Awarding Policy

Package Construction

Need-based aid, including grants, work-study, and subsidized loans, is awarded according to federal and state laws. Pell grants are awarded first to all eligible undergraduates. After Pell eligibility is assessed, undergraduates are awarded Federal Work-Study and Direct Loans based on the student’s preference and eligibility. Students who have already completed a bachelor’s degree cannot be awarded Pell grants, but are eligible for Federal Work-Study and Federal Direct Loans, assuming they have not already borrowed to the federally established maximum.

Aid is awarded using the following criteria:

For undergraduate students, full-time is defined as 12 or more credits; three-quarter time is defined as 9-11 credits; half-time is defined as 6-8 credits; and less-than-half-time is 5 credits or fewer.

For graduate students, full-time is defined as 9 credits; half-time is defined as 6 credits, and less-than-half-time is defined as 5 credits or fewer.

Budgets and Cost of Attendance

Touro University recognizes each program and class separately for determining cost of attendance. The costs of attendance for each program for the current year can be found online on each school specific website.

With the exception of Tuition and Fees, average costs are determined by the prior year consumer price index. Budgets are updated each award year by calculating the percentage of increase or decrease from the prior year’s consumer price index or increased by the inflation rate as calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Budget Components (cost of attendance factors) are:

• Tuition and Fees
• Books and Supplies
• Living Expenses
• Transportation
• Personal Expenses
• Special Fees as determined by program and class
• Loan Origination Fees (average amount)

All budget components can be modified by professional judgment, which must be documented in the student’s financial aid file. 

Award Adjustments

Adjustments may be made to financial aid awards subsequent to the initial offer if:

1. The student requests an adjustment, and they have eligibility for the adjustment requested; or
2. Changes in the student’s circumstances (such as receipt of aid from other sources or failure to maintain satisfactory progress) would result in an overaward if adjustments are not made.

The person making an award adjustment will

1. Clearly document the adjustment;
2. Notify the recipient; and
3. Notify any other party with a vested interest in the award (scholarship donors, etc.)

Award Notification

Students will be notified via email of their award with an award notice. All subsequent awards or changes to the award will generate an additional award notice.

Students may refuse part or all of their award by writing their request on the award notification and returning it to the Touro University Financial Aid Office. Loans will not be certified for an amount larger than that authorized by the student on the award notice. If the student is eligible, he/she may request an increase in loan by notifying the Financial Aid Office in writing, either with a written notice and signature or via student email of the amount requested. The student must provide their Touro student identification number.

Overawards

Federal regulations prohibit students from being awarded beyond the cost of attendance established for their program. An overaward occurs when a student receives resources (such as scholarships or grants) in addition to federal funding and the combined award exceeds the student’s financial need established by the cost of attendance. Federal regulations require that overawards be eliminated as they are discovered. Overawards that are found before financial aid has been disbursed must be eliminated prior to any disbursement by reducing financial aid, beginning with loans, then work-study funding, and lastly, supplemental grants. The federal Pell grant is never reduced due to overaward.

Overawards may be eliminated by:

• professional judgment (the student may demonstrate, and document increased financial need);
• future disbursements can be reduced or eliminated;
• unearned work-study may be reduced.

In a case where the institution was made aware of an outside award after the last disbursement of loans, no repayment is required. However, if any office on campus is aware of these funds prior to the final disbursement, appropriate measures to eliminate the overaward must be taken, including repayment or overpayment procedures. 

Federal regulations allow for a $300 tolerance for Federal Work-Study and SEOG funds. While students may not be initially overawarded with this tolerance in mind, should an overaward occur during the academic year, this tolerance may be considered before overpayment measures are taken.

Students will be notified when they are overawarded and funds are being reduced or canceled to eliminate the overaward.