Student Consumer Information

Section 493 of Part F of Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1975 as amended by 20 U.S.C. 1088b 1 Part 178 “Student Consumer Information Services” requires that Southwest Minnesota State University inform its students of certain information through appropriate publications and that personnel responsible for such information be identified for students.

The following lists the information personnel responsible and location of the information as required by law. Additional questions may be directed to the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, phone 537-6844.

1. The Financial Aid Office, IL 145, phone 537-6281, is responsible and has published information regarding the following items:

a. Description of all student financial aid programs to students who enroll, including the procedures and forms for applying for such aid, the student eligibility requirements, the criteria for selecting recipients and the criteria for determining the amount of the students’ awards.
b. A statement of the rights and responsibilities of students receiving financial aid under the Pell, SEOG, CWS, Perkins, and Stafford programs, including the criteria for continued eligibility for each program; criteria for determining that a student is in good standing and maintaining satisfactory progress in his/her course of study as required by Section 497 (e) (1) of the ACT for the purposes of receiving financial aid payments; criteria by which a student who has failed to maintain satisfactory progress or good standing may reestablish his/her eligibility for payments; the means by which payment of awards will be made to students and the frequency of such payments; the terms of, and expected schedules for, repayment of any loans received by students as part of his/her student financial aid; and the general conditions and terms applicable to any employment provided to a student as part of his/her aid.

2. Costs for attending the University are published in the catalog, prospective student brochure, financial aid brochure, Registration Semester Course Schedule, the Residence Hall Information Handbook, or online on our "Cost to Attend SMSU" webpage. All fees and tuition rates are subject to change under the rules of the MnSCU System.
The Director of Admission, FH 108, phone 537 6286, and the Registrar, IL 148, phone 537-6206, are responsible for informing prospective students and enrolled students of all costs of education at Southwest Minnesota State University. Questions regarding costs may be directed to either office.

3. The academic programs of the University are described in the University Catalog. The Provost, FH 214, phone 537 6246, is responsible for maintaining the official list of courses and major requirements. Questions regarding the academic programs of Southwest Minnesota State University should be directed to this office.

4. The Student Right-to-Know legislation requires this information. It represents two important aspects of the University. The first is the retention rate from new entering full time students in the fall to those who return the next fall, and the graduation rate over a six year period. The cohort group for the retention information is: 2010, 2011, 2012 new entering freshmen full time students. The cohort group for the graduation rates is: 2005, 2006, 2007 new entering freshmen full time students.

The retention rates are as follows:
New entering freshmen 2010 = 70.1%
New entering freshmen 2011 = 68.1%
New entering freshmen 2012 = 67.2%

The graduation rates are as follows:
New entering freshmen 2005 = 39.3%
New entering freshmen 2006 = 40.3%
New entering freshmen 2007 = 42.6%

The Data Management & Institutional Research Services office, BA 509, phone 537-6261, is responsible for this information and questions regarding the data may be directed to that office.