Financial aid encompasses any and all funding that students receive because of their enrollment in a postsecondary institution. Financial aid includes, but is not limited to, scholarships, grants, federal loans, private loans, campus employment, Veterans Benefits, and employer reimbursement.

In general, an applicant is eligible for Federal Title IV financial assistance if the requirements listed below are met. There is a limit to the amount of Federal loans you may be eligible for. The applicant must:

• be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen

• have a high school diploma or GED

• have truthfully completed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

• demonstrate financial need for need-based federal student aid programs

• be enrolled as a regular student in an eligible program

• have a valid Social Security number (with the exception of students from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau)

• maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) throughout your program

• provide consent and approval to have your federal tax information transferred directly into your 2024–25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, if you’re applying for aid for July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025

• sign the certification statement on the FAFSA form stating that you’re not in default on a federal student loan, you do not owe money on a federal student grant, and you’ll only use federal student aid for educational purposes; and

• IMPORTANT: On the 2024–25 FAFSA form, a contributor refers to anyone (you, your spouse, your biological or adoptive parent, or your parent's spouse) who's required to provide information on the FAFSA form. If a required contributor doesn't provide consent and approval to have their federal tax information transferred into your FAFSA form, you won’t be eligible for federal student aid—even if they manually enter tax information into the FAFSA form.

Federal law requires that we estimate the entire cost of attending CIRCLE every year. Your costs to attend school don’t only include tuition and fees but living expenses such as rent, food, transportation and other costs. This is known as the COA, the Cost of Attendance.

Please visit our Tuition page for a detailed breakdown of our estimated Cost of Attendance.

You can also visit Net Price Calculator for another way to view the costs of attending.

Please refer to this document for different types of Title IV Federal Aid

CITSTS students may apply for privates loans if they wish. Circle can not endorse or promote any private loan company but will facilitate the disbursement of an educational private loan.

If a student applies for and is approved for a private loan, this amount is included in the calculation for Federal Aid, and you Federal Aid could be reduced depending on how much you decide to borrow.

After the Financial Aid Office has reviewed your ISIR, it uses the information to determine your need and eligibility for Federal Financial Aid.

After any required verification steps have been satisfied, if you qualify for aid, you will receive a Financing Letter informing you of the types of aid and the amounts you may be eligible to receive. You’ll be required to confirm or reject the aid you’ve been awarded.

You are not obliged to accept any of the aid you are eligible for, and you may wish to accept only some, or less of it.

Here is an example Financing Letter and instructions on how to complete it.

Here are steps to take after you have submitted your Financing Letter.

Once all the above steps have been completed and checked by the Financial Aid Office (FAO), Origination can begin. Origination is when the loan is created after the FAO confirms with the Department of Education that the student has met all outstanding eligibility requirements, accepted the grants and/or loans awarded by signing a Financing Letter, completed Loan Entrance Counseling, and signed an MPN, if required. Origination confirms many details about the student’s program as well as the amounts and the dates when aid should be disbursed to the school for application to the student’s Circle account.

Origination at Circle usually takes place between July 1 and August 30.

After Direct and/or Parent PLUS Loans and Federal Grants (if any) have been originated, you will receive a Disbursement Schedule. Disbursement means the date the funds are released from the Federal Government.

• That may not be the same date the funds are applied to your Circle account. Applying funds to your Circle account can take place up to 3 days later than the date on your Disbursement Schedule, and any refund you may be due can arrive up to 14 days later.

The Disbursement Schedule tells you the NET amounts (of Loans) and the approximate dates of disbursements of your federal loans and grants. The NET amount is what is disbursed after the government deducts a “disbursement fee” from each loan disbursement, a kind of first payment. PELL & FSEOG grants do not have a fee.

CITSTS programs are measured in Clock Hours (not credit hours like many schools). Financial aid loan funds are delivered in two disbursements:

• the first during the first 30 days after starting school, and

• the second at the half-way point of each program or 50% of completed Clock Hours.

You must be enrolled and attending class to receive your first disbursement.

Sometimes the posting of funds to your Circle account results in a credit balance. Any refunds that may be due will be delivered to the student by EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) also known as Direct Deposit. You will be contacted by Circle Administration about enrollment in EFT.

Please note: by Federal Regulation, Federal Funds are first applied to the student's account to ensure funds are used for educational purposes. Once received by CITSTS, loan disbursements must be applied to the student's account within 3 days of their availability. Amounts that exceed existing student balances are processed for refund to the student for living expenses within 14 days.

Sometimes there are questions about your loan history, if you had borrowed before; sometimes there are questions about your or your parents’ identity.

Sometimes your FAFSA information is selected for Verification by the Department of Education. Most Verification is related either to income questions or identity questions. The Financial Aid Office will inform you if you need to complete Verification Worksheets.

Find out more about FAFSA issues in this document.

Official Withdrawal from School

The student must consult with Administration and complete the Notice of Withdrawal Form using the last date of attendance as the withdrawal date. For Title IV Federal Financial Aid recipients, this process, including the possible return of Federal Funds to the Department of Education, is discussed in more detail in this document: Withdrawal & Return of Title IV Funds.

Unofficial Withdrawal from School

In the event a student unofficially withdraws, Administration will determine the last date of attendance. For Title IV Federal Financial Aid recipients, this process, including the possible return of Federal Funds to the Department of Education, is discussed in more detail in this document: Withdrawal & Return of Title IV Funds.

Re-enrollment within 180 days

Students who withdraw prior to completion of the year and wish to re-enroll within six months (180 days) of the original official withdrawal date will return in the same satisfactory academic progress status as at the time of withdrawal. Students who have been terminated or withdrew from school may re-enroll (if determined eligible) within 180 days and will not incur additional charges. However, these students will be responsible for paying any remaining balance from the previous enrollment that cannot be covered with reinstated federal funds. Students who have been terminated or withdrew from school and re-enroll (if determined eligible) after more than 180 days will be charged for contracted hours at the current tuition rate.

Re-enrollment after 180 days

Students who have been terminated or withdrew from school and re-enroll (if determined eligible) after more than 180 days will be charged for contracted hours at the current tuition rate. All re-enrolling students will be evaluated by the Artistic Director for placement in the curriculum. Re-enrolling students may be required to re-take previously passed courses. Students applying for re-entry will be required, as a condition of enrollment, to bring delinquent prior student loans to a current status. A determination of SAP will be made and documented at the time of withdrawal. That determination of status will apply to students at the time they return to school. Elapsed time during a LOA does not affect SAP and will extend the contract period by the same number of clock hours as the LOA. Students re-entering after exiting the school will not be evaluated as new students and consideration will be given to the student’s progress status at the time of previous withdrawal. Re-enrollment is at the discretion of the school administration.

In your last semester, and shortly before completing your education at CITSTS, you must complete Loan Exit Counseling.

The purpose of Exit Counseling is to ensure you understand your student loan obligations and are prepared for repayment. You'll learn what your federal student loan payments will look like after school. A repayment strategy, that best suits your future plans and goals, will be recommended.

Loan Exit Counseling is a federal requirement.

Visit this page for more information.

When you submit your FAFSA, it produces a summary report called a SAR (Student Aid Report).

The SAR contains all the information you supplied and may have comments or requests for information. It’s important that your SAR is complete and accurate, so you should review all the information on your SAR and address any comments there may be.

The CITSTS Financial Aid Office will receive the exact same information electronically in the form of an ISIR (Institutional Student Information Record). The ISIR is used by the Financial Aid Office to establish student eligibility for certain Title IV financial assistance programs, and the amounts you will be offered.

NSLDS stands for National Student Loan Database System.

NSLDS keeps an ongoing record exclusively of your Federal loan history, if any, including schools, dates, amounts borrowed, who your loan servicer is, and amounts repaid. If you have never borrowed a Federal student loan, you will not have a record in NSLDS. Personal loans are not part of NSLDS.

Federal Regulations require that institutions have knowledge of all previous Federal Title IV aid received by a student prior to disbursement of funds. CITSTS uses the NSLDS to view your loan history, if any. Financial aid is withheld until the verification of previous loan aid has been completed, and it has been determined that a student has not, or will not, exceed annual or aggregate loan limits.

Only the Financial Aid Office can see your loan history.

Please visit the NSLDS website for more information.

Students can view their own loan history here.

FERPA stands for the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

If you are an adult of legal age (18 years) or you are attending a school beyond the high school level you have the right to decide if the school can release your academic, financial aid, or health records to your parent. If you want your parent to have access to your records you must actively assert this choice by completing a FERPA form. You are not obliged to complete this form and you can keep your records private.

Download our FERPA form here. The Financial Aid Office can not communicate with your parent without having this form on file.

More about FERPA

SAP stands for Satisfactory Academic Progress.

The SAP Policy applies to all students enrolled in Circle in the Square, whether receiving Federal Title IV Funds, Private Loans, scholarships, grants, or self-paying. For students who have accepted Federal Financial Aid, the continued receipt of that aid is dependent upon making SAP, Satisfactory Academic Progress.

More about SAP