Students are encouraged to meet with the Office of Financial Aid to review the financial ramifications before withdrawing. Upon deciding to withdraw, the student must meet with the Assistant Academic Dean to officially begin the withdrawal process. The Assistant Academic Dean will notify the Office of Financial Aid so that calculations for returning financial aid funds can be completed as required by law.
Tuition Refunds and Financial Aid Implications
It is important to understand that there are two policies that determine the financial implications of a withdrawal: one that relates to tuition and fees and one that relates to financial aid received. These two policies are independent but must be viewed together to fully understand what happens when a student withdraws.
Financial Aid Policy
As a general concept, a student earns financial aid on a pro-rated basis, subject to a number of caveats, and schools must return “unearned” federal funds. For example, if a student completes 30% of the semester, the school returns 70% of federal funds received. After the student has been enrolled more than 60% of the semester, the school is not required to return funds.
Loans funds are returned in a particular order as noted below:
- Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
- Federal Graduate PLUS Loans
Retuning federal funds may result in a balance due (to the school), since tuition refunds, as noted above, are calculated independently per school policy, and the tuition refund amount may be less than the amount of federal funds that must be returned.
The amount of institutional financial aid (e.g., scholarships) that is “earned” generally will be calculated to be consistent with federal policies with respect to returning funds.
CUA Tuition and Fees Refund Policy
Click here to view the University Refund Policy.