Skip to Content

EOP&S Eligibility

The EOP&S/CARE Program has two open application periods during the academic year: June/July for Fall term participation and mid-November for Spring term participation. The application period is generally open for approximately 4-5 weeks. When the application period is not open, interested students are encouraged to complete the Application Interest Form to be added to the program’s email list.

To be eligible to participate in the ARC EOP&S/CARE Program, student applicants must meet the following four core program requirements plus at least one or more eligibility factors:

  1. Residency: Be a California resident for at least one year and one day before the start of your first enrollment term, or be eligible with AB540 status (currently, AB 343 status is not considered California residency at ARC).
  2. Enrollment: First-time EOP&S/CARE participants must be enrolled in at least 12 units or more to receive services (unless you qualify for a DSPS unit reduction service). Waitlisted classes do not count towards units enrolled.
  3. Units Completed: Have less than 70-degree degree-applicable units completed from all colleges attended (please submit official transcripts of all other colleges attended to the ARC Admissions Office for an official transfer course evaluation of degree-applicable units). Have not completed a college degree or certificate from Los Rios or any other college or university, including international colleges or universities.
  4. Financial Aid: All eligible students must complete a FAFSA or CADAA. ARC must be designated as your home college. All EOP&S/CARE participants (new and continuing) must have a CCPG Fee Waiver on file with Financial Aid with a status of CCPG-A, CCPG-B, or CCPG-*C *(with $0 to -$1500 SAI)
    • Students with an over $0 SAI (Student Aid Index) would not be eligible to participate in the EOP&S/CARE Program
    • Financial Aid eligibility will be reviewed each academic year. Current participants may lose program eligibility based on their Financial Aid package each year.

Plus, at least one or more of the following eligibility factors in their academic/personal profile:

  • College placement results indicate below college-level English or Math placement or ESL courses, or previous enrollment in remedial educational courses
  • Did not graduate from high school and did not complete a GED or high school proficiency test
  • High school GPA is 2.49 or below (proven through unofficial high school transcripts)
  • Be a first-generation college student (you are the first in your family to attend a college/university or to complete a college degree)
  • Be a current or former foster youth (you may be eligible for the NextUp Program)
  • Be part of historically underserved communities (Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American, Latine, or Asian)
  • English is not the primary language spoken at home