Drug Conviction Disclosure

Please be advised a federal or state drug conviction can disqualify a student from receiving financial aid. It is important that you are aware of the penalties if you are convicted of a drug-related offense while receiving financial aid.

Be an informed financial aid recipient by reading the following information carefully!

  • Convictions only count if they were for an offense that occurred during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving Title IV aid—they do not count if the offense was not during such a period.
  • A conviction that was reversed, set aside, or removed from a student's record does not count, or when received while a juvenile, unless student was tried as an adult.

The chart below represents the periods of ineligibility for financial aid depending on whether the conviction was for sale or possession and whether the student had previous offenses. (A conviction for sale of drugs includes convictions for conspiring to sell drugs.)

 

Possession of Illegal Drugs

Sale of Illegal Drugs

1st offense

1 year from date of conviction

2 years from date of conviction

2nd offense

2 years from date of conviction

Indefinite period

3+ offense

Indefinite period

If a student was convicted of both possessing and selling illegal drugs, and the periods of ineligibility differ, the student's ineligibility will be in effect for the longer period.