BLC Refund and Return of Title IV Policies
- BLC is not required by an outside entity to take attendance.
- PowerFaids Return of Title IV module is used to calculate Federal Title IV refunds.
- BLC does not have a formal leave of absence policy.
- The process below is followed for a student who completely withdraws from school (as opposed to a student who reduces enrollment from full-time to something less than full-time.)
- This information is current as of 10/8/2021.
Financial Aid Impact of Withdrawal and Process
Federal Financial aid is earned (in proportion to the days attended vs the total days in the term) as the student progresses through the semester. When a student withdraws, either officially or unofficially, a portion of the unearned financial aid may need to be returned. The order of the funds to be returned is dictated by federal policy, and considering the programs that BLC participates in, the order is as follows: Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, Federal Direct Subsidized Loan, Federal Perkins Loan, Federal PLUS Loan, Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant. Funds that are required to be returned by BLC are returned within 45 days of the date of determination that the student withdrew. This timeframe applies to both official and unofficial withdrawals. After calculating the necessary amounts to be returned, the Director of Financial Aid asks the Assistant Director of Financial Aid to review the calculations and initiate the various refunds. The Assistant Director of Financial Aid then notifies the Business Office of the necessary refunds. The Assistant Director of Financial Aid sends files to COD for Federal Pell and the Federal Direct Loan program if any funds need to be returned to those programs and the Controller will make sure the funds are moved out to G5. If the withdrawal results in a credit on the student’s account after all adjustments have been made, a credit balance will be returned to the student via a check as soon as possible, but no later than 14 days of the refund calculations being completed.
Federal: US Department of Education web product is used to calculate the amount and types of federal financial aid that needs to be returned to the Federal Government.
State: MN Office of Higher Education Refund Calculation Spreadsheet is used to determine the amount and types of state financial aid that needs to be returned to the State Government.
Institutional: Institutional aid is reduced by the same percentage as the tuition is reduced.
Official Withdrawal – Student indicates intent to withdraw
In order to officially withdraw from school, a student reports in person to the Registrar’s Office. The student then fills out an online “Intent to Withdraw” form. When the student submits this form, a message is automatically sent to various offices, including the Financial Aid Office, the Business Office, the Athletics Office, the VP of Academic Affairs, and the Dean of Students. The Registrar then walks the student to the Director of Financial Aid for information on the financial aid impact of withdrawing. After counseling with the student, the Director of Financial Aid walks the student to the Director of Accounting to talk about any reductions to charges and to set up a payment plan with the college if necessary. The Director of Accounting then walks the student back to the Registrar’s office, where the student completes an online “Withdraw from College” form. On this form the student acknowledges to having talked with the Business Office and Financial Aid Office, and agrees to take responsibility for paying any remaining balance on account. When the student submits this form, a message is again sent to the various offices listed above.
The withdrawal date used for Return of Title IV calculations for a student who officially withdraws is the date that the student first indicates to the Registrar the intent to withdraw.
Unofficial Withdrawal – 0.00 term GPA at end of semester
At the end of each semester, as part of the Satisfactory Academic Progress Review, the Director of Financial Aid reviews all students who attained a 0.00 GPA for that semester. The Registrar is then consulted, along with individual professors, to determine a last date of attendance for the student, (provided it is a student that did not officially withdraw during the semester). If the last date of attendance is prior to the 60% point of the term, a refund calculation is completed. If the last date of attendance is after the 60% point of the term, no refund of Title IV aid is necessary. If a last date of attendance cannot be determined, the midpoint of the semester is used as the withdrawal date to calculate the required return of funds.
Post-withdrawal disbursements and Student’s responsibility for returning unearned aid
If BLC encounters a situation in which a post-withdrawal disbursement is due to a student who has withdrawn, BLC will disburse Title IV grant funds within 45 days of the date that BLC determines that the student withdrew. Loans will be offered to the student within 30 days, and student will be allowed at least 14 days to respond. All post-withdrawal disbursements are applied to student account first, and any resulting credit balance is handled within regulatory guidelines that are listed above. If a situation occurs in which a student is responsible for returning unearned aid, federal guidelines will be followed.
(Updated 10/8/21)