Financial Aid
Financial aid is available to matriculated students who are taking at least six credit hours per semester. In order to be given full consideration for all types of financial aid programs available at St. John Fisher College, students must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Students may complete the FAFSA online at www.fafsa.gov. Students should file at least one month prior to the beginning of the academic term for which they wish to receive financial assistance.
St. John Fisher College operates a full-time office with financial aid representatives who will work with you to determine how to fulfill your particular financial needs. These individuals have access to information relative to the various financial aid programs. Graduate students should contact Fisher’s Financial Aid Office at (585) 385-8042 at the earliest possible time. To assist graduate students in planning for and achieving their academic objectives, the College offers the following:
TEACH Grant
This federal grant program awards funds to eligible students who intend to teach and fulfill a required service agreement. For information on amounts and eligible majors, please visit Financial Aid’s Graduate TEACH Grant page.
Federal Direct Student Loan Program
The William D. Ford Federal Direct Student Loan Program and Graduate PLUS Loan Program provide low-interest long-term loans to matriculated students enrolled at least half-time for education expenses. The lender of these loans is the federal government and repayment is to the U.S. Department of Education.
For further information on amounts, fees, and interest rates, please visit Financial Aid’s Federal Direct Student Loan and Graduate PLUS Loan Programs page.
Standards of Academic Progress for Graduate Financial Aid Recipients
Graduate students are considered to be making satisfactory academic progress for federal aid eligibility as long as they are in good academic standing according to institutional standards.
For purposes of computing academic standing, quality points are assigned to letter grades as follows:
| Grade | Points Per Credit |
| A | 4.00 |
| A- | 3.70 |
| B+ | 3.30 |
| B | 3.00 |
| B- | 2.70 |
| C+ | 2.30 |
| C | 2.00 |
| F | 0.00 |
Graduate-level students are considered to be in good standing if their cumulative GPA is 3.00 or higher at the end of each semester.
Standards of Academic Progress Cumulative Grade Point Average:*
| Semester Credit Hours Earned Toward Degree | 0–6 | 7–12 | 13–21 | 22+ |
| Good Standing: | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Probation: | 2.00–2.99 | 2.50–2.99 | 2.75–2.99 | — |
| Academic Dismissal with GPA Below: | 2.00 | 2.50 | 2.75 | 3.00 |
*Averages will not be “rounded.” For example, 2.99 will not be rounded to 3.00.
The Graduate Academic Standing Committee reviews student records each semester. If the Graduate Academic Standing Committee determines that a student has failed to meet the standards, the Committee reserves the right to withdraw the student from its program. If a student is withdrawn from the program, he or she is no longer eligible for federal and state financial aid.
Students who graduate or drop below half-time status are required by the federal government to complete exit counseling online at StudentLoans.gov if they borrowed a Federal Direct Student loan. Federal TEACH grant exit counseling can be completed at www.nslds.ed.gov. Failure to do so may result in the withholding of their diploma and/or academic transcript.
Privately Funded Scholarships
A small number of privately funded scholarships are available to graduate students in good academic standing who meet the criteria designated by the donor(s) of the scholarship. Students eligible to apply for any of these scholarships will be notified and asked to fill out the proper paperwork.
A complete listing of scholarships can be found on the Alumni Scholarships page.
New York State Aid
Recipients must be in good academic standing in accordance with the commissioner’s regulations and must not be in default of a loan guaranteed by the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation.
For eligibility requirements, application process and award information on the following:
- Senator Patricia K. McGee Nursing Faculty Scholarship
- Veterans Tuition Awards
- NYS Math and Science Teaching Incentive Scholarship
- NYS Aid to Native Americans
- Segal AmeriCorps Education Award
Please visit https://www.hesc.ny.gov/pay-for-college/financial-aid/types-of-financial-aid.html.