Withdrawals and Federal Return of Funds
Return of Title IX Funds
Federal law specifies how schools must determine the amount of Title IV financial aid you have earned if you withdraw from school before the end of the semester. The amount of assistance that you have earned is determined on a pro-rata basis. For example, if you complete 30% of the payment period, you earn 30% percent of the assistance you were originally scheduled to receive. Once you have completed more than 60% of the payment period, you earn all the assistance that you were scheduled to receive for that period.
Official Withdrawal
Official withdrawal occurs when the student intentionally drops all classes for a given term. Students who officially withdraw prior to completing 60% of the term have not “earned” all financial aid offered and a repayment calculation must be performed based upon a federally-mandated formula. If the return of funds creates a balance due, the student will be responsible for repayment to UT Southwestern.
Unofficial Withdrawal
Unofficial withdrawal encompasses all other withdrawals where official notification is not provided to UT Southwestern. When a recipient of financial aid ceases class attendance, without officially dropping their courses, TCU must determine the amount of aid “earned.” In this situation, the withdrawal date is the midpoint of the term, or the last date of an academically related activity in which the student participated as documented by a professor.
An approved Leave of Absence is an Official Withdrawal from the university.
If you received (or UT Southwestern received on your behalf) less assistance than the amount you earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds. If you received more assistance than you earned, the excess funds must be returned to the applicable Federal aid program.
Funds will be returned in the following order:
- Unsubsidized Federal Direct Loans
- Federal Graduate PLUS Loans
The requirements for Title IV program funds when you withdraw are separate from UT Southwestern refund policies. Therefore, you may still owe funds to UT Southwestern to cover unpaid institutional charges.
Please contact the financial aid office if you have any questions about withdrawing from school and how it affects your financial aid package. Further information on Title IV programs funds can be found at www.studentaid.ed.gov or by calling 1-800-433-3243 or 1-800-730-8913 for TTY users.
Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements include both a quantitative and qualitative measure of credit hours attempted vs. credit hours completed. Unofficial withdrawal from classes, failure to begin attendance or to successfully complete registered hours may affect future eligibility for financial aid.