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Students who need to withdraw or take a leave of absence from the School may do so for academic, discipline, personal, or medical reasons. If a student who is receiving federal financial aid and withdraws or takes a leave of absence from the School, they may be subject to the Federal Return of Title IV Aid Return Policy. The School adheres to the following policies and procedures to ensure proper accountability when a student leaves the School. NOTE: Students must contact the Financial Aid Office prior to leaving to understand the implications this change in status will have on their Offer of Financial Assistance. Withdrawal Process:
Diploma Students seeking to withdraw from the School for any reason should contact the Student Affairs Office to begin the withdrawal process. Degree Students seeking to withdraw from the School for any reason should contact the Academic Affairs Office to begin the withdrawal process. Non-Attendance does not constitute official withdrawal. If a student who began attendance and does not officially withdraw, fails to earn a passing grade in at least one course over an entire term, or are a no-show at their Review Board, the School will assume that the student has unofficially withdrawn. Unofficial withdrawals will be determined within 30 days of the end of the semester. Federal Financial Aid recipients will have their awards reviewed and recalculated, causing a reduction in aid awarded. Remember: Student loans will go into repayment for any student not enrolled at least half-time for more than six months. Refund Policy for all Students
A 100% tuition refund (excluding the tuition deposit, housing deposit, and comprehensive fee) is given for withdrawal from the School or a change from full-time status to part-time status during the first three weeks of classes. Students who drop below full-time status during the first three weeks of classes will receive a revised billing statement. Important Notice: Students changing their status from full-time to part-time must complete a Tuition Adjustment Form and have it signed and dated by the registrar by the end of drop/add period to be eligible for a tuition adjustment. Students living in SMFA housing and who withdraw from school during the first four weeks of occupancy will have their room charges pro-rated provided the School finds a replacement for their space. Charges will be determined based upon the length of occupancy. Issuing of Refunds: A refund, when due, will be made payable to the student and mailed to the student's billing address unless the School is instructed otherwise in writing. When the deposit of a Parent Loan results in a credit balance the refund will be made payable to the parent and mailed to the student's billing address. The refund process takes 10–14 days after the end of drop/add period. Refunds due to Credit Balance: Refunds due to overpayment by loans and/or scholarships will not be issued until after the drop/add period. Enrollment must be verified and the School must receive all loan funds and scholarship payments. This is approximately five weeks into the semester. Students are advised to plan accordingly for all expenses. Refunds due to Withdrawal: Refunds due to withdrawal will be issued as soon as the student's withdrawal/leave of absence form is completed and the student is withdrawn from all classes. Withdrawal Date: The date used to calculate the refund is determined as follows: In the case of a student who officially withdraws, the date of the withdrawal. In the case of a student who unofficially withdraws, the drop out date, which is the last recorded date of class attendance as, documented by the School. The Registrar's Office is responsible for determining and documenting the last day of attendance. In the case of a student who is expelled, the date of the expulsion.
Federal Return to Title IV Overview The Financial Aid Office is required by federal statute to recalculate federal aid eligibility for students who withdraw, drop out, are dismissed, or take a leave of absence prior to completing 60% of the semester. Recalculation is based on the percentage of earned aid using the following Federal Return of Title IV funds formula: Percentage of term completed = the number of days completed up to the withdrawal date divided by the total days in the term. (Any break of five days or more is not counted as part of the days in the term). This percentage is also the percentage of earned aid. Funds are returned to the appropriated federal program based on the percentage of unearned aid. Aid to be returned = (100% of the aid that could be disbursed minus the percentage of earned aid) multiplied by the total amount of aid that could have been disbursed during the term.
If a student earned less aid than was disbursed, the School is required to return a portion of the funds that have been received by the student. Keep in mind that when Title IV funds are returned, the student may owe a balance to the the School. If a student earned more aid than was disbursed, the School would owe the student a post-withdrawal disbursement which must be paid within 120 days of the student's withdrawal. Refunds are allocated in the following order: - Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans
- Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans
- Federal Parent (PLUS) Loans
- Federal Pell Grants
- Federal SEOG Grants
Distribution of Refund Policies: The Museum School's refund and repayment policies are listed above. Students may receive additional information by making an appointment with a Financial Aid Administrator. Appeals: Students who request tuition refund after the deadline, due to extraordinary and unanticipated circumstances, may appeal to the Adjudication Committee who will determine if the request is justified and notify the student of their finding. Adjudication petitions are available in the Registrar's Office and the Business Office. The decision of the Adjudication Committee is final.
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