Financial Aid Academic Appeal

Paying for College
1

Date

Dear Financial Aid Committee,

My name is , and I am a current student at University of . I am writing this email in response to your letter (date) advising me that I am now ineligible for financial aid.

My recent academic grades from Spring 2020 have been affected by COVID-19. My job resulted in drastic shift reductions, and the staff was notified of a confirmed positive case. Because of this, I was unable to work and balance school without significant hardships. I face financial distress regarding rent, bills, and household necessities.

Looking back at my Academic Probation in 2016, I have improved my grades and am now in good academic standing, changed my major, steadily increased my grades every year towards the 3.0 GPA requirement, and learned to be more communicative with my professors and advisor since then.

I am still facing a financial gap in spite of some alleviation from unemployment benefits. I moved to a more affordable apartment to reduce the cost. With the help of financial aid, I hope to be able to further my education. I plan to regain employment in the near future after COVID-19 and utilizing resources from University_____, such as academic advising, tutoring, and work study.

I have attached my unemployment benefits, and a letter from my manager regarding how my work place was affected. Please let me know if there is any additional information that is needed regarding my circumstances.

I sincerely hope this appeal shows that I am dedicated to being a successful student here at University _____. There have been many steps done over the last years to ensure my success going forward, and I firmly believe that I am truly deserving of the lifting of my financial aid suspension. I hope the team will re-evaluate my financial aid package, and I thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

2

Please help me revise and edit! I am up for any tips and proofreading! Thanks!

3

Are you ineligible for financial aid due to not meeting satisfactory academic progress or are you ineligible for aid, because you have exhausted your aid (or run out of time),

4

Your academic probation was at this same college? And what does steadily improve mean- you are on the verge of a 3.0 or just an uptick each semester?

5

Please please don’t blame your poor grades this term on Covid. Every single student in this country was dealing with Covid, and most still had decent grades.

The school will want to know what you have done to change what happened last term, and what actions you have taken. In addition, they will want to know what you plan to do so this term is better.

Covid hasn’t ended. The issues that are wrapped around this pandemic have not gone away. Your letter reads to me like your reason for your poorer grades last term was all Covid related. Since that’s not gone…you need to figure out what exactly you plan to do so last term doesn’t repeat itself…and convey that to your college. I don’t see that at all in your letter.

6

OP said: “I plan to … utiliz(e) resources from University_____, such as academic advising, tutoring, and work study.” I suggest meeting with advising before filing the appeal, if possible. Include a copy of the signed plan.

Schools are required to follow strict federal guidelines regarding academic progress (both gpa and time to completion). Be prepared for the possibility that you may need to pay out of pocket as you work to regain eligibility for aid.