DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY  
HIGHER EDUCATION ASSISTANCE AUTHORITY  
COMPETITIVE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM  
(By authority conferred on the higher education assistance authority by section 3 of  
Act No. 208 of the Public Acts of 1964, as amended, being S390.973 of the Michigan  
Compiled Laws)  
R 390.1551 Definitions.  
Rule 1. As used in these rules:  
(a) "Academic year" means that period beginning August 1 and ending by June of  
the following year for colleges with 8 or 9-month calendars or August 1 to July 31 for  
colleges with 12-month calendars.  
(b) "Act" means Act No. 208 of the Public Acts of 1964, as amended, being  
S390.971 et seq. of the Michigan Compiled Laws.  
(c) "Authority" means the Michigan higher education assistance authority.  
(d) "Award" means a competitive scholarship award.  
(e) "Class A high school," "class B high school," "class C high school," or "class D  
high school" means a high school with enrollment classifications designated by  
the Michigan high school athletic association.  
(f) "Default" means failure to comply with the terms of a loan guaranteed by  
the authority so that the authority finds it necessary to reimburse the original lending  
institution for the balance of the loan.  
(g) "Full-time" means a student who is enrolled for 12 or more semester credit  
hours or equivalent in trimester or quarter hours or the equivalent of 24 semester hours  
or 36 quarter hours per academic year for institutions using credit hours to  
measure progress, but not using semester, trimester, or quarter hours.  
(h) "Part-time" means a student who is enrolled for not less than 6, but not more  
than 11, semester credit hours, trimester hours, or equivalent in quarter hours or at least  
1/2 the credit defined as full-time in subdivision (g) of this rule.  
(i) "Parent" means the mother, father, mother and father, or adoptive parents.  
(j) "Postsecondary institution" means either a Michigan postsecondary institution  
listed in the federal publication entitled "Postsecondary Institutions Eligible For The  
Pell Grants Program" or a Michigan postsecondary institution eligible to be listed  
in the publication entitled "Directory of Institutions of Higher Education," published by  
the Michigan department of education.  
(k) "Renewal applicant" means an applicant for an award who received such an  
award for any enrollment period during the previous academic year.  
(l) "Residual applicant" means an applicant who, for any reason, failed to receive  
monetary award assistance through this program during the previous academic year.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
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R 390.1552 Administration of program.  
Rule 2. The authority shall administer competitive scholarships to eligible  
students registered as undergraduate or graduate students.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1553 Applicant qualification; examination.  
Rule 3. (1) An applicant is eligible for an undergraduate scholarship if he or she  
qualified on the Michigan competitive scholarship examination. The examination shall  
be administered on dates designated by the authority.  
(2) The qualifying examination score shall be established annually by the  
authority.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1554 Eligibility.  
Rule 4. (1) An undergraduate applicant is eligible for an award when the authority  
finds that the applicant meets the requirements of sections 4 and 7 of the act and meets  
all of the following requirements:  
(a) Has resided continuously in this state for the preceding 12 months and is not  
considered a resident of any other state. A student who is not  
a United States citizen shall be a holder of the I-151 or I-551 immigration  
identification card signifying permanent residency in the United States. A refugee  
who meets the 12-month state residency requirement may be eligible for award  
consideration.  
(b) Has graduated from a high school or meets 1 of the following requirements:  
(i) Is a student in good standing in a high school and will graduate at the end of the  
academic year.  
(ii) Is a high school student who completes all high school requirements before the  
student's class is scheduled to graduate and is recommended by the high school.  
(iii) Is a high school dropout who does not have a high school diploma, whose class  
has graduated, and who is recommended by the college.  
(iv) Is a high school dropout who does not yet have a high school diploma,  
whose class has not graduated, and who is recommended by the high school last attended.  
(c) Has not defaulted on a loan guaranteed by the authority. Exceptions may be  
made if a defaulted borrower has made satisfactory repayment arrangements on the  
defaulted amount of the loan as determined by the authority.  
(2) A graduate student is eligible for an award if the requirements in subrule (1)(a)  
and (c) are met.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1555 Honorary scholarship certificate.  
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Rule 5. An undergraduate applicant is eligible for an honorary scholarship  
certificate if the applicant qualified on the designated competitive scholarship  
examination administered on dates designated by the authority.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1556 Monetary scholarship award; eligibility.  
Rule 6. An applicant is eligible for a monetary scholarship award when a qualifying  
applicant's financial resources show a monetary need for such a scholarship as  
determined by the authority.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS.  
R 390.1557 College enrollment.  
Rule 7. An applicant is eligible for an award when the authority determines that  
the applicant has actually been accepted for enrollment at a Michigan college or  
university as approved by the department of education.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1558 Full- or part-time status.  
Rule 8. (1) An applicant is eligible for a scholarship if the applicant is enrolled or  
accepted for enrollment as a full-time student.  
(2) An applicant may be eligible for a competitive scholarship if enrolled or  
accepted for enrollment as a part-time student for at least half-time, but less than full-  
time, credit.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1559 Application deadline date.  
Rule 9. An applicant is guaranteed scholarship consideration only if the applicant  
meets the deadline date established by the authority. An applicant who submits  
application materials after the deadline date may be considered if funds are available to  
assist students who submit late materials.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS.  
R 390.1560 Distribution of awards.  
Rule 10. (1) Scholarship awards to high school seniors shall be distributed first  
by legislative district, which shall include not less than 3 awards for each of the  
representative and senatorial districts, if students qualify.  
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(2) Four scholarships shall be allotted to each class A high school, 3 to each class B  
high school, 2 to each class C high school, and 1 to each class D high school.  
Scholarships allotted to a high school shall be awarded to those students who have  
the highest competitive scholarship examination score and otherwise meet all eligibility  
requirements.  
(3) The remaining scholarships shall be awarded statewide on a competitive  
basis in descending test score order.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1561 Tuition and fees.  
Rule 11. Scholarship awards are to be used to defray the costs of tuition and  
fees. Tuition and fee charges are defined as those charges required of all students who  
enroll at an institution and which have been promulgated in the catalog of the institution,  
and which are certified by the institution prior to the scholarship recipient's  
enrollment. A deadline date is set each year by the authority for receiving increases in  
tuition and fee charges.  
History: 1980 AACS.  
R 390.1562 Payment of scholarship awards.  
Rule 12. A scholarship recipient shall receive the award from the authority after  
certifying the name of the postsecondary institution in which the recipient is enrolled.  
Payment of scholarship awards shall be prorated and shall be forwarded to the  
postsecondary institution in which the recipient is enrolled. Payment shall be issued  
only after the postsecondary institution has certified that the student is still in good  
standing.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1563 Rescinded.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1563a Institutional eligibility.  
Rule 13a. (1) The eligibility of a degree-granting institution for listing in "The  
Directory of Institutions of Higher Education," published by the Michigan department of  
education, is required to be eligible for  
participation in the state competitive scholarship program.  
(2) Michigan nonprofit, non-degree-granting postsecondary institutions shall be  
listed in the federal publication "Postsecondary Institutions Eligible For The Pell  
Grants Program" to be eligible for participation in the state competitive scholarship  
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program. Additionally, such institutions shall be approved by the state board of education  
or the appropriate state of Michigan licensing agency, if applicable.  
History: 1985 AACS.  
R 390.1564 Transfer of recipient to another eligible institution.  
Rule 14. A scholarship recipient who decides to transfer to an eligible institution  
other than the one identified at the time of application may do so at any time. Changes  
in college plans which require receiving a larger state scholarship shall be honored to  
the extent that funds are available. A scholarship award shall be decreased in  
amount if necessitated by a reduced budget or reduced tuition and fee charges of the  
applicant's revised institutional choice.  
History: 1980 AACS.  
R 390.1565 Release of award amounts to institution; dismissal or  
withdrawal of recipient from institution.  
Rule 15. (1) A scholarship recipient shall release scholarship award amounts to  
the institution in order that the institution concerned may refund any allowable amount  
directly to the authority if the student withdraws from college.  
(2) A scholarship recipient who is dismissed or leaves a postsecondary institution  
before completion of a full enrollment period and who is not eligible for a  
postsecondary institution refund does not have to repay to the authority the amount of  
the scholarship award which was issued for that enrollment period.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1566 Failure of recipient to enroll; refund.  
Rule 16. A scholarship recipient who does not enroll in a postsecondary institution  
after receiving an award will have the full amount of the award cancelled.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1567 Reinstatement and relinquishment of awards.  
Rule 17. (1) A scholarship recipient who ceases to be enrolled at least half-time  
may request an award reinstatement upon returning to school during the same  
academic year for which the award was granted. The scholarship reinstatement is  
dependent upon the availability of funds and the continuing eligibility of the recipient.  
(2) A scholarship recipient who relinquishes the award for any reason and does not  
return to school during the academic year for which the award was granted shall reapply  
to receive consideration for future academic years.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
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R 390.1568 Renewal awards.  
Rule 18. Upon application by the student awarded a scholarship during the  
previous academic year, a scholarship shall be renewed by the authority without  
further examination if the applicant remains eligible and is in compliance with these  
rules. To be eligible for a renewal award, an applicant shall maintain a 2.0 cumulative  
average, which is equivalent to a cumulative C average, and maintain satisfactory  
academic progress. Each applicant shall submit the application materials which are  
required  
by the authority.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1569 Residual awards.  
Rule 19. A qualified student who failed to receive an award the previous academic  
year may be eligible for a scholarship award during any year if funds are available after  
renewal awards have been granted.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1570 Amount of renewal awards.  
Rule 20. A scholarship recipient who is eligible for a renewal scholarship may  
receive an amount that is more or less than the amount received during the previous  
year depending upon financial need, but the amount shall not be more than the  
maximum award for that academic year. In addition, the renewal scholarship recipient  
shall not receive less than the amount received during the previous year, unless the  
family  
financial circumstances or the applicant's financial circumstances have  
appreciably changed, according to a financial statement approved by the authority, or if  
the student transfers to a less expensive eligible postsecondary institution.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
R 390.1571 Recipient rosters; institution reports.  
Rule 21. (1) Each postsecondary institution which has accepted scholarship  
recipients for enrollment shall be furnished a roster of recipients who indicated their  
intent to enroll at that institution. The institution shall certify that the scholarship  
recipient has actually enrolled at least half-time before disbursing the enrollment  
period payment. A duplicate copy of the roster shall be forwarded with the original  
and shall be used by the institution to indicate whether a scholarship recipient  
enrolled at least half-time. A copy of the completed roster shall be returned to the  
authority.  
(2) Near the end of the academic year, each institution accepting scholarship  
recipients shall receive a roster mailed by the authority. The institution shall certify  
eligibility of renewal candidates and shall  
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identify students who have achieved less than a 2.0 cumulative academic average  
and students who have not maintained satisfactory academic progress. Any recipient  
who has a cumulative academic average less than a 2.0 or who does not maintain  
satisfactory academic progress, as reported by the institution of latest attendance, is not  
eligible for a renewal award, but may become eligible as a residual applicant upon  
certification by the institution that the student has achieved a cumulative 2.0 average and  
is meeting the satisfactory academic progress requirement.  
History: 1980 AACS; 1985 AACS; 1991 AACS.  
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;