Receiving Aid
How and When Aid is Disbursed
For detailed information regarding your financial aid awards by aid year including scheduled disbursement information, visit your OneStart account. From your OneStart account, visit Services > Self-Service > Bursar and Financial Aid for your financial aid award summary and bursar account summary. Your financial aid award summary provides a list of financial aid awards and amount by aid year. When viewed by semester, you also have access to the scheduled disbursement date.
Your financial aid awards for the academic year are typically divided equally between the fall and spring semesters. Financial aid awards credit to your bursar account at the beginning of the semester if you meet all eligibility requirements. Prior to disbursement, your eligibility is verified (e.g. Satisfactory Academic Progress and Enrolled Hours). For example, you must be enrolled at least half-time (6 hours undergraduate; 4 hours graduate) for disbursement of a federal Stafford, PLUS or Perkins loan. Based on meeting eligibility requirements, your federal financial aid will credit your bursar account no earlier than ten (10) days prior to the start of the semester.
If a financial aid award is designated as an ‘anticipated’ or ‘estimated’ award, these funds do not credit (pay charges) to your bursar account. Anticipated or estimated awards are made when additional information is needed to determine eligibility and/or the award amount or the award is pending action by the student.
The Office of the Bursar will apply your financial aid awards to current assessed university charges (which include tuition, fees, and on-campus room and board) for the semester. If you make changes to your semester schedule with additional charges after financial aid has applied to the bursar account, you are responsible for payment of these charges.
You may allow the university to pay charges beyond tuition, fees, and on-campus room and board or minor prior year charges by signing a Title IV Authorization Form. The student may cancel or modify the authorization at any time through formal notification.
If your student financial aid exceeds your university charges for the semester, the Office of the Bursar will send a refund to the student or parent, in the case where the refund is created by a PLUS loan borrowed by the parent. The funds are sent to the student by direct deposit if authorized by the student via OneStart or by check through the U.S. Postal Service. To receive any type of refund, it is important for you to maintain current address information via OneStart. Parent PLUS loan refunds checks are mailed directly to the parent. Refund payments are sent within fourteen days after:
- the first day of class for the semester if the positive credit balance occurred on or before the first day of class for the semester, or
- the date the positive credit balance occurred on the student’s account, if the balance occurred after the first day of classes for the semester.
- the date and amount of the disbursement,
- the student’s (or parent’s/PLUS loan) right to cancel all or part of the loan disbursement, and
- the procedures and deadline to notify the school to cancel all or part of the loan or disbursement.
For Federal Work Study (FWS), students are paid by the employer on a bi-weekly or monthly basis for FWS wages earned during the prior payroll period.
Generally, an eligible student or parent becomes ineligible to receive federal financial aid when:
- For a federal Stafford loan, parent PLUS loan, or Graduate PLUS loan, if the student is no longer enrolled at least half-time; or
- For a federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, and Perkins Loan, if the student is no longer enrolled for the semester.
If you drop courses or withdraw from the semester, your financial aid eligibility will be reviewed and your financial aid awards may be adjusted or cancelled as required by regulation (e.g. Return of Title IV Funds). If Return of Title IV Funds is required, repayment of funds by the student and parent (in the case of a parent PLUS loan) will have to be made prior to registering for future semesters.
Additional Resources/Information
- Office of Bursar – Tuition and Fees, Tuition refund policy, and Tuition Refund Appeals
- Office of the Registrar – the designated office to notify for students to complete the process to drop classes or officially withdraw including the academic calendar listing the tuition refund periods by semester.
- Return of Title IV Funds – Regulatory Summary
- Withdrawing for Semester and Its Impact on Your Financial Aid
- Dropping Classes and Its Impact on Your Financial Aid
