and Accounts Office in Armstrong Hall before you leave campus
If you haven't in the past, but wish to apply for federal financial aid for study abroad, you must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA form is available at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov .
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