Special Circumstances

If your financial situation has changed substantially during the year or since completing the federal aid application, you can submit a Special Circumstance Appeal form for reconsideration of your financial need. UMC’s policy is to process original federal aid applications (FAFSA) prior to processing Special Circumstance Appeal forms. You may qualify for a revision under the following circumstances:

Separation, Divorce or Death

You have already filed your annual Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and since that time you and your spouse and/or parents have become separated, divorced, or your spouse or parent has died.

Loss of Employment

You and/or your spouse and/or parents earned money last year and have had a reduction in hours, or have lost employment for at least 10 weeks this year that has resulted in a reduction of wages. Ten weeks must have passed prior to submission of this appeal for either circumstance.

One-Time Income

You and/or your spouse and/or parent received one-time income in last year that will not occur this year (e.g. rollover into Roth IRA, moving expense allowance, back-year social security payments, or a divorce settlement). Special consideration will not be given if this one-time income is a result of an inheritance, gambling winnings, pension, capital gain, insurance settlement, or early distribution of retirement accounts.

Medical Care Expenses

We will consider only expenses already paid directly by the student or spouse or parent (not pending to be paid expenses)

Unexpected/Non-Recurring Medical Expenses: You and/or your spouse or parent have paid for unusual or unexpected medical expense for a member of your household that are not reimbursed. These expenses are over and above typical health maintenance costs due to an unexpected, extraordinary or non-recurring emergency or incident. The Financial Aid Office assumes that you and your family members will have insurance coverage. Only those costs not covered by insurance or another agency may be considered.

Tuition Expenses for Elementary or Secondary Education

You and/or your spouse and /or parents pay elementary or secondary school tuition for a member of your family during this year. Only expenses not covered or reimbursed by another agency/source will be considered. Also, only tuition incurred during this year will be considered.

Parent in College

The University will look at the amount that a parent is spending for tuition for classes that they are taking in a degree program at a post secondary institution on case by case basis, such as: a parent who loses their job, or a parent who is involuntary unemployed and needs to go through retraining, or an employer who requires the employee to be in college. If the college costs are being provided by the employer or an agency such as Job Training, we cannot count parent as a college student.

Costs associated with life-style choices or consumer indebtedness (house payments, selling of house, owning or operating a car, living without roommates, credit card purchases, etc.) cannot be covered by financial aid programs.

NOTE: Additional documents will be required for each situation listed above. Please stop bye the Financial Aid Office, 170 Owen Hall, 218-281-8569 to request a Special Circumstance form or to discuss other special circumstances not included above. Forms