Rights & Responsibilities
As a financial aid applicant or recipient, you have certain rights and responsibilities. You should clearly understand them before you accept financial aid.
Student Rights Heading link
You have the right to:
- Know what financial aid is available, including information on all federal, state, local and institutional financial aid programs.
- Know the procedures and deadlines for financial aid, including when and how your aid will be disbursed (see Apply).
- Know how your financial need is determined (see Need).
- Expect fair and equitable treatment from the SFAS staff. It is our goal to assist you promptly and professionally throughout the financial aid process.
- Know the interest rate on any educational loan you have, the total amount you must repay, the length of the repayment period, when repayment begins and what cancellation or deferment provisions apply (see Types of Aid).
- Know how Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is measured and how you can reestablish eligibility for federal financial aid if you fail to meet one of the standards.
- Know what funds you may be eligible for while enrolled in an approved study abroad program.
Student Responsibilities Heading link
You and your parents/spouse have the primary responsibility for meeting your educational expenses at UIC. SFAS expects that you and your family will make every effort to provide a reasonable contribution toward your education.
You are responsible for:
- Filing the appropriate applications and forms for each type of aid that you wish to receive by the established deadlines.
- Providing all requested information to SFAS accurately and promptly.
- Regularly checking your university email account for important updates and notifications from SFAS.
- Maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) according to established university policies and standards.
- Reporting all financial assistance, such as scholarships, received from any outside source to SFAS. These additional awards may be reported via your online financial aid notification.
- Reporting any changes in your name, address or attendance status to the appropriate office within the university.
- Repaying all student loans you receive. You must complete entrance counseling and MPN prior to receipt of your first Federal Direct Stafford and/or Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan. Additionally, upon graduation, withdrawal or enrollment less than half-time you will also need to complete exit counseling.
- Understanding the withdrawal and refund policy of UIC. Please be aware that based upon the withdrawal date and refund calculation, SFAS may need to return funds to the appropriate federal/state/institutional financial aid accounts. Unless instructed otherwise, you should never return funds directly to the federal/state governments, as we must do so for you according to the regulations.
- Paying your UIC billing charges, finance charges and late fees if you apply late for financial aid or if you do not submit required documents to SFAS in a timely manner.