Required Courses for Federal Financial Aid Policy

Federal regulations allow a student to receive federal assistance for courses that count towards the completion of your degree program requirements. Federal aid at the graduate level includes Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loans, and TEACH Grant. Classes that can be included when determining federal financial aid eligibility are those that:

• Count toward degree requirements
• Fulfill elective requirements up to the number of elective credits required by the degree

Once a student has satisfied the courses required by their program of study, any additional courses in which they enroll cannot be included when determining enrollment status or cost of attendance for federal aid. Excluding courses may therefore result in receiving no federal aid if the number of Title IV eligible courses is below the minimum required for eligibility. Course enrollment is monitored and if any aid adjustments are required, students will be notified at their Loyola email address.

For example, during the Fall semester, students must enroll in a minimum of 6 credit hours to be eligible for federal direct loans. If you enroll in 6 credits but 3 of those credits are not required for your degree, then any federal aid on your student account will have to be removed due to federal regulations.