Virginia Administrative Code › Title 8 - EDUCATION › Agency 40 - STATE COUNCIL OF HIGHER EDUCATION FOR VIRGINIA › Chapter 132 - VIRGINIA STUDENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM REGULATIONS › Part I - Definitions › Section 8VAC40-132-10 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
The following words and terms when used in this chapter
					 shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates
					 otherwise:
"Academic period" or "semester" means a division of an
					 academic year approximately 15 to 16 weeks in length from the first day of
					 classes through the last day of exams for the fall or spring enrollment
					 periods.
"Academic year" or "regular session" means a division of an
					 award year that normally extends from late August to mid May, consists of the
					 institution's fall and spring semesters, and is exclusive of the institution's
					 summer session.
"Award" means a grant from state funds appropriated within
					 the item for student financial assistance in the annual Appropriation Act under
					 the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program or Commonwealth grant eligibility
					 criteria.
"Award schedule" means the table or formula used by the
					 institution to award program funds to full-time students for the academic year;
					 awards for less than full-time students for the academic year shall be reviewed
					 and adjusted according to the institution's awarding policies.
"Award year" means the 12-month enrollment period during
					 which an institution holds classes, comprised of the regular session and the
					 summer session.
"Book allowance" means the cost of attendance allowance for
					 education-related book and supply expenses as determined by an
					 institution.
"Census date" means the point at which a student's credit
					 hour enrollment is locked for financial aid purposes. At this point in the
					 term, credit hours are locked and financial aid for the term is adjusted to
					 reflect the official number of attempted credit hours.
"Certificate of undergraduate study program" means a formal
					 award certifying the satisfactory completion of a post-secondary education
					 program that has fewer credits than an associate degree.
"Class level" means the institutionally determined
					 undergraduate freshman (first year), sophomore (second year), junior (third
					 year), and senior (fourth year) classifications, which typically, but not
					 always, transition at 30-credit-hour intervals per class level.
"Commonwealth Award" means a grant from state funds
					 appropriated within the item for student financial assistance in the annual
					 Appropriation Act under Commonwealth grant eligibility criteria.
"Cost of attendance" means the sum of tuition, required
					 fees, room, board, books, supplies, and other education related expenses, as
					 determined by an institution for purposes of calculating a student's financial
					 need and awarding federal student aid funds.
"Council" means the State Council of Higher Education for
					 Virginia or its designated staff.
"Diploma program" means a formal award certifying the
					 satisfactory completion of a post-secondary education program that has fewer
					 credits than an associate degree but normally more than a certificate.
"Domicile Guidelines" means the Domicile Guidelines and
					 associated addenda of the State Council of Higher Education dated October 25,
					 2016.
"Domiciliary resident of Virginia" means a student
					 determined by an institution to meet the domicile eligibility requirements
					 specified by §§
										23.1-502 and
					 23.1-505 of the Code of Virginia
					 and augmented by the Domicile Guidelines.
"Eligible program" means a Title IV-eligible curriculum of
					 courses in a certificate of undergraduate study, diploma, or degree program at
					 the undergraduate, graduate, or first professional level.
"Equivalent need" means a level or range of remaining need,
					 as defined by the institution in its award schedule for purposes of awarding
					 program funds.
"Expected family contribution" or "EFC" is a measure of a
					 student's family's financial strength and is calculated according to federal
					 aid methodology and used to determine eligibility for need-based Title IV aid.
					 The institution may exercise professional judgment to adjust the student's EFC,
					 as permitted under federal law, based on factors that affect the family's
					 ability to pay. For students eligible for a state award but the federal
					 processor has not calculated the student's EFC, the institution shall calculate
					 the student's EFC using the appropriate federal EFC worksheet.
"Financial need" means any positive difference between a
					 student's cost of attendance and the student's expected family contribution.
					 (See also definition of "remaining need".)
"Full-time" means enrollment for at least 12 credit hours
					 per term or its equivalent at the undergraduate level and enrollment for at
					 least nine credit hours per term or its equivalent at the graduate or first
					 professional level. The total hours counted will not include courses taken for
					 audit, but may include required developmental or remedial courses. For students
					 enrolled in a dual or concurrent undergraduate and graduate program, full-time
					 enrollment may be met through a combination of total credit hours, providing
					 that the combination totals at least the minimum credit hours for full-time
					 status for the student's institutionally recognized student level. Exceptions
					 to the full-time requirement due to documented disability or other documented
					 medical reasons, as applicable under the federal Americans with Disabilities
					 Act, 42 USC §
											12101 et seq., (ADA) will be considered on a
					 case-by-case basis by the institution; supporting documentation must include
					 health professional verification that a disability exists and a professional
					 assessment that the condition requires limits on the student's credit
					 load.
"Gift assistance" means financial aid in the form of
					 scholarships and grants but does not include work-study or student
					 loans.
"Graduate student" means a student enrolled in an eligible
					 master's, doctoral, or first professional degree program.
"Half-time" means enrollment for at least six credit hours
					 per term or its equivalent at the undergraduate level. The total hours counted
					 will not include courses taken for audit, but may include required
					 developmental or remedial courses. For undergraduate students enrolled in a
					 dual or concurrent undergraduate and graduate program, half-time may be met
					 through a combination of total credit hours, providing that the combination
					 totals at least the minimum credit hours for half-time status for the student's
					 institutionally recognized student level.
"Institution" or "home institution" means any public
					 institution of higher education in Virginia participating in the Virginia
					 Student Financial Assistance Program.
"Program" or "VSFAP" means the Virginia Student Financial
					 Assistance Program, a financial aid program authorized within the item for
					 student financial assistance in the annual Appropriation Act.
"Remaining need" means any positive difference between a
					 student's financial need and the sum of federal, state, and
					 institutionally-controlled gift assistance known at the time of
					 awarding.
"Satisfactory academic progress" means:
1. Acceptable progress toward completion of an eligible
					 program, as defined by the institution for the purposes of eligibility for
					 federal student financial aid under the Code of Federal Regulations (Subpart C,
					 34 CFR Part 668 - Student Assistance General Provisions); and
2. For a student receiving a Virginia Guaranteed Assistance
					 Program award, acceptable progress toward completion of an eligible program in
					 which a student earns not less than 24 credit hours, which is the minimum
					 number required for full-time standing in each award year.
"Summer session" means a division of an award year that
					 normally extends from late May to mid August and consists of one or more summer
					 enrollment periods, exclusive of the institution's fall and spring
					 semesters.
"Term" means an academic period or summer session.
"Undergraduate student" means a student enrolled in an
					 eligible program leading to a certificate of undergraduate study, diploma,
					 associate's degree, or bachelor's degree.
"VGAP" means a grant from state funds appropriated for the
					 Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program, as authorized by the laws of the
					 Commonwealth of Virginia including §§
										23.1-636,
					 23.1-637, and
					 23.1-638 of the Code of
					 Virginia.
Statutory Authority: §
												23.1-636 of the Code of
						Virginia.