Return of Title IV Federal Aid
This requirement applies to you ONLY if:
- You received federal student aid, and
- You are withdrawing from all of your classes before completing 60% of the semester.
A federal law requires federal aid recipients to "earn" most of the aid they receive by staying enrolled in college at least half time. Students who totally withdraw before completing 60% of the term for which they received federal student aid may be required to return some of the aid they were awarded.
This law assumes that you used your Title IV student aid (Pell Grants, SEOG grants or Stafford Loans) to pay your institutional charges -- tuition, fees and on-campus housing -- whether you did or not. Thus, if you withdraw from all of your classes before completing 60% of the semester for which you were awarded aid, a professional percentage of your aid must be returned to the federal government. This percentage is based on the number of calendar days in the term that pass before you complete the course withdrawal form, you officially notify the Financial Aid Office or the Student Resource Center on the Juneau Campus or the Student Services Coordinator on the Ketchikan (907-228-4508 ) or Sitka (907-747-6653) Campus of your intent to withdraw, the midpoint of the term if you leave without notifying us, or your last date of attendance at a documented academically related activity.
Using the mandated Federal formula, UAS will restore to the appropriate federal fund sources a professional share of institutional charges that you have paid. If the amount returned by UAS is not enough to repay the entire amount that must be returned, you will be required to return portions of amounts that you received to pay for non-institutional charges books that are not in returnable condition, board, transportation, supplies, and off-campus living expenses.
Amounts that must be returned to federal aid sources, whether by UAS or by you, will first be applied to your federal loans. You will then be permitted to repay any federal loan amounts you still owe according to the original terms of the loans usually a ten-year repayment term after a grace period and deferments if you return to school. In addition, you may be required to repay portions of Pell Grants or Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs) that you received. In the case of unearned portions of federally funded grants, you will be required to repay 50% of the unearned portion or to make satisfactory arrangements with the Federal Department of Education to repay that amount.
If you are entitled to a refund from UAS of amounts you paid to cover institutional charges (this might occur if you withdraw within the first 10 days of the semester), any refund due you will first be applied to your obligation to return unearned aid before you receive any money back. Thus, portions of institutional refunds may be applied on your behalf to your outstanding Stafford Loans or to your grants and not actually be refunded directly to you. View the Title IV page or refer to the Academic Catalog for a more detailed explanation of the Return of Title IV Funds policy. If you have questions concerning the policy or the effect that totally withdrawing from your courses will have on you, contact the Financial Aid Office.
This policy is based on 34 CFR, Section 668.22 of Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
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