Financial Aid Policy if You Withdraw

Refund of Charges and Return of Financial Aid

A student who withdraws from UNCSA during a period of enrollment (i.e., begins the term but does not complete it) should be aware of policies regarding the adjustment and potential refund of institutional charges and the return of financial aid. These policies vary according to whether or not the student is a recipient of Title IV Federal aid such as the Federal Pell Grant), Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), and Federal Direct Loans (Subsidized, Unsubsidized, and PLUS).

Throughout this section, the term “Title IV Funds” refers to Federal financial aid programs authorized under the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965 (as amended). 

Students who wish to fully withdraw from UNCSA without completing the semester must begin the withdrawal process with the Case Manager located in the Student Affairs Office.

Return of Title IV Program Funds Policy for Title IV Federal Aid Recipients

Federal financial aid funds are awarded with the expectation that students will complete the entire period of enrollment. With each day of class attendance, students "earn" a percentage of their aid. When a student who has received Title IV Federal funds leaves school before the end of the term or period of enrollment, Federal law requires UNCSA to calculate the percentage of "unearned" federal funds which must be returned to the Federal government.

All withdrawal requests require a consultation with the Case Manager in Student Affairs. The student’s withdrawal date is the date the student begins UNCSA’s official withdrawal process.

• If a student is unable to personally visit the Case Manager in Student Affairs but otherwise provides official notification to the Case Manager in Student Affairs by phone or in writing of their intent to withdraw, the withdrawal date is the date the notification is received. 
• If the School determines that a student ceased to attend because of an incident beyond the student’s control, such as an accident, and the School does not receive official notification by the student or someone acting in the student’s behalf, the date the School determines the student ceased attending because of the instigating incident will be the student’s withdrawal date. 
• If a student otherwise ceases attendance without providing official notification, the “midpoint” of the term will be used, unless the last date of the student’s participation in an academically-related activity in the student’s arts school or academics has been documented.  

The percentage of the term completed is calculated by dividing the number of calendar days the student attended in the term by the total number of calendar days in the term. This percentage corresponds with the amount of aid the student has “earned.” The remaining portion of aid is considered “unearned.” However, after a student has completed more than 60% of the term, the student is considered to have earned 100% of the funding. 

The responsibility to repay “unearned” Title IV aid is shared by the institution and the student in proportion to the aid each “possesses”. (Note:  In a situation in which a student was disbursed less Federal Student Aid than the amount that was “earned,” the School must offer the student a “post-withdrawal disbursement” of “earned” aid not disbursed before the student withdrew.) It is assumed that Title IV funds are the first resource applied to institutional charges and that Title IV funds are disbursed directly to a student only after institutional charges have been covered.

As soon as possible, but no later than forty-five (45) days of the date the school determined the student withdrew, the school must return the amount of “unearned” Title IV aid for which it is responsible by repaying the following sources in order, up to the total net amount disbursed from each source: 

• Unsubsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loan;
• Subsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loan;
• Federal Perkins Loan;
• Federal Direct PLUS Loan (Graduate Student);
• Federal Direct PLUS Loan (Parent);
• Federal Pell Grant;
• FSEOG; and
• Other Title IV Programs. 

The student must return the amount of “unearned” Title IV aid for which the student is responsible. Funds should be repaid in the order specified above. However, loan amounts are to be repaid by the borrower in accordance with the terms defined by the promissory note(s). Amounts to be returned to grants by the student are protected by 50% of the original Federal grant amount.

Accordingly, UNCSA will prorate institutional charges for Federal Title IV aid recipients based on the percentage of the term completed, calculated by dividing the number of calendar days the student attended in the term by the total number of calendar days in the term. Title IV financial aid recipients will be charged for a percentage of the term equal to the percentage of aid they “earned”. After completing over 60% of the term as calculated above, the student will have “earned” 100% of their institutional charges, as well as their Title IV financial aid. 

The Office of Student Financial Aid calculates percentages and amounts pertaining to the Return of Title IV Funds. Institutional aid received by Title IV recipients will be “earned” in the same manner described above for Title IV aid. However, the return of funds to various State and private programs will be determined by the rules of the specific program, if and when specified. Required returns of funds to all financial aid programs must be made prior to a refund to the student.

Institutional Refund of Charges Policy for Non-Title IV Recipients

A student’s attendance in the term is counted from the first required day of attendance until the date of the student’s official withdrawal. The Student Accounts Office in the Bursar’s Office will calculate this refund.  (Refer to the Policy on Institutional Refund of Charges table.) Exceptions to the policy may be reviewed by the Tuition and Fees Appeals Committee.

For students who received aid from Institutional sources only, the total amount the student received is reduced by the same refund percentage as determined from the policy.  (Refer to the Policy on Institutional Refund of Charges table.) The amounts and order in which each source of aid is refunded is determined on a case-by-case basis by the Office of Student Financial Aid, with the guiding principle being to return funds to those programs most likely to be reallocated for use by other students. The return of funds to any private programs will be determined by the rules of the specific program, if and when specified. Required return of funds to all financial aid programs must be made prior to the refund to the student. 

Samples of a Title IV Refund Repayment  

Samples of typical refund and/or repayment calculations for a student who has withdrawn from UNCSA can be found in the Office of Student Financial Aid or in the Student Accounts Office with the Bursar’s Office.