Return of Title IV Funds

San Juan College Financial Aid Office
Student Withdrawal and Return of Title IV Funds Policy

In accordance with federal regulations, when a federal financial aid recipient withdraws from all classes during a term, it is San Juan College’s (SJC) responsibility to determine the withdrawal date and amount of grant and/or loan assistance that the student earned. If a student received less assistance than what was earned, he/she may be able to receive those funds. On the other hand, if the student received more assistance than earned, the unearned funds must be returned by the school and/or aid recipient to the appropriate aid program. Note: The Return of Title IV funds calculation is different from SJC's tuition refund calculation.

Withdrawal Date

A student's withdrawal date varies depending on the type of withdrawal.

Official Notification Provided by the Student
A student is considered officially withdrawn if the Admissions and Records Office is notified by the student in writing (e.g., completing an Add/Drop Form) or by phone of an intent to withdraw.

If a student completes an Add/Drop form, the withdrawal date is the date the student submits a completed form to the office.

If a student sends written notification of intent to withdraw, the withdrawal date is the date the letter is received via postal, electronic, or fax mail.

No Official Notification Provided by the Student If a student ceases attendance without providing official notification, the withdrawal date will be the midpoint of the term, except that the College may use the last day of attendance at an academically-related activity, if documented by the College. In the case when an official notification was not provided by the student because of circumstances beyond the student's control, i.e., illness, accident, grievous personal loss or other circumstances, the date related to the onset of that circumstance will be used as the withdrawal date. This date will be determined by the Associate Vice President for Student Services.

In some instances, a faculty member may request an administrative withdrawal on behalf of a student and that withdrawal date will be recorded.

The College may always use as the withdrawal date the date that is reported as the last date of attendance at an academically related activity by a faculty member on a class roster, grade roster/sheet, or other documented source, e.g., grade book. The faculty member will maintain the documentation of the last date of attendance.

Date of Determination that the Student Withdrew

The date of determination that a student withdrew varies depending upon the type of withdrawal.

Official Notification Provided
The date of determination is the date the student provides SJC official notification or begins the withdrawal process, whichever is earlier.

On a regular basis within a term, the Financial Aid Office will generate a report of financial aid recipients' changes in enrollment to assist in monitoring official withdrawals “W”s and administrative withdrawals “AW"s.

No Official Notification Provided
The date that SJC becomes aware that the student has ceased attendance will be the date of determination. This date will be identified no later than 30 days after the end of a term.

At the end of a term after the assignment of grades, the Financial Aid Office will generate a report of financial aid recipients that received any combination of “W”, “AW”, and “X” grades.

Calculation of Earned Title IV Assistance

The amount of Title IV federal aid assistance earned by the student is determined on a pro-rata basis up to the end of 60% of the term. For example, if the student completed 30% of a term, 30% of the aid originally scheduled to be received would have been earned. Once a student has completed more than 60% of a term, all awarded aid has been earned.

Pell Grant, SEOG Grant, ACG Grant, and Loans are included in the calculation. Work Study and SJC Scholarship funds are excluded.

Post-Withdrawal Disbursements

If the total amount of the Title IV grant and/or loan assistance earned as of the withdrawal date is more than the amount that was disbursed to the student, the difference between the two amounts will be treated as a post-withdrawal disbursement. In the event that there are outstanding charges on the student's account, SJC will credit the student's account for all or part of the amount of the post-withdrawal disbursement of grant assistance (not loan), up to the amount of the allowable charges.

Any amount of a post-withdrawal disbursement that is not credited to a student's account will be offered to the student within 30 days of the date that the institution determined that the student withdrew. Upon receipt of a timely response from the student, the College will disburse the funds within 90 days of the date of determination of the student's withdrawal date.

SJC maintains the right to decide whether or not to make a post-withdrawal disbursement in the event that the student responds after 14 days of the date that the notification was sent. If the College decides not to make this post-withdrawal disbursement, it will inform the student in writing.

Return of Unearned Funds to Title IV

If the total amount of Title IV grant and/or loan assistance that was earned as of the withdrawal date is less than the amount that was disbursed to the student, the difference between the two amounts will be returned to the Title IV program(s) and no further disbursements will be made.

By the College
If a student has received excess funds, the College must return a portion of the excess equal to the lesser of:

• The student's institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of funds, or
• The entire amount of the excess funds.
• The funds will be returned in the order below as prescribed by federal regulations, within 30 days from the date of determination that a student withdrew.
  • Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans
  • Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans
  • Federal PLUS loans
  • Federal Pell Grants
  • Academic Competitive Grants
  • Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG)

By the Student
In the event that there is remaining unearned aid, the student is responsible for returning those funds. If the aid to be returned is in the form of a loan that has been released to the student (or parent if a PLUS loan) borrower, the student (or parent) can repay the loan in accordance with the terms of the promissory note over a period of the time. If the aid to be returned is in the form of grant funds, the law provides that the student may repay 50% of a federal grant rather than 100%. The College will return the student's grant obligation to the appropriate federal program.

Both the school's portion and the student's portion of unearned aid returned to programs will be charged back to the student's account, as provided for in federal regulations.

Comparison of Return of Title IV Funds Policy to SJC’s Tuition Refund Policy

The return of Title IV funds is separate from the College's tuition refund policy. The following provides an example of the treatment of a withdrawal from SJC, tuition refund, and return of Title IV funds.

Example of a Refund of Tuition and Return of Title IV Financial Aid

Student enrolls fall semester, beginning August 24, 2009 and ending December 17, 2009.

Tuition Refund Calculation

Example of Return of Title IV Aid Calculation

The amount of $730.89 must be paid in full to San Juan College before the student can register for future courses. The amount cannot be charged to future financial aid disbursements.

Withdrawal Date | Date of Determination of withdrawal | Calculation of Earned Title IV | Post-Withdrawal Disbursements | Return of Unearned Funds | Comparison of Return of Title IV Funds Policy to SJC’s Tuition Refund Policy | Example