Consortium Agreements

If your WSU location does not offer a course that is necessary for your degree, you may be eligible to request a consortium agreement. This will allow you to use part of your WSU-awarded federal student aid to pay tuition at another school while you continue working toward your WSU degree.

We recommend discussing this with your academic advisor at least one term in advance.

To qualify for a consortium request:

• You must be enrolled in at least six credits at WSU. Exceptions may be granted in certain situations (for instance, if you’re within six credits of graduation). Contact a financial aid counselor if you have any questions about this.
• You and your academic advisor must agree that course work at another school is needed to fulfill degree requirements that are not available through regularly scheduled WSU classes during your enrollment.

How to request a consortium

1. The Consortium Master Plan must be completed and returned by the student’s academic advisor to our office.
2. The student’s academic advisor must agree in writing to the following:
   • To verify each consortium course to be necessary and applicable to the student’s degree or certificate at WSU, and are not offered through WSU.
   • To prepare and attach a Consortium Master Plan of courses needed for the degree program and certify that the courses are consortium-eligible.
3. The student must complete their section of the WSU Consortium Agreement and send it to the Host Institution’s financial aid office for certification. The Host Institution must return the completed form to WSU before the deadline (three weeks after the beginning of the Host Institution’s term).
4. The student must agree in writing to the following:
   • To provide WSU with an official grade transcript. (If this documentation is not provided within 2 weeks of the end of the Host Institution’s term, any further consortium funding will be held and satisfactory academic progress may be affected.)
   • To provide the WSU financial aid personnel with a copy of an official add, drop, or withdrawal slip for any adds, drops, or withdrawals from course(s) previously certified for the consortium agreement. Failure to do so will withhold future funding of consortium courses.
   • Courses being repeated for credit will be funded only if a letter grade of “F” was received during the 1 st period of enrollment. If a letter grade of “D” or better was received during the first period of enrollment, funding for this course will be withheld.
   • Courses listed below the 100 level will not be funded unless those remedial courses are not available at the Home Institution and the student must complete them before taking required courses at the Home Institution. (i.e. MATH91, MATH92, OR MATH99. Remedial courses will be funded or considered for one academic year.)
   • Consortium students are subject to the SAP policy and Refund/Repayment policy information as published in the Student Handbook.
   • At least 6 credits of the total enrollment per semester must be WSU courses. Semester-based courses through the WSU Online Program will be included in the 6-credit requirement.
   • Those courses not applicable to the student’s degree or certificate at WSU will not be funded. Consult your academic advisor for equivalencies and applicable academic year.
   • Funding may cover tuition and course-related fees. Tuition fees will reflect actual tuition costs of both WSU and the consortium school. The student, if awarded funds for consortium classes, must pay the Host Institution’s tuition and fees from the WSU funds released to the student.
   • Certify that he or she is applying to receive financial aid only from WSU.
5. All parts of the request for a Consortium Agreement must be completed and submitted to WSU to later than the second Friday of the Home Institution’s term.

What is a consortium?

A Consortium Agreement is a written, formal agreement between two institutions eligible to participate in Title IV Federal funding programs.

This funding may include Federal Pell Grants, Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized and other loan, grant, and work programs developed to assist students in paying for a higher education.

The Consortium Agreement allows a student to enroll in courses at another institution while working toward a degree or certificate from Washington State University (WSU).

The agreement would state that WSU, as the Home Institution, another eligible institution, as the Host Institution, and the participating student have worked together to ensure that all parties have a clear understanding of their rights and responsibilities involved in a Consortium Agreement.

If the student is not enrolled full-time at WSU and is eligible to receive grants, the credits added by the consortium agreement may increase the student’s grant eligibility.

Important notes

• Not all educational institutions are eligible to participate in a consortium agreement with Washington State University.
• Consortium agreements are not automatically approved; they must be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Completing your consortium courses

At the end of the consortium term, final course grades must be sent to the WSU Office of Student Financial Services. Remember to request transcripts from the host school. Future consortium agreements will not be granted grades are received.

If you need to withdraw from a consortium course, you should go through the host school’s withdrawal process and inform WSU. If you withdraw from your consortium classes twice, you will be ineligible for future consortiums.

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