General CIM Aid Information

Please note: CIM's application process is online and does NOT involve a separate CIM financial aid application. In submitting the online application, you have done all you need to begin the financial aid process.

Aid applicants will receive follow-up correspondence from the Financial Aid Office in December detailing what additional forms may be needed to complete the aid process.

Enrollment and Aid Eligibility
In order to receive most financial assistance from CIM you must register for a full time class load. An undergraduate full time load is 12 credit hours. Full time load for graduate students is 9 credit hours. Students who attend half time may receive federal loans, if eligible. Half time is 6 credit hours for undergraduate students and 5 credit hours for graduate students.

FAFSA Verification
Roughly 30% of all FAFSA's may be selected by the Dept. of Education for Verification each year. This is to verify that your FAFSA data is accurate and to maintain the integrity of the federal student aid system. If you are selected, you will be required to submit a Verification Worksheet and completed tax returns for students and parents (if a dependent student). No federal aid can be disbursed until Verification is complete. DO NOT send any tax forms until you are asked to do so from the CIM Financial Aid Office. If there are any changes or corrections needed from your Verification that result in a change to your EFC (Expected Family Contribution), it may cause your financial aid award to change as well, as required by the Department of Education. Any financial aid appeals due to special circumstances (see below) will require Verification if not already selected.

CIM cannot guarantee to meet all of your financial need.
While we do our best to meet as much need as possible, we cannot always do so. Awards may include a combination of scholarship, grants, loans, work-study, service awards and fellowships. Degree program, year of attendance, EFC (from the FAFSA), and CIM funding levels from the government all are factors in determining how much we may award you of each type of aid. As the above-mentioned factors change from year to year, the amount offered from each type of aid may vary, other than CIM Scholarship, which is renewed at the same level each year, assuming renewal deadlines are met and the student maintains satisfactory GPA, academic and artistic progress.

Tuition and Fee Budget - Cost of Attendance

The figures below are estimated costs for tuition, fees and room & board for 2008-09:

Financial Aid estimated Cost of Attendance (COA) includes billed/direct costs and non-billed/indirect costs (items in bold below are not billed by CIM):

International Students
While you are required to document funding for your first year at CIM for your student visa documents, please also plan ahead to be sure you will be able to fund the remaining years of your enrollment. If you have a sponsor or other aid to help pay the first year, and it is not available in subsequent years, CIM shall not be expected to make up the difference. Remember, CIM scholarship is renewable at the SAME level each year (assuming GPA, academic and artistic progress requirements are being met). Newly admitted international applicants must show documentation of ability to pay prior to being confirmed as a new student.

Dependent vs. Independent Student Status
There are eight (8) specific questions on the FAFSA that determine student dependency status. If you can answer "yes" to any one of them as of the date you complete the FAFSA, you are independent, if not, you are dependent. You do not have the option to declare yourself independent just because you may live away from your parents, fully support yourself or if your parents cannot or will not help you financially. For the 07-08 FAFSA and academic year, these are the dependency questions:

• Were you born before January 1, 1985?
• At the beginning of the the 2008-2009 school year, will you be working on a master's or doctorate program?
• As of today, are you married?
• Do you have children who receive more than half of their support from you?
• Do you have dependents (other than your children or spouse) who live with you and who receive more than half of their support from you, now and through June 30, 2009?
• Are both of your parents deceased, or are you or were you (until age 18) a ward/dependent of the court?
• Are you currently serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces for purposes other than training?
• Are you a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces?

Note - Financial Aid Administrators have the discretion to consider Dependency Overrides, where the student may be reclassified from dependent to independent status for aid purposes. This determination is made on a case by case basis and requires documentation of unusual circumstances (such as parental abuse or abandonment of student) to warrant the override consideration.

The Department of Education specifically does NOT allow the following, singly or in combination, to qualify as unusual circumstances meriting a dependency override:

• Parents refuse to contribute to the student's education;
• Parents are unwilling to provide information on the FAFSA or for verification;
• Parents do not claim the student as a dependent for income tax purposes;
• Student demonstrates total self-sufficiency.

Special Circumstance Appeals
While your CIM Scholarship is expected to remain at the same level for the duration of your enrollment, under special circumstances, it may be possible appeal for an adjustment to FAFSA data, which may improve your eligibility to receive other financial aid. By adjusting FAFSA data, the EFC may be recalculated to more accurately reflect updated financial details. This may help if your income and/or expenses are significantly different from the previous year, as reported on the FAFSA.

Special circumstances may be situations such as:

• Loss of parent job or reduction of family income by at least 25% for more than 10 weeks
• Divorce or separation of student or parents
• Major medical expenses
• Illness or death of family member
• Purchase of a new instrument

To have your special circumstance reviewed, the student (and parent, for dependent students) will need to complete the Special Circumstance Appeal Form (see forms section). Appeals may be made after April 1. If you were not already selected for Verification, you will need to provide tax returns and complete the Verification process. Documentation is required to substantiate the financial reason for the appeal (letter from employer, doctor, etc). CIM cannot guarantee that an appeal will result in increased aid. Nor can CIM supply institutional financial aid to cover an unexpected loss of financial resources while enrolled for study. In such circumstances, the student may need to secure additional private funding or loans or withdraw from school.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

To be eligible for Title IV aid, a student must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). CIM's Registrar and Deans Offices determine the academic standards that students are expected to meet. CIM's SAP policy is as follows:

Students must maintain good academic standing and make satisfactory progress toward completion of their programs of study. Study is available only on a full-time basis, and students must maintain full-time status by continuously carrying a minimum of 12 credits per semester (undergraduates) or 9 credits per semester (graduates). In unusual circumstances, part-time enrollment may be permissible, but only in the final semester of degree study, if residency requirements have been fulfilled. Scholarship funds are available only for full-time students.

There is formal monitoring of academic standing and satisfactory progress at fixed intervals at mid-semester, at the close of each semester, and at the end of each students academic year (a two semester cycle). Mid-semester Unsatisfactory Progress Reports, issued by the Registrar upon the advice of the faculty at the mid-point of each term, serve to officially alert students to unsatisfactory or failing status. The intent of the mid-semester report is to provide an early warning that allows time for the student to take appropriate corrective action. At the close of each semester, the student's cumulative grade-point average (GPA) is reviewed. The following minimum standards guide GPA qualitative assessment and are necessary for the maintenance of good academic standing.

• Undergraduate students must achieve and maintain a minimum cumulative Academic GPA of 2.00 out of a possible 4.00. Academic GPA is calculated from all non-applied course work (applied courses carry the APMU prefix) with the exception of pedagogy and diction courses.
• Achievement of a 2.00 minimum cumulative GPA (including applied courses) is prerequisite for conferral of an undergraduate degree or diploma.
• Graduate students must achieve and maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75.
• Achievement of a 2.75 minimum cumulative GPA is prerequisite for conferral of a graduate degree or diploma.
• A student who fails any course will be given one additional opportunity to pass that course. If the course is not passed on the second attempt, that student will be placed on Academic Probation.
• Doctoral student requirements for maintaining good academic standing and making satisfactory academic progress are defined in the DMA Handbook.

A student's academic progress toward completion of a program of study is monitored continuously. To maintain satisfactory academic progress, undergraduates must earn the necessary minimum number of credits and appropriate advancement in all required areas. The following guidelines for advancement in undergraduate class standing assume maintenance of full-time status each semester:

• Sophomore Standing 24 credits earned, and placement at the sophomore level in the principal area of study.
• Junior Standing 48 credits earned, and placement at the junior level in the principal area of study.
• Senior Standing 72 credits earned, and placement at the senior level in the principal area of study.
• Post-Senior Standing (fifth year) 96 credits earned, and senior placement in the major of study.

Full-time course loads for individual students in excess of 18 semester hours are permissible only with the consent of the Dean and are subject to surcharge.

In determining credits earned, only completed credits are applicable; those associated with Incomplete, Withdrawal, Audit, or Unsatisfactory/Failing grades will not be considered for purposes of class standing.

Lack of satisfactory progress can result form failure to complete in a timely fashion the recommended sequence of curricular requirements as outlined in the catalog. Since the distribution of curricular requirements is flexible to some degree, at the end of each semester the Office of the Dean will provide notice of unsatisfactory progress, based upon a review of student records. The student's advisor will also monitor curricular progress. It is the student's responsibility to meet with the advisor and discuss current standing during each of the pre-scheduling periods that occur while the student is enrolled.

Maintenance of appropriate artistic levels in the major field constitutes the final criterion by which satisfactory progress is measured (see Artistic Probation and Separation) Artistic progress is monitored by the major instructor in weekly lessons, and by departmental committees, which conduct examinations, judge recitals, provide in-performance evaluations and other evaluations of major work at appropriate times throughout the students tenure.

Academic Probation and Separation

The Dean has the authority to place on probation, or to remove from probation, at any time, a student whose academic standing and progress so warrants. Students are placed on Academic Probation when they are unable to maintain good standing and satisfactory progress in the academic aspects of their programs of study. Such students will receive written notices from the Dean before the beginning of the following school session and their transcripts will reflect the probationary status. A student placed on Academic Probation has one semester in which to restore the minimum standards for maintenance of good standing and satisfactory progress.

Students placed on Academic Probation who fail to regain good standing and satisfactory academic progress will have one final semester in which to restore the minimum standards. Such students will receive written notification from the Dean before the beginning of the following school session. Students placed on Academic Probation for a second semester are ineligible for CIM Scholarship and Federal Financial Aid.

Students who have not achieved satisfactory academic progress and good academic standing after the second semester of Academic Probation will be separated from CIM. Such students will receive written notice from the Dean before the beginning of the following school session and their transcripts will reflect separation. A separated student may reapply for admission one year after the date of separation.

A student may be separated without a period of probation for the following reasons:

• A full-time students Academic GPA for the semester is less than 1.00
• A full-time undergraduate student has earned a total of less than 18 credits in the two consecutive semesters that constitute a students academic year
• A full-time graduate student has earned a total of less that 15 credits in the two consecutive semesters that constitute that students academic year

Artistic Probation and Separation

A student is placed on Artistic Probation upon receipt of a grade lower than B- in the major subject. The student's transcript will reflect the probationary status.

A student placed on Artistic Probation has one regular semester in which to restore the minimum standards for maintenance of good standing and satisfactory progress. Students placed on Artistic Probation who fail to regain good artistic standing will be separated from CIM, and the transcripts of such students will reflect separation. A separated student may reapply for admission one year after the date of separation.

A student may be separated without a period of probation if, in the opinion of the major instructor, the department head, the division chairperson, and the Dean, the students progress has not been sufficient to warrant retention in the program.

CIM considers it part of its educational function to provide career guidance to those who may discover, after a sufficient period of study and evaluation, that they have limited potential for success in their desired fields. To this end, at the undergraduate level, the sophomore jury examinations in the principal area of study serves as a determination point. At that time the appropriate faculty examination committee evaluates the students potential for career success (in keeping with the objectives of CIM and its various departments) and makes a recommendation regarding advancement to the junior-senior levels. If the faculty feels the student would benefit by discontinuing study in the CIM program, then that student, at any level, would be counseled accordingly. A recommendation subsequently would be forwarded to the Dean for official transmittal to the student.

Appeal Process

A student who has been placed on Academic, Artistic or Disciplinary Probation, or who has been separated for academic, artistic, disciplinary or financial reasons, may appeal the decision in writing to the President, whose decision shall be final.

CIM Refund Policy / Return of Title IV Aid

When a student withdraws from school without completing a payment period or period of enrollment, the school must determine the amount of Title IV funds "earned" for the portion of the payment period or period of enrollment the student attended. Unearned federal student aid must be returned. Earned aid that the student has not yet received must be offered to the student by the school as a post-withdrawal disbursement.

• The Registrar and Dean Offices are designated as contact points for students who wish to withdraw
• Registrar/Dean determines the withdrawal date and reports it to other CIM offices. The Financial Aid Office then notifies DOE (NSLDS).
• The Financial Aid Director calculates the return of Title IV funds formula (per federal regulations) and will notify the student of his or her obligation to repay funds, tracks the repayment, whether a repayment agreement will be offered and monitored by the institution, as well as the timing and responsibility for referring overpayments to DOE.

The process is as follows:

Step 1: Determine the percentage of aid earned by calculating the percentage of the period that the student completed

Step 2: Determine the amount of earned aid by applying the percentage to the total Title IV aid that was or could have been disbursed

Step 3: Determine the amount of unearned aid by subtracting earned aid from disbursed aid or determine the amount of a post-withdrawal disbursement by subtracting disbursed aid from earned aid

Step 4: If unearned funds must be returned, determine CIM's and the student's shares; or if a post-withdrawal disbursement is due, determine the sources from which it will be funded

Step 5: If unearned funds must be returned, allocate unearned aid to programs from which student was funded; or if a post-withdrawal disbursement is due, send student applicable notification

Step 6: Return CIM's share and any funds repaid by the student or refer the student to ED; or make the post-withdrawal disbursement

Only students who have withdrawn from all classes are subject to the return of Title IV funds formula. Also, a student who has completed at least one class within the payment period or period of enrollment but drops other classes is treated as having changed enrollment status rather than as having withdrawn.

Situations that would not require a return of Title IV funds calculation include: a student who was awarded Federal Work-Study only; a student who drops classes but does not completely withdraw; etc.

Determination of the withdrawal date is made by the Registrar and/or Dean.

The definition of withdrawal date for official and unofficial withdrawals or LOA is the documented last dates of attendance in academically-related activities.

The institutional refund policy sets the amount of each type of institutional charge that a withdrawn student incurred, based on the withdrawal date. The withdrawal date used for institutional refund purposes is the same as used for determining the return of Title IV funds. The return of Title IV funds formula does not dictate the amount of charges that the student incurred; rather, it defines how much Title IV aid a school or student may use to cover incurred costs, whatever those costs may be.

When a full-time student completely withdraws (whether formally or informally) from school during the Fall or Spring semester, tuition charges are refunded based upon a percentage of the semesters tuition. The amount is ten percent per week based on the number of weeks for which classes have been in session at the time of withdrawal. There is no tuition refund after the eighth week of classes. If a student completely withdraws from Summer Session, that student must likewise pay a percentage of the tuition charge. The amount is twenty percent per week based on the number of weeks for which classes have been in session at the time of withdrawal. There is no tuition refund after the fourth week of Summer Session.

Students are subject to the Return of Title IV refund policy that is governed by Federal Regulations. CIM scholarship is prorated in the same manner as tuition, ten percent per week during Fall and Spring semester (as there are not scholarships awarded for summer session, there is no proration).

If a student leaves the residence hall during the academic year, there will be no refund of prepaid charges, nor will there be any prorating of charges due for the current semester.

Students who withdraw from school before the end of the semester may receive a refund on their meal plan calculated as one-half of the unused portion remaining in a semester. Refund calculations are based on the number of full weeks remaining in the semester, counting Sunday as te first day of the week.

Annual fees are not refundable and are not prorated (accompanying fee, comprehensive fee, health service fee, health insurance fee, etc.)

The refund process is initiated by Director of Financial Aid upon receipt of LOA form or other official notification by the Registrar or Dean Office. A copy of the current semester tuition statement is collected from Business Office. Tuition and scholarship (if applicable) proration is calculated. The student data is entered into the Return to Title IV Refund software to determine any federal refund issues. All changes are forwarded to Business Office for the students tuition account to be updated. A revised tuition bill, Award Letter, plus all relevant Exit documents are mailed to student as soon as possible.