Financial Aid Eligibility and Need

General Requirements to Receive Financial Aid

In order to be eligible for financial aid, you must fulfill the following requirements:

• Possess a high school diploma, GED® or high school equivalency, or meet Ability to Benefit criteria (Contact Transitional Studies if you do not have a high school diploma or GED® to see if you qualify for the Ability to Benefit program).
• Be a United States citizen, permanent resident, or other eligible non-citizen with a valid Social Security Number (does not apply to undocumented students completing the WASFA).
• Be admitted to Shoreline Community College and planning to complete an eligible college degree or certificate program that is at least 24 credits .  Refer to our list of financial aid eligible programs here. 
• Not be in default on a federal student loan and not owe a repayment on a federal student grant (does not apply to students completing the WASFA who meet other eligibility criteria).
• Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress toward your program.
• Use financial aid for educational purposes only.

How Financial Need is Determined

If you meet the basic eligibility criteria, the Financial Aid office determines your Financial Need; most financial aid programs require you to have Financial Need.

Financial Need is a calculation based on the following:

• Cost of Attendance (COA), based on where you live while attending college, and whether or not you are considered a Washington State resident for tuition purposes.  Refer to our Cost of Attendance information on the Conditions of Financial Aid Offer page.
• Expected Family Contribution (EFC), based on income information you provided on the FAFSA or WASFA. You receive your EFC from the federal processor or the state after you submit your application.

Your COA minus your EFC, equals your Financial Need

In most cases, we are not permitted to offer you financial aid that exceeds your COA. Additionally, most grant programs do not allow us to offer aid that exceeds your Financial Need.

Learn more about federal aid eligibility requirements on the Federal Student Aid website and state aid eligibility requirements on the WSAC website.