Summer Financial Aid

Financial aid for USC Aiken summer sessions requires the current year FAFSA and a separate online USC Aiken summer financial aid application (for loans only). The application is available on Self Service Carolina (SSC) beginning April 1. Because of the compressed time frames for the summer, our office must adhere to application deadlines. The priority application deadline to complete the application is May 15. The Summer Financial Aid Application will be removed from SSC on May 15.

To be considered for most aid, you must be enrolled at least half time. This equates to six hours over all summer sessions for undergraduate students and three hours for graduate students.

Financial aid available for summer school is extremely limited.

If you have Federal Direct Loan eligibility for the academic year and you use all of that eligibility in the Fall and Spring semesters, there will be no Direct Loan funds available to use for summer sessions.
If you have Federal Pell Grant eligibility for the academic year and you enroll full-time in the Fall and Spring semesters, there may be Pell Grant available to use for summer sessions. If you enroll part-time during the Fall or Spring semester, you may have additional Pell Grant available for summer sessions. Pell Grant eligibility for the summer term requires at least six hours of enrollment.
You may apply for private educational loans to use for summer enrollment. For our office to process a summer private loan, you must complete the application process with your lender and submit a USC Aiken summer financial aid application by the deadline.
A parent of a dependent student may apply for a Federal Parent Loan (PLUS). The PLUS loan application should be completed by the summer deadline. A USC Aiken summer financial aid application must also be submitted.

Summer State Scholarship

A summer semester scholarship disbursement provides the opportunity for those eligible students who demonstrate they are on an accelerated track to graduation to earn a degree at a faster pace than on a traditional academic calendar. The availability of summer awards allows for a decreased time-to-degree alternative, which in turn assists students in attaining educational goals at lower costs.

More information on summer course offerings can be found by logging into Self Service Carolina (SSC).

General Requirements for Determination of Summer Award Eligibility

The program for summer awards applies to Palmetto Fellows and LIFE programs.
For purposes of the summer awards, summer term is defined as the period between the end of the spring term and prior to the opening of the fall term.
A student who has been verified as meeting all general and continued eligibility requirements at the end of the spring semester is eligible to participate in summer scholarship disbursements.
A student can only receive a summer scholarship disbursement at their home institution.

Student Scholarship Eligibility Requirements

To participate, a student must meet the following requirements by the end of the spring term in addition to meeting all general scholarship eligibility requirements.

Palmetto Fellows Scholarship - For participation in summer scholarship disbursement, at the end of the spring semester a recipient must:
- Earn a cumulative 3.0 institutional GPA
- Earn at least 30 credit hours of non-remedial coursework during the fall and spring terms, excluding AP, IB, Dual Enrollment, CLEP, or exempted credit hours.
- A summer term cannot be a scholarship recipient’s first term of enrollment.

LIFE Scholarship - For participation in summer scholarship disbursement, at the end of the spring semester a recipient must:
- Earn a cumulative 3.0 LIFE GPA
- Earn an average of at least 30 credit hours of non-remedial coursework during the fall and spring terms, including AP, IB, Dual Enrollment, CLEP or exempted credit hours.
- A summer term cannot be a scholarship recipient’s first term of enrollment.

General Eligibility Requirements:
- A student must demonstrate having attempted and/or enrolled in a total of at least twelve credit hours over the course of the entire summer term to be awarded. Students who drop below 12 hours at any point during the summer and after receiving their Summer State Scholarship may lose their scholarship and will owe the University for any incurred expenses previously paid by the scholarship.
- Participating students who are determined to be a Palmetto Fellows Scholarship or a LIFE Scholarship recipient and have met the continued eligibility requirements at the end of the spring term are eligible for a fall award regardless of their academic performance over the summer. Continued eligibility for the scholarship will be reviewed at the end of the following spring term.

Palmetto Fellows and LIFE Scholarship Enhancements

A student who has been determined to have met continued eligibility for the Palmetto Fellows and LIFE Scholarship and has met the scholarship Enhancement eligibility requirement, is eligible to receive Enhancement funds for the summer term.

A student shall be verified for enrollment in an eligible major after the last day to drop/add a course of the first summer term of their enrollment.
A student who is in the first academic year and has met continued eligibility for the Palmetto Fellows scholarship and has met the Enhancement eligibility requirement at the end of the spring term, is eligible to receive Enhancement funds starting the immediate succeeding summer term.
- A student who has not met the Enhancement eligibility requirement at the end of the spring term is still eligible to use the Palmetto Fellows or LIFE Scholarship for the summer term. The summer term still may be used to earn Palmetto Fellows or LIFE Scholarship Enhancement eligibility during the first academic year only.
A student does not have the option of deferring Enhancement funds for a summer term, if the student opts into the program for receipt of the base Palmetto Fellows or LIFE Scholarship.

Prior to disbursement of summer state scholarship awards, student must meet with a financial aid counselor.

Important: If your planned enrollment involves any of the following for the summer, you are required to complete a Special Enrollment Form with the Registrar’s Office: