Keeping the Scholarship

In order to continue participating in the Michigan Reconnect scholarship, participants must:

• Continue to be a resident of this state.
• Maintain enrollment in your program of study and earn a minimum of 12 credits towards your program of study, once you’ve begun an academic year.
• Meet satisfactory academic progress (SAP) at your institution or maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA since becoming a Michigan Reconnect participant.
• Submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
  • See MI Student Aid's website on What FAFSA Do I File? if you have questions about which FAFSA to complete each year, when it's due, and what you may need to complete it. Our College Checklist also has helpful guidance about completing the FAFSA if you’re having trouble filing it again.

You can find more information on our Stay Reconnected page.

As long as you maintain the requirements for keeping the scholarship (See What are the requirements for keeping this scholarship?), you can continue to participate in this scholarship until one of the following happens, whichever occurs first:

• You've earned your associate degree, or
• Four years have passed from since your first semester as a Reconnect participant.

You can transfer from one eligible institution to another without losing the scholarship so long as you continue to meet all the requirements to keep it (See What are the requirements for keeping this scholarship?). An eligible institution is any one of Michigan's public community colleges, including its tribal colleges. If you're not sure what those are you can visit our List of Colleges to see all of the eligible institutions.

You must continue to be a resident of this state in order to keep the scholarship. See What are the requirements for keeping this scholarship?

One of the requirements for maintaining the scholarship (See What are the requirements for keeping this scholarship?) is that you must be continuously enrolled.

But we recognize that life happens. If you need to step away from classes, you may apply for a ‘leave of absence’ from the scholarship when you’re ready to resume your studies at your college. If approved, you may be able to continue receiving the scholarship award.

Your college will be responsible for reviewing, processing, and approving leave of absences from the Michigan Reconnect scholarship program. If you want to learn more about it to see if it’s the right option for you and how to apply for it, reach out to your college’s office of financial aid.

When you applied for Michigan Reconnect, you created a username and password for the Michigan Department of Treasury Student Portal.

The Student Portal is where you can:

• check on your status for Michigan Reconnect--or any other state scholarship for which you've applied
• see if your FAFSA has been filed
• view your scholarship award amounts
• change the name of the institution you plan to attend, whether you're enrolling for the first time or transferring to a new school. To update the name of the institution you plan to attend, see How do I make sure my scholarship award is applied to my tuition?

To check your status for Reconnect:

• Go to the Student Portal
• Login using the username and password you created when you applied for Michigan Reconnect.
  • If you've forgotten your username, that's okay. Click 'Forgot user name.'
  • If you've forgotten your password, that's okay. Put your user name in, and then click 'Forgot your password? Click here.'
• When you login, you'll first see your Student Profile.
• On the top left, click on "MI Aid Programs" and the drop-down menu will list the scholarship programs for which you've applied.
• When you click on Michigan Reconnect, you'll see your 'Application Status' and some information about what your status means.

As a Reconnect participant, if you choose to pursue a skill certificate first you can still pursue an associate degree with your Reconnect scholarship, so long as the certificate you earned is logical to the associate degree you want to pursue and you continue to meet the requirements to keep the scholarship. Visit What are the requirements for keeping this scholarship? to learn more.

Please connect with your academic advisor at your community college, to discuss your options for continuing your education through the Michigan Reconnect program, after earning your certificate. The four-year limitation will still apply. Visit How long can I keep the scholarship? to learn more.

Every Reconnect participant has a maximum of four years to complete a Pell-eligible skill certificate or associate degree. There may be times when you’ve registered for a course, the add/drop period has ended, and you aren’t sure if this is the right course for you anymore or you’re not able to continue taking the course. That’s okay, but it’s important to know what may mean for your scholarship. 

If you withdraw from a course(s) during your participation in Michigan Reconnect, you can keep your scholarship for the course(s) if your college still charges you tuition for the course(s).

It is important to remember the requirements to maintain the scholarship. You must meet the Satisfactory Academic Progress standards of your college or maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA in the courses towards your program of study as a Michigan Reconnect participant to remain eligible. Additionally, you must complete 12 credit hours in a full academic year to remain eligible. 

It’s important to stay connected with your college – whether it’s an advisor, college completion coach, office of financial aid – to make sure you’re meeting the requirements to maintain the scholarship and making the choices that are best for you to complete your program of study.