Refund Policy, Parental Notification, Privacy Policy
and Other Consumer Information
Refund Policy 2008-2009
It is the purpose of this notice to inform students of
the financial implications of withdrawal. If, for any
reason, a student withdraws from Thomas Aquinas College
before the end of the semester, the Business Office will
calculate and make any refund of tuition, room and board
that is due. The amount of any refund is based upon how
much of the term has elapsed.
Withdrawal Date: A student withdrawing from Thomas
Aquinas College during the semester must see the Dean
and complete a Notification of Withdrawal form. When a
student withdraws from Thomas Aquinas College, the withdrawal
date used to determine the refund is the last date of
attendance at an academically related activity.
Charges: If a student, other than a freshman,
withdraws before Convocation Day, 100% of his payments
for tuition, room and board will be refunded. If such
a student withdraws on or after Convocation Day, tuition,
room and board will be prorated on a per diem basis through
the day of withdrawal, excluding breaks of five days or
more. The same will apply to freshmen except that in no
case will their $250 non-refundable deposit be refunded.
Payment Considerations: For those students or parents
who have received a loan from the Federal Family Education Loan
Program (Stafford/PLUS) and for those students who have received
a Pell Grant or ACG, specific program requirements determine
how much aid from those programs may be kept when a student
withdraws early. In general, those programs assume a student
"earns" a Stafford Loan, PLUS Loan, Pell Grant, or
ACG in proportion to the number of days in the term prior to
the student's withdrawal. Funds are earned in a prorated manner
on a per diem basis up to the 60% point in the semester. After
that point, such funds are viewed as 100% earned. If a student
receives more assistance than he earned, both the student and
the College may be responsible for returning "unearned"
funds to their source. Any "unearned" funds will be
returned to the respective programs in the following order:
- FFELP unsubsidized student loans (unsubsidized Stafford
Student Loans),
- FFELP subsidized loans (subsidized Stafford Student Loan),
- FFELP parent loans (PLUS)
- the Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG), and
- the Pell Grant.
In the event Pell Grant funds were disbursed directly
to the student for education related expenses (rather
than applied to the student's college account for tuition,
room and board), the "unearned" portion that
must be returned by the student is reduced by 50%.
Service Scholarship (work-study) wages will be paid to
the student's account according to the number of hours
he has worked. If a student is behind in his scheduled
hours, the delinquent amount will be treated as a payment
outstanding.
Refund: For those students receiving no financial
assistance, the prorated charges will be compared to the
payment the parents and student have made and the parents
and student will either receive a refund or owe an amount
to the College.
For those students receiving financial assistance, the
College will determine the amount of financial assistance
that must be returned to the sources of aid. In general,
the calculation is based upon the principle that the resources
of the student and his parents are used to pay for educational
expenses before financial assistance from others. (Funds
received from the Federal Family Education Loan Program
or Pell Grants are handled separately, as described above.)
Aid funds are returned to their respective sources in
this order:
- Institutional grants,
- Institutional loans, private loans, and Canada Student
Loans,
- Other outside grants, and
- State grants, including the Robert C. Byrd Scholarship.
If a student has a Cal Grant, no Cal Grant payment may
exceed the actual tuition charge or the Cal Grant need amount
for any term.
After determining how much financial assistance must
be returned to the sources of aid, any remaining financial
assistance is applied toward the student's prorated charges
together with the parents' and student's payments, and
the FFELP loan funds and Pell Grant funds retained in
the student's account as described above. If these resources
exceed the prorated charges, the corresponding excess
will be credited first against any other charges owed
by the student to the College (e.g. a bookstore bill),
and then any remainder will be refunded to the parents
and student.
If, instead, there is a balance due, the parents and
student are responsible for making payment to the College.
Payment must be made within thirty days unless other payment
arrangements are agreed to by the College's Business Manager.
Specific examples of refund calculations are available
upon request.
revised December 2007
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