Petitions
BYU Scholarship Petitions
The Scholarship Policies are standard requirements for all scholarship recipients. Exceptions are sometimes granted based on individual needs. In making decisions, the committee considers extenuating circumstances such as serious illness, injury, or disability; death or serious illness in one's immediate family; and extensive family responsibilities such as those faced by a single parent with dependent children. Exceptions are not made because of marriage, difficulty of curriculum, employment, or graduate school tests. If your petition is in regards to the number of credit hours you are required to take, you may find that a contract will serve you better than a petition. Please review the Contract Form before petitioning.
To submit a petition:
- Send an e-mail to the Scholarship Committee at sch-petitions@byu.edu
- Include your name and student ID number in the subject line
- Describe your circumstances to the committee and make a specific, clear request
- If you are petitioning based on medical circumstances, please have your doctor complete and submit the Physician's Verification Form found on the forms page. Our fax number is 801-422-0235.
Federal Financial Aid Petitions
Special or Unusual Circumstances
The Financial Aid Office has limited authority to make adjustments in certain areas affecting financial aid eligibility when there are documented special or unusual circumstances. This authority is referred to as professional judgment, and your financial aid counselor can use professional judgment to reevaluate your eligibility for federal aid if you have one or more compelling reasons, i.e., loss of income due to loss of employment, having to pay high out-of-pocket medical expenses, or poor academic performance because of health issues or a death in the family.
Professional judgment can be used in the following areas:
- Cost of Attendance (COA)
- Data elements used to calculate the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) off the FAFSA
- Dependency Status
- Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
If you feel you have unusual circumstances that are not reflected in the FAFSA information you provided, or have kept you from performing well academically, you may meet with your financial aid counselor to discuss your situation. If your counselor feels your circumstances warrant an exception, he or she will provide you with the appropriate petition form. To schedule an appointment with your counselor, either in person or via telephone, call One-Stop Student Services at 801-422-4104.
Important Tips For All Petitions:
During the petition process, the University generally communicates with students either through their e-mail address listed on myBYU or My Financial Center's Message Center. To insure timely processing, follow these tips:
- Keep your listed e-mail address updated and current.
- Check e-mail inbox and junk-mail inbox.
- Check your Message Center inbox periodically.
- If requested, submit additional documentation.
