Bakersfield College

You are here

Home Student Services Financial Aid Financial Aid Programs Important Information
Smiling graduates.

Important Information

Here you will be able to locate information on the following topics:

Eligibility

  • Complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
  • Be a U.S citizen or an eligible noncitizen
  • For AB540 students: complete the confidential California Dream Act Application. Additional information is available at: the California Dream Act.
  • Register with Selective Service, if required (males 18 to 25). If you are over the age of 26 and never registered, you will have to mail a Request for Status Information Letter to the Selective Service Agency to evaluate your information
  • Be enrolled or accepted as a regular student into a degree-granting or eligible certificate program
  • Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward your college educational goal
    • Maintain a 2.00 Grade Point Average (GPA)
    • Maintain the required unit completion rate according to the Terms of Agreement Satisfactory Academic Progress Regulations for financial aid eligibility.
    • Federal regulations require colleges to establish a maximum time frame during which students are eligible to receive financial aid. Bakersfield College has established a maximum time frame of 90 attempted units. Students are no longer maintaining satisfactory academic progress for financial aid after attempting 90 or more units whether or not financial aid was received.
  • Certify that you are not in default on a federal student loan or owe money on a federal student grant
  • Certify that you will use federal student aid only for educational purposes
  • Show you’re qualified to obtain a college education by:

Denial

You may be denied financial aid for one or more of the following reasons:

  • Failure to meet the High Diploma or equivalent requirement
  • Your resources meet or exceed allowable expenses
  • Ineligible immigration status
  • You did not complete satisfactory progress requirements and failed warning
  • Funding allotted to eligible aid program has been exhausted
  • Financial need falls below minimum aid levels in available aid
  • You have earned an associate degree or higher and have exhausted available aid
  • Loan in default or other repayment required
  • You have not provided sufficient documentation to determine eligibility.
  • You have failed to register with Selective Service (if required)

Tuition & Fees

Review Admissions page for current fees.

The following chart provides an example of the estimated total cost of attendance for Bakersfield College in contrast to other schools such as the University of California and California State University:

Estimated cost of attendance: BC vs. CSU/UC

Bakersfield College versus University of California and California State University Estimated Cost of Attendance
Type of Expense Bakersfield College California State University University of California
Tuition and fees1 $1,380 $7,498 $18,152
Books and supplies $1,125 $1,244 $1,300
Room and board (Off Campus) $17,253 $13,844 $15,000
Personal/transportation $4,761 $4,364 $2,900
TOTAL PER YEAR $24,519 $26,9502 $37,3523
1 Cost varies on student's enrollment. California resident undergraduates at all UC campuses pay the same $18,152 in systemwide tuition and fees. The fees figure above includes the average cost of additional campus-based fees (2022-23 Academic Year). Your total costs will vary depending on your personal expenses and the campus you attend. All fees are subject to change without notice.
2 Information on CSU's was obtained from averages of all 23 campuses from Cal State.
3 Information on University of California was obtained from University of California Admissions

Advantages of attending a Community College vs University

Cost of Tuition

Attending community college gives students the chance to prepare for the financial demands of a 4-year university if they plan on transferring.

Give Students An Opportunity To Explore Major Options

Instead of spending thousands of dollars at a private university towards a major that you are less than sure of, consider attending a community school while you are making your decision.

Transitional

Attending community college gives students the opportunity to earn college credit while taking the time to select the 4-year institution that is right for them.

Flexible Schedule

Attending community college gives students the chance to prepare for the financial demands of a 4-year university if they plan on transferring.

 

Net Cost Calculator

Our net cost calculator can also be accessed at BC Net Price Calculator.

Your Rights and Responsibilities

Please note: Your award was determined in accordance with the laws, regulations, and appropriations of the U.S. Congress and Bakersfield College, and is subject to adjustment or cancellation in the event of changes to these laws or your eligibility.

Your Rights

Your Rights

  • You have the right to privacy. All records and information submitted with your application for financial aid are confidential, and subject to legal requirements concerning disclosure of such information.
  • You have the right to request a reduction or cancellation of your student loan. Remember that a student loan is a debt that must be repaid; borrow only what you need
  • You have the right to know specific consumer information such as campus crime statistics and athletic information.
  • You have the right to know what financial aid programs are available to you, including information on all federal, state and university financial aid programs.
  • You have the right to know the application procedures and deadlines for each of the available programs.
  • You have the right to know how financial aid is distributed and the basis for these decisions.
  • You have the right to know how and when financial aid is disbursed.
  • You have the right to know how your financial aid eligibility was determined.This includes how costs for tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, travel, and personal and miscellaneous expenses were determined in your estimated cost of attendance. It also includes what resources were considered in the calculation of your financial aid eligibility (such as parental contribution and other financial aid or personal assets).
  • You have the right to know the interest rate of your loan, the total amount to be repaid (or not to be repaid), repayment procedures, when repayment begins, and the length of the repayment period.
  • You have the right to know how Bakersfield College determines whether you are making satisfactory academic progress, and what happens if you are not.
Your Responsibilities

Your Responsibilities

  • You must regularly check your student email account for information from Bakersfield College and Financial Aid Services.
  • If you are a dependent student, you must keep your parents or guardians informed of all financial aid requirements and deadlines.
  • You must complete all application forms accurately and submit them on time to the correct location. You must read and understand all forms you are asked to sign and keep a copy of each. You are also responsible for knowing the financial aid reapplication deadlines.
  • You must provide correct information at all times. Reporting false information is a violation of the law and may be considered a criminal offense.
  • You must submit, by the deadline indicated, all additional documentation, verification, corrections and/or new information requested by either the Financial Aid Office or the agencies to which you submitted applications. Some examples include: federal tax transcripts, verification forms, loan entrance counseling, loan promissory notes, and loan exit counseling prior to leaving school.
  • You must notify us in writing if the information reported on your financial aid applications has changed.
  • You must notify Bakersfield College Admissions & Records Office and any lenders if there are changes in your name, permanent mailing address, anticipated graduation date, or enrollment status.
  • You must notify us in writing if you receive any scholarships or other awards that do not appear on your award letter. Some examples include scholarships, tuition waivers, and veterans or rehabilitation benefits.
  • You must accept responsibility for all agreements that you sign.
  • You must perform the work agreed upon if you accept a Federal Work-Study job, and notify your employer if the amount of your award changes.
  • You must know and comply with the refund procedures of Bakersfield College.
  • You must show Satisfactory Academic Progress according to established policies and standards of Bakersfield College.
  • You must notify us in writing if you are receiving financial aid for attendance at another institution while attending Bakersfield College.
  • If you are a recipient of a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, you must notify the lender should any of the following occur before the loan is repaid:
    • You change your address and/or phone number
    • You graduate
    • You withdraw from school or are enrolled less than half time
    • You change your name (e.g., maiden to married name)
    • You transfer to another university
  • You must maintain satisfactory status on student loans. You may be required by your lender to complete deferment forms for loans that were previously in repayment. Students who default on their student loans or owe refunds on federal grants are not eligible for any financial aid.

Student Terms of Agreement

Terms of Agreement

Return of Title IV Policy

The Return of Title IV Policy addresses federal financial aid recipients who withdraw from the college and are subject to a Return of Title IV (R2T4) calculation. For the purpose of R2T4 calculation requirements, a recipient is a student who has actually received federal financial aid funds or has met the conditions that entitled the student to a late disbursement of federal financial aid funds. The college is required to review the amount of federal loan and grant aid a student received for the payment period, to determine what percentage of federal financial aid the student earned prior to withdrawal. The percentage of federal financial aid determined to be unearned for the payment period must be returned to the appropriate federal financial aid program(s).

Note about the 60 percent date: Students who receive Federal Title IV Aid and drop all of their courses before the 60 percent date of the semester, as determined by the Office of Financial Aid, will owe a repayment to the institution and/or the U.S. Department of Education.

Bakersfield College returns Title IV funds in the following order, up to the net amount disbursed from each source:
  • Unsubsidized Direct Loans (other than Direct PLUS Loans)
  • Subsidized Direct Loans
  • Direct PLUS Loans
  • Federal Pell Grants for which a Return is required
  • Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG) for which a return of funds is required
  • Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant, for which a Return is required

Federal Student Financial Aid Penalties For Drug Law Violations

Students Convicted of Possession or Sale of Drugs

A federal or state drug conviction can disqualify a student for FSA funds. The student self-certifies in applying for aid that he is eligible; you’re not required to confirm this unless you have conflicting information.

Convictions only count against a student for aid eligibility purposes if they were for an offense that occurred during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving Federal Student Aid—they do not count if the offense was not during such a period. Also, a conviction that was reversed, set aside, or removed from the student’s record does not count, nor does one received when he/she was a juvenile, unless he/she was tried as an adult.

The chart below illustrates the period of ineligibility for FSA funds, 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.)

Offense Posession 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+ Offenses Indefinite period Indefinite period

If the student was convicted of both possessing and selling illegal drugs, and the periods of ineligibility are different, the student will be ineligible for the longer period.

Schools must provide each student who becomes ineligible for Title IV aid due to a drug conviction a clear and conspicuous written notice of his loss of eligibility and the methods whereby he can become eligible again.

A student regains eligibility the day after the period of ineligibility ends or when he successfully completes a qualified drug rehabilitation program or, effective beginning with the 2010–2011 award year, passes two unannounced drug tests given by such a program. Further drug convictions will make him ineligible again.

Students denied eligibility for an indefinite period can regain eligibility after completing any of the following three options:

  1. Successfully completing a rehabilitation program, as described below, which includes passing two unannounced drug tests from such a program;
  2. Having the conviction reversed, set aside, or removed from the student’s record so that fewer than two convictions for sales or three convictions for possession remain on the record; or
  3. Successfully completing two unannounced drug tests which are part of a rehab program (the student does not need to complete the rest of the program).

In such cases, the nature and dates of the remaining convictions will determine when the student regains eligibility. It is the student’s responsibility to certify to Stark State that she has successfully completed the rehabilitation program; as with the conviction question on the FAFSA, you are not required to confirm the reported information unless you have conflicting information.

When a student regains eligibility during the award year, Stark State may award Pell and Campus-based aid for the current payment period and Direct and FFEL loans for the period of enrollment.

Standards for a Qualified Drug Rehabilitation Program

A qualified drug rehabilitation program must include at least two unannounced drug tests and must satisfy at least one of the following require¬ments:

  • Be qualified to receive funds directly or indirectly from a federal, state, or local government program.
  • Be qualified to receive payment directly or indirectly from a federally or state-licensed insurance company.
  • Be administered or recognized by a federal, state, or local government agency or court.
  • Be administered or recognized by a federally or state-licensed hospital, health clinic, or medical doctor

If you have any questions about the effect of a drug conviction on your Federal Student Aid or your eligibility please call 1-800-4FED-AID.

Financial Aid Questions? Get Answers 24/7/365. FATV, get answers.

Follow Us!

Contact Us!

Bakersfield College
Office of Financial Aid
1801 Panorama Dr.
Bakersfield, CA 93305

Hours

  • Monday: 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
  • Tuesday: 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
  • Wednesday: 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
  • Thursday: 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
  • Friday:8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.