In order to receive a Federal Stafford or PLUS Loan, you must enroll for at least 6 credit hours (8 hours for medical students) per term. Other awards require different credit-hour minimums. You will be properly advised regarding your status during the fee payment process when you attempt to commit your financial aid to pay your bill via our Visual Information Processing (VIP) at https://vip.sc.edu. Please review the following paragraphs for more information. Hours taken at any other institution, including a different USC campus, may not be combined with USC Columbia hours to meet the required minimums.

Initially, your award was made assuming full time enrollment for each semester; 12 credit hours for undergraduates, 9 credit hours for graduate students and 12 credit hours for medical students. If you do not enroll as a full-time student, your award will not be credited to your account without review. If you attempt to use VIP to commit your financial aid to pay your bill, but your registered credit hours are less than the minimums listed on your award notification, you will be unable to use your financial aid to pay your charges. A message will appear on your bill on VIP that will direct you to contact us and speak with a counselor regarding your enrollment plans and the effect upon your financial aid.

As previously stated, you have the opportunity to update your hours of enrollment on your award page on VIP.  Follow the instructions from the award page in order to make these corrections.  If you correct your hours on the award page and return it to us prior to the payment of fees, your financial aid awards and hours will be adjusted to permit easy payment via VIP. If you enroll as less than a full-time student, your aid may need to be adjusted to reflect actual lower tuition costs. If the hours listed on your award letter are correct, you do not need to contact our office.

Failure to enroll will result in the cancellation of your financial aid for that semester or summer session, as well as any subsequent semester or term for which aid was awarded. Additionally, should you drop below half time status during the semester or term, any future disbursement of either a Stafford or PLUS Loan will be canceled. Contact our office if other arrangements are necessary.

If you participate in a University sanctioned cooperative education semester (co-op), you will not be eligible to receive any type of financial aid for the semester of your co-op unless you are also able to enroll for the required number of hours referenced above. However, you will be entitled to loan deferment provisions on any previous student loans for the period of your official co-op.

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You may use your award to pay for study only at the USC Columbia campus. If you will be attending a USC campus other than Columbia, you must contact the financial aid office at that campus for application information. If you are a Columbia campus student studying at another institution with approval of your academic college, please note the section below  outlining requirements associated with financial aid for students studying under a Consortium Agreement.

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For purposes of federal financial aid, each campus of the University is distinct and separate. If you have received an award for study at the Columbia campus and you plan to enroll at any other institution, including other USC campuses, on a temporary basis, including most study abroad programs, you may not automatically use the aid awarded by USC Columbia. You must first take the steps necessary to complete arrangements for a consortium agreement. A valid consortium agreement requires that the time spent studying at another institution be temporary and all courses taken must be applicable toward your USC degree. You also must have written permission from your academic college to take the courses. Aid will only be based on hours taken at one institution, not the combination of hours at two schools.  Additionally, you must have established enrollment at the Columbia campus for a minimum of one semester (not summer) prior to the beginning of the term you are considering for consortium or study abroad in order to confirm your eligibility for the aid that will be disbursed to you.

In order to be considered for financial aid under this type of arrangement, including study abroad programs, you must speak with one of our counselors and obtain the necessary paperwork to complete the consortium process. The deadline to initiate a request for a consortium agreement for the fall semester is August 1. For the spring semester, the deadline is December 1. For summer sessions, the deadline is April 1. Additionally, it is your responsibility to make payment of all tuition and fees for courses taken at other institutions.

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If you plan to attend classes for the 2009 summer sessions, you will need to complete a separate USC Summer School Financial Aid Application in addition to the 2008-09 FAFSA. This application is generally available on VIP on April 1, 2009. You must complete the application prior to May 2009 in order to have your aid in place prior to the beginning of summer school.

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