Undergraduate credit requirements
Before a financial aid award can be paid to your student account you must be enrolled for the minimum number of credits required by the award type.
Scholarships: 6 credits or more
Scholarship credit requirements are determined by the donor. If you receive a private scholarship that does not specify required enrollment, it will pay into your student account if you are enrolled for 6 credits or more each semester.
Grants: amounts vary with credit load
Federal Pell Grants require you to be enrolled for 12 credits or more each semester to receive your full award. If you register for less than 12 credits, your grant will be reduced by a prorated amount.
Minnesota State Grants require you to be enrolled for 15 credits or more each semester to receive your full award. If you register for less than 15 credits, your grant will be reduced by a prorated amount. You must be registered for at least 3 credits to be considered for a state grant award.
Academic Competitiveness Grants (ACG) and Science and Math Access to Retain Talent (SMART) Grants require you to be enrolled for at least 12 credits each semester to receive the full award. If you register for less than 12 credits but at least 6 credits, you will receive a reduced award.
Work-study
Work-study requires you to be enrolled for 6 credits or more each semester.
Loans: 6 credits or more
You must be enrolled for at least 6 credits to be eligible for Ford Federal Direct student loans. Federal Perkins Loans and University Trust Fund Loans require a minimum 12 credits of enrollment each semester.
Exceptions for final semester
Exceptions to the enrollment requirement may be made for some aid programs (excluding Pell Grants and Minnesota State Grants) if you are an undergraduate in your final term of study. Your academic adviser must provide written verification that the credits for which you are registered will fulfill the graduation requirements.
Timing
Your enrollment is reviewed approximately two weeks prior to the start of the term. Your financial aid awards will be adjusted to reflect your enrollment on that date to allow your financial aid to be paid into your student account at the earliest opportunity. Your enrollment will be reviewed for the final time each term at the end of the cancel/add period. At that time, final adjustments to your term's aid are made; additional aid is paid if you now qualify due to increased credits, or, if you reduced credits, your student account will be billed back any aid funds for which you no longer qualify.
Audit coursework
Audit registration ("V" registration) does not count toward financial aid credit requirements.
Online and Distance Learning (ODL) courses
Extended-term (9-month) ODL courses do not count, with two exceptions: the Minnesota State Grant and the Minnesota GI Bill allow all ODL courses you are enrolled in during the first two weeks of the semester to be counted. No restrictions are made on financial aid for term-based (semester) ODL courses.