Federal Student Aid Resignation/Withdrawal Policy |
Effective: |
2/2/2023 |
Responsible Executive: |
VP, Enrollment Services |
Applicability: |
Auburn University students |
Review By: |
04/01/2024 |
Recipients of Federal Title IV aid are subject to additional rules and regulations which may result in cancellation or reduction of Federal Title IV aid upon withdrawal from all classes in an enrollment period. The term "Title IV Funds" refers to the federal financial aid programs authorized under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (as amended) and includes these programs: Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loans, Federal Subsidized Direct Loans, Federal Graduate PLUS Loans, Federal Parent PLUS Loans, Federal Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Grants (SEOG), Federal Teach Grants, and Federal Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants.
Students who withdraw from all degree applicable courses for a term must repay aid that is unearned based on the federal calculation which takes into account the effective date of withdrawal, amount of institutional charges, and amount/type of aid. When an aid recipient withdraws, repayments are allocated in the above order of funds followed by other Title IV assistance, other federal sources of aid, and other state, private and institutional aid.
Title IV aid is earned in direct proportion to the length of time the student is enrolled. A student who remains enrolled beyond the 60% point earns all aid for that period. Until a student has passed the 60% point, only a portion of the aid has been earned. Aid that is unearned based on the calculation must be repaid to the federal program(s). The percentage of the enrollment period that the student remained enrolled is determined by dividing the number of days the student attended by the number of days in the enrollment period. Calendar days are used in the determination of percentage. Breaks of 5 days or longer are excluded in the calculation. If the amount of Title IV funds disbursed is greater than the amount of Title IV funds earned by the student, a return of Title IV funds may be necessary. The amount to be repaid will be charged back to the student's billing account and must be repaid by the student.
A copy of the worksheet used for this calculation may be requested from the Office of Student Financial Services. Students may contact the Office of Student Financial Services for return of funds estimates and potential tuition adjustment estimates. Depending on the interaction between the return of funds and potential tuition adjustments, institutional charges that were previously paid by Title IV funds might become a debt that the student would be responsible for repaying to the University. Tuition adjustments, if applicable, may reduce the debt owed by the student to the University. Students with institutional scholarships should contact the University Scholarship Office for repayment estimates. Students receiving Veteran’s Benefits should contact the Veteran’s Resource Center for repayment estimates.
Federal aid recipients who need to withdraw for personal reasons should consult Student Financial Services prior to withdrawing. Students withdrawing for personal reasons may drop their classes online. A paper withdrawal form is not required for a personal withdrawal unless your last date of attendance does not coincide with the date that you drop because the effective date should be the last date of class attendance. If this date cannot be determined, the date the student began the withdrawal process or officially notified the institution of the intent to withdraw is the withdrawal effective date. Students who need to withdraw for medical reasons should contact Auburn Cares to begin the withdrawal process, medical documentation is required. Students withdrawing for military reasons should contact their Academic Advisor and a copy of military orders is required.
Auburn University's responsibilities regarding the Return of Title IV funds include making available the information provided in this policy; identifying students who are affected by this policy and completing the Return of Title IV Funds calculation for those students; returning any Title IV funds that are due the Title IV programs; and collecting repayment from the student.
The student's responsibility regarding the Return of Title IV funds is returning to the Title IV programs any funds that were disbursed directly to the student for which the student was determined to be ineligible via the Return of Title IV Funds calculation. Funds that must be returned are returned to the federal programs on the student’s behalf and are charged to thestudent’s AU Ebill account.
Post-Withdrawal Disbursement
The Return of Title IV Funds calculation may determine that a student is potentially eligible for a post-withdrawal disbursement if all aid was not disbursed prior to withdrawal. If the post-withdrawal disbursement includes loan funds, the student must give permission before the loan funds can be disbursed. Students will be notified of potential post-withdrawal disbursement eligibility within 30 days of the date of withdrawal determination. Auburn University must return required Title IV funds, as determined by the Return of Title IV Funds calculation, within 45 days of the date the school determines the student withdrew.
A credit balance occurring as a result of a post-withdrawal disbursement will be refunded to the student or parent (PLUS loans) no later than 14 days after the credit balance occurs on the student account. Students may set up direct deposit in AU Access>My Finances, otherwise a check will be mailed.
Unofficial Withdrawals
Students who fail to earn a passing grade in at least one course for the term are considered to have unofficially withdrawn. We are required to contact professors to determine if the failing grade was a result of class performance or lack of attendance/participation. If we verify that the student stopped attending/participating before the term ended, we are required to withdraw them effective with the last documented class attendance/participation. Depending on the effective date, financial aid repayment of funds will be required.
Modules and Federal Aid
Modules are mini terms where a class or classes in a program do not span the entire length of the school’s payment period used in disbursing federal grants and loans, or in other words, do not stretch from the first day of the term to the last day of the term. A student is considered withdrawn when they have not completed all the days they were scheduled to compete in the payment period.
To determine whether a withdrawal has occurred when modules are involved, the regulations provide four questions:
- Did student complete all requirements for graduation?
- Did the student successfully complete Title IV-eligible coursework in one module or a combination of modules that equals 49% or more of the number of countable days in the payment period or period of enrollment?
- Did the student successfully complete Title IV-eligible coursework equal to or greater than what the school considers to be half-time enrollment for the payment period or period of enrollment?
- Did the student confirm attendance in writing for a Title IV-eligible course in a later module in the payment period or period of enrollment that begins no later than 45 calendar days after the end of the module they ceased attending?
Avoiding or Minimizing Reduced or Returned Aid
The best way for students to avoid losing all or part of their aid is to enroll for only the classes they intend to take and complete those classes. Before the term begins, students should review their class schedule to make sure that the courses registered for are required for their degree program. After the term has begun, students should review the withdrawal policies and procedures to fully understand the consequences of withdrawing from a class, and check with their instructor(s) or Academic Advisor for alternatives to dropping a class.