Return of Title IV Funds When a Student Withdraws

Financial aid is awarded with the assumption that the student will attend class for the entire period of enrollment. A recipient of federal financial aid who withdraws from all classes prior to completing more than 60% of the term will be required to repay a portion of their federal financial aid. They will also be required to reimburse the College for the portion of aid it was required to return to the federal program due to the student’s withdrawal. This is known as the Return of Title IV (R2T4) Funds Program. Federal guidelines specify how TNCC must determine the amount of Title IV program assistance a student has earned when a student withdraws from all courses during a particular enrollment period. The Title IV programs that are covered by this law are: Federal Pell Grants, Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG), Stafford Loans, and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG).

When a recipient of federal financial aid withdraws from all of their classes during an enrollment period, the amount of Title IV program assistance earned is determined by a specific formula that uses the first day of class through the last day of exams and the student’s last day of attendance. If a student received less assistance than the amount earned, that student may be entitled to receive additional funds. If a student received more assistance than earned, the excess funds must be returned by both the College and/or the student as determined by the College’s calculation. The amount of assistance earned is determined on a pro rata basis. For example, if a student completed 30% of the enrollment period, the student will have earned 30% of the assistance he/she was originally scheduled to receive. Once a student completes more than 60% of the enrollment period, the student has earned all of the assistance that he/she was scheduled to receive for that period. If a student does not receive all of the funds that were earned, the student may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement. The College may automatically apply all or a portion of a student’s post-withdrawal disbursement to outstanding charges for tuition and fees.

Any amount of unearned grant funds that a student must return is called an overpayment. Students must make arrangements with the College or the Department of Education to return the unearned grant funds. The College can accept student payment of debt owed to the Department of Education for only 45 days following the date the College notifies the student of the overpayment. After this period, students in an overpayment status with the Department of Education become immediately ineligible for additional aid at the College or any other institution. These students must contact the Department of Education to make repayment arrangements. The requirements for Title IV program funds are separate from the college’s refund policy. Therefore, a student who receives a refund from the College may still owe funds to the Department of Education.

Students with questions about Title IV program funds can contact the Financial Aid office at the College or may call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FEDAID (1-800-433-3243). TTY users may call 1-800-730-8913. Information is also available on Student Aid on the Web at www.studentaid.ed.gov.