REGULATIONS, RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
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I. Student Rights
A. You have the right to know what financial aid programs are available.
B. You have the right to know the deadlines for submitting applications for each of the financial aid programs available.
C. You have the right to know how financial aid will be distributed, how decisions on distribution are to know hmade, and the basis for these decisions.
D. You have the right to know how your financial need was determined. This includes how costs for tuition and fees, room and board, travel, books and supplies, personal and miscellaneous expenses, etc. are considered in your budget.
E. You have the right to know what resources such as parental contribution, other financial aid, your assets, etc. were considered in the calculation of your need. (See your award letter.)
F. You have the right to know how much of your financial need as determined by the institution has been met. (See your award letter.)
G. You have the right to request an explanation of the various programs in your student aid package.
H. You have the right to know the school's refund policy. (See the University of Virginia Record for the Medical School.)
I. You have the right to know what portion of the financial aid you receive must be repaid, and what portion is grant aid. If the aid is a loan, you have the right to know what the interest rate is, the total amount that must be repaid, the repayment procedures, the length of time you have to repay the loan, and when repayment is to begin. You have the right to cancel, reduce or repay loans awarded from either federal or school funds. (Notify your financial aid counselor)
II. Student Responsibilities
A. You must keep your address updated with the Financial Aid Office, the University, and Student Affairs. The student bears the full responsibility for any consequences resulting from University communications misdirected or not received because of an incorrect address. Please see the Registrar's website for more information about address changes.
B. You are responsible for reading and understanding all forms that you are asked to sign and for keeping copies of them.
C. You must complete all application forms accurately and submit them on time to the appropriate office. You must be aware of, and comply with, the deadlines for application or reapplication for aid. Remember, no form of assistance is automatically renewed from year to year, but may be awarded upon reapplication by the priority deadline. Such reapplication must indicate continued financial need as defined by individual need-based programs, as well as satisfactory academic progress.
D. You must provide correct information. In most instances, intentional misreporting of information on financial aid application forms is a violation of law and may be considered a criminal offense which could result in indictment under the U.S. Criminal Code. Students and parents are required to sign and complete verification statements that will be mailed to them soon after their application is received.
E. You must return all additional documentation, entrance interview form, verification, corrections, and/or new information requested by either the Financial Aid Office or the agency to which you submitted your application.
F. If you receive scholarships or loans from any source for which applications are not processed by the Financial Aid Office, it is your responsibility to notify our office immediately. (This includes, but is not limited to, Military Health Professions Scholarships, the MD/PH.D or Medical Scientist Training Program and scholarships from our Medical Alumni Office.)
G. You must accept responsibility for all loan agreements you sign. Loans are obligations that must be repaid. You must repay both principal and interest even if you do not complete your program, are unable to obtain employment, or are otherwise dissatisfied with educational or other services from the school.
H. You must accept responsibility for all service agreements you sign. Service contracts not repaid with service must be repaid monetarily. You must repay both principal and accrued interest even if you do not complete your program, are unable to obtain employment, or are otherwise dissatisfied with educational or other services from the school.
I. If you terminate enrollment by withdrawing, taking a leave of absence or graduating from the medical school, and you have received loans from any source for which applications were processed by the Financial Aid Office at anytime during your enrollment, you must meet the exit interview requirements .
ENTRANCE INTERVIEW REQUIREMENTS
Entrance interviews are designed to ensure borrowers are provided the opportunity to become informed and understand the responsibility they are assuming.
Federal Stafford Loan Programs (subsidized and unsubsidized): Regulations governing these programs require all first-time borrowers at the University of Virginia have an in-person entrance interview. Currently this is part of first-year student orientation. First-year students must also complete the online entrance counseling at http://www.mapping-your-future.org/.
Click here to view our first-year orientation powerpoint.
Stafford and Federal Direct Loans: All borrowers must have an in-person exit interview with a counselor in the Financial Aid Office prior to graduation or withdrawal from school.
School Loans: Same as Federal Loans
It is the responsibility of the borrower to contact the Financial Aid Office to schedule an exit interview appointment prior to graduating, taking a leave of absence, or withdrawing from school.
Although our office will make every effort to contact upcoming graduates in the early spring prior to graduation to schedule exit interview appointments, it is ultimately the responsibility of the borrower to contact our office to arrange an interview.
We believe borrowers will find the exit interview informative. Our counselors attempt to provide the most current information concerning repayment options available to borrowers, strategies for managing debt, estimated monthly payments and payment begin dates.
You may view or download our fourth-year exit presentation here.
STANDARDS FOR SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS FOR STUDENTS PURSUING THE M.D. DEGREE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
Federal law and regulation require that all students receiving financial assistance from Federal Title IV and Title VII funds must maintain satisfactory academic progress. The following policy presents the standards adopted by the University of Virginia School of Medicine. The policy applies to all students receiving financial aid.
The academic requirements for the M.D. degree include the satisfactory completion of the curriculum designated by the faculty. The progress of each student working toward an M.D. degree is monitored carefully and at least once each academic year by the student promotions committee, a standing committee of the School of Medicine.
The promotions committee reviews, at least at the conclusion of each academic year, the qualitative assessment of performance of each student which is given by the faculty in all courses for which the student has enrolled. This may be an actual grade, an indication of pass or fail, or another form of evaluation.
A student who does not satisfactorily complete all course requirements may be permitted to remediate. In this case, a student assigned a schedule which deviates from the norm and who earns satisfactory qualitative assessment in all courses for which enrolled will be deemed to be making satisfactory academic progress.
The normal time frame for completion of required course work for the M.D. degree is four academic years. A student, due to academic or personal difficulties, may require additional time. In such situations, the promotions committee may establish a schedule for that student which departs from the norm and which may require repeating a year of study. To be considered to be making satisfactory academic progress, the student must complete four years of the curriculum by the end of five years after initial enrollment. The promotions committee will monitor the progress of each student at the conclusion of each academic year to determine that the student is making sufficient progress to meet the time limits as specified. A student not making sufficient progress will be deemed not to be making satisfactory academic progress.
A student may be granted a leave of absence for a variety of reasons. The period of time for which the student has been approved leave shall be excluded from the maximum time frame in which an individual student will be expected to complete the program.
Medical students who are accepted for transfer from other medical schools will be evaluated with respect to levels of academic progress attained, and a determination will be made as to remaining years of financial aid eligibility. This determination will be coordinated among the Dean for Admissions, the Dean for Student Affairs, and the Student Financial Services Office.
The school is ready to respond to mitigating circumstances which may arise in individual situations. Students may appeal loss of eligibility for financial aid to the Associate Dean for Student Affairs. The Appeals Board then decides whether the mitigating circumstances offer justification for altering customary standards of academic progress. The Associate Dean for Student Affairs then advises the Financial Aid Office of the continued eligibility of the student for Title IV and HEAL assistance.
The Financial Aid Office shall have primary responsibility for enforcement of this policy. The office shall ascertain at the time of each disbursement of funds, that the student is in compliance with the policy.
Tuition Refunds/Repayment of Financial Aid Received
Eligibility For Tuition Refund: An academic year is divided into two semesters. Academic-year tuition and fee charges are divided in half with each half billed and payable several weeks in advance of semester registration. In the event that a student withdraws from school within the first six school weeks immediately following semester registration, charges for the semester will be determined on a percentage basis, depending on the school week within which the withdrawal occurs or by the Return of Title IV Policy mandated by federal regulation. Further explanation of the University's refund policy is provided in the brochures that accompany tuition bills and on our Refund Policy page.
Allocation of Tuition Refunds: If a student who is due a refund under the medical school's policy has paid his/her entire tuition bill from personal resources, the refund will be paid to the student. If, however, the student has received institutional and/or federal financial aid to pay tuition charges, the refund may be divided on a pro rata basis among the sources from which charges were paid. If financial aid was used to pay the student's bill in its entirety, the full refund will be used to repay the programs from which the aid was received.
Repayment of Financial Aid Advanced For Living Expenses: If a student is advanced institutional and/or federal aid to apply toward anticipated book costs and living expenses, and withdraws before the end of the semester, the student may be required to repay all or part of such aid to the school for return to the program from which the aid was awarded. If the amount of aid disbursed directly to the student to offset living expenses is greater than the student's cost-of-attendance budget prorated to the date of effective withdrawal, the Financial Aid Office determines the student has been over-awarded for the period for which he/she was actually enrolled. Over-award portions must be repaid to the school for return to the program or programs from which aid was received.