Refunds are issued on credit balance statements only. A credit balance statement occurs when a student's account is credited with disbursed financial aid and/or payments that exceed the total charges for the semester. All requests for refunds must be submitted in writing to Student Financial Services. An account refund will be made payable to the student unless the College is instructed otherwise in writing except for when the credit balance results from the deposit of proceeds from a Federal Parent PLUS loan. In which case, the refund will be made payable to the parent and mailed to the parent's home address on file with the College, unless the parent requests otherwise in writing. A minimum of two weeks should be allowed for processing.
Saint Anselm College complies with the refund policies contained in the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 under which the College is required to return Title IV funds (Perkins Loans, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Pell Grants and Guaranteed Student Loans) on a per diem basis when the student withdrawals before 60% of the payment period has been completed.
State aid and outside scholarships will be refunded to the appropriate agencies in accordance with their respective policies. Alternative educational loans will be returned to the lender on the same percentage basis as Tuition and Institutional Aid. A student with an alternative loan who has an outstanding balance as a result of the refund calculation may be able to retain a greater percentage of the loan than that used in the refund calculation.
A student may apply to the dean of the college, the dean of students, or to the registrar for a leave of absence from the college. Students receiving financial assistance must have an exit interview with the director of financial aid before making application for a leave and limit the time of leave to a single semester. A leave of absence for students not receiving financial assistance is granted for a specific period of time, usually not more than two semesters. Applicants for a leave must have no outstanding debts at the college. A student on leave may apply for an extension.
To insure transferability of credits taken at other institutions during a leave of absence, students must obtain prior written approval of the courses from the dean of the college or the registrar. Courses undertaken without such approval are not transferable to Saint Anselm College. Provided that notification of the intention to resume studies at Saint Anselm has been received by the dean of the college at least one month in advance of the semester of return, a student on leave may return to the college at the end of the leave without applying for readmission.
A student desiring to withdraw from the College should consult with both the assigned academic advisor and the appropriate Dean. Students receiving financial aid should discuss the financial implications of this choice with the Office of Financial Aid and a member of the Student Financial Services team as there are often out-of-pocket costs associated with withdrawal as well as loan repayment obligations. The form for withdrawal from the College is available in the Office of the Dean of the College. It must be signed by the student and returned to the Office of the Dean of the College. The last documented academically-related activity, as indicated on the College withdrawal form, will be used to calculate tuition refunds and Title IV federal aid returns when applicable. If a student fails to officially withdraw from the college, the withdrawal date will be the midpoint of the semester or the last date of academic activity as determined by the College.
In the event of a student's withdrawal from the College or change in status, refunds will be determined as follows:
Tuition, Room and Board
- Within the first two weeks of the semester: 80%
- Within the third week of the semester: 60%
- Within the fourth week of the semester: 40%
- Within the fifth week of the semester: 20%
- Beyond the fifth week: 0%
Institutional aid will be reduced at a percentage commensurate with the refund percentage with the exception of contracted aid. Contracted aid such as Athletic Scholarship, Debate Scholarship, Resident Assistant Grant, and Yearbook Grant are prorated on a per diem basis if a student ceases involvement in any one of these programs. The aid will be prorated in the semester the student ceases involvement and will be calculated from the first day of the enrollment period to the day the student stops the program.
Fees are non-refundable.
A student who receives federal financial aid must “earn” the aid received by staying enrolled in classes. The amount of federal financial aid assistance the student earns is on a pro-rated basis. Students who withdraw or do not complete all registered classes during the semester may be required to return some of the financial aid they were awarded. Institutions are required to determine the percentage of Title IV aid “earned” by the student and to return the unearned portion to the appropriate aid programs. This is called an R2T4 calculation.
Regulations require schools to perform R2T4 calculations within 30 days from the date the school determines a student’s complete withdrawal. The school must return the funds within 45 days of the calculation. The R2T4 calculation process and return of funds is completed by Student Financial Services and the Office of Financial Aid. Once 60% of the semester is completed, a student is considered to have earned all of his/her financial aid and will not be required to return any federal funds. However, if a student completes only 25 percent of the payment period, the students earns 25 percent of the aid originally scheduled to receive. This means that 75 percent of the scheduled awards remain “unearned” and must be returned to the federal government.
Some aid programs may be available to a student after withdrawal. In some cases, a portion of the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Federal TEACH Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, and/or Federal Direct Loan may be available.
A student will be notified upon withdrawal if the student is eligible for "post-withdrawal disbursement" of any aid funds. A student is required to submit signed notification if the student chooses to accept the post-withdrawal disbursement.
A student who drops a class during the first two weeks of the semester as a result of which there is a change in status, e.g. from full-time (12 or more credit hours) to part-time (11 or fewer credit hours), will receive a tuition refund of 80% of the full-time tuition charge. The student will be charged 80% of the per class cost multiplied by the number of classes being taken. Financial aid recipients should be aware that this will have an effect on their financial aid award. When a student withdraws from a class after the initial two-week refund period, there will be no tuition adjustment and the student's enrollment status will not change.
If you begin as a non-matriculated student and change your status to matriculated, you are responsible for paying the difference between the cost of non-degree and matriculated course work for all non-matriculated courses taken. In other words, you must pay the equivalent of eight semester of full-time tuition for all Saint Anselm College course work before being granted a Saint Anselm College degree. Please note that financial aid cannot be awarded retroactively.
GradGuard can help refund your tuition, fees, and room/board charges, up to the policy limits, if you are unable to complete the semester due to a covered medical reason such as an illness, accident, or mental health issue.
Each year thousands of college students are unable to complete classes for the semester due to unforeseen medical issues such as illness, accidents, concussions, or mental health related issues. Unfortunately, in many cases these families are unable to recoup all of their tuition dollars. At Saint Anselm College, depending on the timing of the withdrawal, there may be circumstances where you may not be eligible to receive a refund of all of your tuition and fees. We understand that these types of situations can be a financial hardship for many families. Therefore, we are pleased to make available the Tuition Refund Insurance plan.
Tuition Refund Insurance can help refund your tuition, fees, and room/board charges, up to the policy limits, if you are unable to complete the semester due to a covered medical reason such as an illness, accident, or mental health issue. This insurance program complements and enhances our school's refund policy and we believe families will benefit from this added protection.
Visit www.gradguard.com/tuition/anselm for more information.
Please refer to the Online College Catalog for information regarding a leave of absence, withdrawal from, or readmission to the College.