Rights & Responsibilities

Yours and Ours

As a financial aid recipient at OCC, you have certain rights and responsibilities. The Financial Aid office has rights and responsibilities, too.

Your Rights as a Financial Aid Recipient

You have the right to know:

  • What federal, state, and institutional financial aid programs are available at OCC, along with details about how to apply and deadlines.
  • The cost of attendance and OCC policies on refunds if you withdraw.
  • How OCC determines your financial aid eligibility.
  • How much of your financial aid eligibility has been met.
  • What financial aid programs are offered in your student aid package.
  • The amount of financial aid you receive that is grant or federal work-study aid, and what portion is a loan that you must repay.
  • How OCC determines Satisfactory Academic Progress and the consequences if you do not meet this standard.

Your Responsibilities as a Financial Aid Recipient

It is your responsibility to:

  • Complete the FAFSA application accurately and submit it on time.
  • Be honest in your FAFSA application; intentionally misreporting information on your FAFSA is a criminal offense under federal law.
  • Provide all additional documentation, information, verification, and corrections requested by the Financial Aid office.
  • Read, sign, and keep copies of all documents you submit.
  • Notify OCC’s Financial Aid office of any outside financial assistance you receive such as scholarships, grants, or tuition assistance.
  • Accept, decline, or ask for modifications in any loans you’re offered.
  • Inform the Financial Aid office if you need additional aid because your or your family’s financial situation has changed.
  • Notify your lender of changes in your name, address, or school enrollment status if you have an education loan.
  • Talk with a Financial Aid representative before withdrawing from school or lowering the number of credits you’re taking. 
  • Perform your duties in a work-study job in a satisfactory manner.
  • Know the deadlines for applying or reapplying for aid.
  • Understand OCC’s refund and repayment policies.
  • Understand and comply with OCC’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy.
  • Obtain a summer job to help with expenses for the upcoming school year.
  • Keep your address current with the Registrar’s office at OCC.
  • Protect your financial information and avoid sharing it with others.

OCC’s Rights

OCC’s Financial Aid office has the right to:

  • Require you to submit additional information or documentation when necessary to process your financial aid application.
  • Change or cancel financial aid due to changes in federal or state regulations, the availability of funds, or circumstances that affect student eligibility.
  • Revise any financial aid award offer that was incorrectly computed based on fraudulent information or mistaken interpretation of federal, state, and institutional regulations and guidelines.

OCC’s Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of OCC’s Financial Aid office to:

  • Protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of all student financial aid records.
  • Avoid conflicts of interest where benefits employees receive from outside parties may compromise, or reasonably appear to compromise, performance of their duties at OCC, including impairing their independent judgment.
  • Refuse any inducements or incentives by private lenders and decline to recommend any bank or other lender.
  • Prohibit the assignment of a first-time borrower’s loan to a particular lender or to refuse or delay certification of any loan based on the borrower’s selection of a particular lender.