Your financial aid eligibility is based on one of four enrollment categories:
Fall/Spring Semester
- Full- Time: 12 units or more
- Three-Quarter Time: 9-11.5 units
- Half-Time: 6-8.5 units
- Less than Half-Time: less than 6 units
Summer Semester
- Full-Time: 12 units or more
- Three-Quarter Time: 9-11.5 units
- Half-Time: 6-8.5 units
- Less than Half-time: less than 6 units
Additionally, your eligibility is based on the number of "active" units you are enrolled in at the time your check is produced. "Active" units are for courses that you are currently attending. They do not include courses that have not begun or courses in which you are on the waiting list. (Those units will be included in your financial aid check on the next scheduled check disbursement date (semester midpoint) as long as they are "active" on that date.) Please note that your second financial aid check will be adjusted either up or down based on your enrollment activity.
In addition, each semester there is a Recalculation Date that occurs at the 60% point of the semester. This is the last time we will review your enrollment and make adjustments (up or down) to your awards. If you have additional "active" units that move you into a higher enrollment category (less than half-time, half-time, three-quarter time, or full-time), you will receive another financial aid check to reflect this new status. If you have dropped units, and you move into a lower enrollment category, you will be required to repay some or all of the financial aid you have already received.
IMPORTANT: Any adjustments made to your financial aid eligibility on the Recalculation Date will be retroactive to the beginning of the semester, and will apply to the entire semester.
For more information on disbursement and recalculation dates see the Disbursement and Recalculation Dates and Deadlines page.
Disbursement and Recalculation FAQ's
We have developed some FAQs that should help you understand how your financial aid funding may be adjusted based on your enrollment activity.