Scholarship Discontinuation Appeals

Academic Reviews

The Merit Scholarship Unit reviews scholars’ academic standing at the end of each fall and spring semester once final grades are posted to determine if students are meeting the terms of their scholarship agreement. If students are not meeting their minimum requirements, depending on the type of student, the following will occur:

  • First-semester, first-year students are granted an automatic “warning” period if they fail to meet their terms. This does not apply to transfer students. First-semester, first-year students will continue receiving their scholarship the following semester. They will be automatically notified of the scholarship warning status via email (students do not need to submit any kind of appeal for this to happen).
    • A Scholarship Warning is a warning to the scholar that they have violated their scholarship agreement and should be conscious about this requirement going into their 2nd semester.
  • Scholars failing to meet their scholarship requirements will lose their scholarship and be notified via email of their Scholarship Discontinuation–this means the loss of a student’s merit scholarship for all future semesters.
    • Scholars concerned about their status are strongly encouraged to monitor their myUMBC email following the fall and spring semesters. Discontinuation notices, along with the process on how to appeal, are sent to students’ myUMBC email once grades are finalized and Scholarship Academic Reviews are completed by our office.
    • Scholars discontinued from their scholarship and/or programs do not have to repay their scholarship amount from the previous semester(s).

Discontinuation Appeal Process

Scholars with extenuating circumstances may appeal their scholarship discontinuation by submitting a Scholarship Discontinuation Appeal following the discontinuation notice.

Note: If you choose not to appeal within the allocated time frame, your award will not be reinstated regardless of whether you show academic improvement in future semesters. This is the only period to appeal for reinstatement, and you must submit your appeal by the published deadline below.

Submit a Scholarship Discontinuation Appeal

The following information is required in order to complete the appeal request. These documents will become available to you when you access the online appeal form. However, feel free to review the required information prior to accessing the online form.

  1. Scholarships Appeal Statement – a statement explaining the reason(s) you failed to meet scholarship standards for the semester(s) as reflected on your transcript. Questions asked will include:
    1. What happened during the semester you are appealing that interrupted your ability to earn the required GPA and/or complete your registered classes?
    2. What has changed since the incident that will now allow you to meet your scholarship requirements
      for future semesters?
    3. Can you describe your intentions for meeting your scholarship requirements in the future?
  2. Supporting Documentation – Documentation supporting the extenuating circumstance(s) listed in your appeal statement (i.e. medical records, police report, etc.). Timeframes on your documentation should support the circumstance described in your statement.
    1. Please note: While the contents of this appeal are confidential, our staff will consult with appropriate UMBC personnel should an instance arise where someone’s well-being appears at risk. 

Fall 2024 Academic Reviews will take place in January. You will be notified during this time via your myUMBC email if your scholarship has been discontinued. If there are extenuating circumstances as to why you were unable to meet your merit scholarship requirements, you will have the opportunity to appeal the loss of your scholarship for Spring 2025.

Discontinuation Appeals will be accepted Monday, January 13th – Friday, January 31st at 4:00PM EST.

The link to submit an appeal will become available on January 13th, 2025.

No late appeals or in-person meetings with the committee will be accepted. 

Timeline

Once you have submitted your scholarship discontinuation appeal, the Scholarship Review Committee will review all appeals as they are submitted. If submitted prior to the deadline, final decisions regarding appeals will be sent to each student via email within 3-5 business days of their appeal submission. If submitted the week prior to the deadline, please expect additional processing timeframes. Appeals submitted after the deadline will not be accepted.

  • The Scholarship Review Committee reserves the right to make individual decisions based on extenuating circumstance(s). Our unit carefully reviews all accounts when rendering appeal decisions.
  • Please note: If the appeal is denied or no appeal is submitted by the published deadline, the scholarship will be permanently discontinued and cannot be reinstated.

Scholars whose Discontinuation Appeal has been approved will have their scholarship reinstated, and will be placed on “Scholarship Probation” for the following semester. This will appear as an alert on your myUMBC account, and serves as a reminder that you must be mindful of meeting the terms of your scholarship agreement.

If your scholarship discontinuation appeal is denied, your scholarship is permanently discontinued and cannot be reinstated in any future semesters. We encourage you to review other funding options, such as applying for scholarships on Scholarship Retriever, external scholarships, or speaking further with your assigned financial aid counselor for other aid options.

Scholarship Discontinuation vs. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Failure

Scholarship Discontinuation Appeals are not the same as Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Appeals. SAP Failure is related to your financial aid (grants, loans, etc.). A Scholarship Discontinuation is strictly related to your UMBC merit scholarship. It is possible that you receive a Scholarship Discontinuation Notification AND a SAP Failure notification. Please note these are two different processes with two different appeals.

If you are appealing both a SAP Failure and a Scholarship Discontinuation, you must complete both appeal forms by their respective deadlines. The forms are not interchangeable. Learn more about the SAP Appeal process and deadlines here.

UMBC is committed to creating an accessible, inclusive, and welcoming environment for all students, staff, and visitors.

If you have difficulties accessing any of the information on our websites, please contact us via email or phone so we can provide an alternative format and remedy any accessibility challenges or barriers.