Return of Title IV Funding
Return of Title IV Funds Policy
According to the Federal Student Aid Handbook, “Title IV funds are awarded to a student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which the assistance is awarded. When a student withdraws, the student may no longer be eligible for the full amount of Title IV funds that the student was originally scheduled to receive.
If a recipient of Title IV grant or loan funds withdraws from a school after beginning attendance, the amount of Title IV grant or loan assistance earned by the student must be determined. If the amount disbursed to the student is greater than the amount the student earned, unearned funds must be returned. If the amount disbursed to the student is less than the amount the student earned, and for which the student is otherwise eligible, he or she is eligible to receive a post-withdrawal disbursement of the earned aid that was not received.”
Baton Rouge College will use the “Return of Title IV Funds Policy” in accordance with the 2008 Re-authorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended. The law defines the amount of Title IV grants and loans that the student has earned the right to use. The amount a student has earned is directly related to the length of time he or she has maintained attendance during the semester. The law requires that if a recipient of Title IV assistance withdraws/resigns from an institution before completing more than 60% of the semester in which the recipient began attendance, the institution must calculate the percentage and amount of Title IV assistance the student earned. Unearned Title IV funds must be returned to the Title IV programs by the school and/or the student.
Students who wish to resign from the Baton Rouge College should follow Admissions resignation procedures. For official withdrawals, the Return of Title IV funds calculation must be performed and the student notified of any overpayment within 30 days of the date the institution determined the student withdrew. In many cases, students will owe money to the federal aid program(s) and to Baton Rouge College. For the purposes of this policy, the words “withdrawals, withdraw” and “resignations, resign” may be used interchangeably.
Unofficial Withdrawals/Resignations
Students receiving Title IV aid who stop attending all classes and receive all F’s will be treated as unofficial withdrawals. Students who are suspended from all courses based on unexcused absences will be treated as unofficial withdrawals. For unofficial withdrawals, the withdrawal date is defined as either the midpoint of the semester or the last documented date of attendance at an academically-related activity, as defined by Federal Regulations.
An institution must determine the withdrawal date for a Title IV recipient who unofficially withdraws no later than 30 days after the end of the semester in which the student unofficially withdrew or the end of the academic year in which the student unofficially withdrew, whichever is earlier.
Number of Days in Semester
The percentage of time the student completed for the semester determines the “earned
percentage.” The earned percentage is based on calendar days in the semester, including
weekends. Only scheduled breaks of at least 5 days will be excluded. The length of the break is
determined by counting from the first day of the break up to the next day on which classes are
offered. The weekends preceding and following the break are counted as part of the break, unless
Saturday classes are scheduled. If Saturday classes are scheduled in the weekend preceding the
break, only the Sunday would be counted as part of the break. If Saturday classes are scheduled
in the weekend following the break, neither Saturday nor Sunday is counted as part of the break.
Notes about Baton Rouge College’s Return of Title IV Funds Policy
A Return of Title IV funds calculation must be performed if a student resigns (officially or
unofficially) before completing more than 60% of the semester in which any of the following
Title IV funds were disbursed or could have been disbursed, as defined by Federal Regulations:
Pell Grant, Subsidized Stafford loan, Unsubsidized Stafford loan, or PLUS loan.
Baton Rouge College uses the payment period for the calculation of the Return of Title IV Funds formula. The payment period is the semester in which the student received Title IV funds.
Institutional Charges
Baton Rouge College defines institutional charges as tuition and fees. These are the amounts that were initially assessed the student before any institutional refund was applied. These charges include tuition and required fees, including required program and course fees. Books are not included as institutional charges since students have a real and reasonable opportunity to purchase books off-campus.
Refunds due to Baton Rouge College’s institutional refund policy
If a student is due a refund based on Baton Rouge College’s institutional refund policy, that refund will be applied first to the student’s portion of Return of Title IV funds. Any remaining portion will be applied toward the school’s portion of Return of Title IV funds. If any portion remains after applying toward Return of Title IV funds, it will be used to repay Baton Rouge College’s funds, state funds, other private sources, and the student in proportion to the amount received from each of these sources.
Accounts Receivables (financial obligations) for school’s portion of Return of Title IV funds
If Baton Rouge College is required to use institutional funds to pay the school’s portion of Return of Title IV funds, Baton Rouge College will set up an “accounts receivable” for the student’s account. The student will then owe a debt to Baton Rouge College to reimburse Baton Rouge College for the amount Baton Rouge College was required to return to the Title IV programs due to the student’s resignation. The student’s account will have a hold on it until the debt is satisfied. The Financial Aid Office will send a letter to the student to notify him/her of this debt and how to resolve it.