FEDERAL TITLE IV FUNDS
As part of the Higher Education
Amendments of 1998, Congress passed provisions governing what must
happen to federal financial assistance if a student completely
withdraws* from school in any term. The policy governs all federal
grant and loan programs including the Federal Pell Grant, Academic
Competitiveness Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity
Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, Direct Subsidized Loan and Direct Unsubsidized
Loan, the Direct PLUS Loan and any new programs introduced in
the future. This Return of Title IV Policy does not affect the Federal
Work-Study Program.
In general, the law assumes that a
student “earns” Federal financial aid awards directly in proportion to
the number of days of the term the student attends. The portion of
Federal grants and loans a student is entitled to receive is calculated
on a percentage basis by comparing the total number of days in the term
to the number of days completed before the student withdrew. For
example, if the student withdrew on the 26th day of a term that has 75
days, the student has completed 35% of the term and has earned 35% of
the assistance originally scheduled to receive. This means that 65% of
the scheduled awards remain unearned and must be returned to the Federal
government. Weekend days are included in both the numerator and
denominator but scheduled breaks of five consecutive days or longer are
excluded. Once a student has completed more than 60% of the term, the
student has earned 100% of the assistance.
If a student is thinking
about withdrawing from all classes prior to completing 60% of the term,
the student should contact the Student Financial Services Office to
determine how a withdrawal will affect financial aid. It is recommended
that the student try to complete the term or complete at least 60% of
the term to avoid having to repay any money that was already disbursed.
If a student does not owe any money prior to withdrawal, the student
may have a balance due to the College and/or the government after
completion of the government required calculation.
If the amount disbursed to the
student is greater than the amount the student has earned, the unearned
funds must be returned to the financial aid programs. If the amount
disbursed to the student is less than the amount the student has earned,
a post withdrawal disbursement may be available to credit outstanding
charges on the student's tuition account.
Under the HERA, the amount of
a grant overpayment due from a student is limited to the amount by
which the original grant overpayment amount exceeds half of the total
Title IV grant funds received by the student. A student does not have
to repay a grant overpayment of $50 or less
Institution's return of funds: Once the institution's portion of the return of funds has been
calculated, the Forsyth Financial Aid Services Office will return the funds within 45
days to the appropriate program(s) in the order specified below. If
this creates a “charge†on the student's account in the Student
Financial Services Office, the student will be responsible for paying
the debt to the College. A student will not be allowed to register,
receive an official academic transcript, and/or receive future financial
aid until the debt to AIB College of Business has been paid in full.
Student's return of funds: Once the student's portion of the return of funds policy has been
calculated, the Forsyth Financial Aid Services Office will notify the student of the
amount of grant funds the student may need to repay. One of the
following repayment options may be selected:
- The student may
pay the full amount of the debt to the College within 45 days and the
College will return the funds to the appropriate federal program(s).
- The student may contact the Department of Education to establish a repayment plan.
The student will remain eligible for
Title IV funds for 45 days from the date the institution sends the
student a notice of the overpayment. On the 46th day, if an overpayment
exists, the institution will report the overpayment to the Department
of Education.
If loan funds need to be returned, the student may pay these funds back under the original terms of the loan.
Title IV unearned funds must be returned in the
following order: Direct Unsubsidized Loan, Direct Subsidized Loan, Federal Perkins Loan, Direct PLUS Loan, Federal Pell
Grant, Academic Competitiveness Grant, and Federal Supplemental
Educational Opportunity Grant.
If the amount disbursed is less than the amount earned,
the amount is considered to be a post-withdrawal disbursement.
Post-withdrawal eligibility can be used to credit outstanding charges on
the student's tuition account. AIB College of Business has 30 days
from the date of the institution's determination the student withdrew to
offer any amount of the post-withdrawal disbursement to the student (or
the student's parent for PLUS loans.) The student (or parent) must
respond within 14 days of the date the institution sends the
notification to be eligible to receive the post-withdrawal disbursement.
If the post-withdrawal disbursement is accepted, AIB College of
Business must make payment within 90 days of the date of the
institution's determination the student withdrew. If the student (or
parent) does not respond to the institution's notice, no portion of the
post-withdrawal disbursement that is not credited to the student's
account may be disbursed. |