Taking Courses At Two Schools

During the course of your academic career at Southern State Community College, you may want to take a course at another institution to transfer back to your degree program at SSCC. Or, you may want to take at course at SSCC and transfer it back to your degree program at another institution. You might be eligible for financial aid to help assist with the costs at both institutions. To do this, you must complete a consortium agreement with both schools.

A consortium agreement is a contract between two colleges or universities that recognizes your registration at each location for financial aid purposes. It also certifies that only one of the two institutions will award your financial aid.

In a consortium agreement, the colleges or universities are referred to as the "home institution" and the "host institution":

The home institution is the school that will award the student the degree.

The host institution is the school where the student is temporarily taking courses to transfer back to the home school to meet degree requirements.

How to complete a Consortium Agreement: when SSCC is your Home school

  • Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and meet all the terms and conditions required by the federal financial aid programs.
  • Complete Section I of the Consortium Agreement
  • Meet with your SSCC academic advisor and have them go over Section II of the consortium agreement, sign and date at the bottom.
  • Take the consortium agreement to the Financial Aid Office at your host institution. The host institution must complete Section III and return the consortium agreement to the home institution (SSCC Financial Aid Office).
  • When the SSCC Financial Aid Office receives the completed form, your financial aid will be awarded based on the combined enrollment at both institutions.
  • SSCC will disburse financial aid in accordance to our policy for disbursing financial aid.
  • You are is responsible for paying your tuition, fees, and books at the host institution by their payment deadline.
  • Contact your host institution at the end of the term and request an official transcript be sent to SSCC to transfer your course(s) for your degree.
  • A new consortium agreement must be completed for each term you plan to attend multiple schools.
  • Attendance is required to receive your financial aid. If you fail to meet attendance requirements or decide to withdraw from one or more of your courses your financial aid award may be affected. It is your responsibility to notify both your home and host institution so that your financial aid award can be updated accordingly. Please keep in mind that withdrawing from a course does not impact your GPA but will be included on your SSCC transcript and may impact your Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) at SSCC.

*If Southern State Community College will be your host institution, please contact the Financial Aid Office at your home institution for information regarding their policy for consortium agreements.