Census Date Policy
Census date is defined as the day after the end of the add/drop period each academic quarter. For financial aid purposes, Census Date represents a student’s enrollment level for that particular quarter. In other words, Census Date is an enrollment freeze such that all aid will be based on the number of units enrolled on that date.
2025-2026 Census Dates
|
| Fall 2025 |
09/18/2025 |
| Winter 2026 |
01/12/2026 |
| Spring 2026 |
04/06/2026 |
| Summer 2026 |
06/29/2026 |
On or after the quarterly Census Date, students cannot request changes to the FSEOG, institutional aid, or Cal Grant. As long as all other eligibility requirements are met, changes to Federal Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized, and PLUS loan programs are allowed if a student wishes to decrease or decline loan(s) or increase a loan if the student had previously declined a portion of or all of any one of these loans. Eligibility for federal and state programs may be affected by those who have had new FAFSA information or corrections submitted after the Census Date.
If a student drops credits or withdraws prior to the census date, the student may be required to repay some or all of their aid if they do not continue to meet the enrollment requirements for the types of aid the student was awarded.
If a student adds credits on or after the census date, the student may or may not be eligible to receive additional financial aid. Please contact the OFA to have your award reviewed.
The OFA is not able to adjust all types of aid on or after the Census Date, but will work with special situations on an individual basis. Students may contact the OFA before adding courses after the Census Date that would affect enrollment level (e.g., moving from half to three-quarter time).