Return of Title IV Funds Calculations | Leaves and Withdrawals
Skip to main content
Request Info
FINANCIAL AID

Return of Title IV Policy 
Leave and Withdrawal Financial Calculations

Upon an approved leave of absence or withdrawal from the College, the Office of Financial Aid performs calculations to determine a return of Title IV funds or tuition refund.

Students seeking a leave of absence or withdrawal from PCOM must complete a request with the Office of the Registrar.

Once a leave is approved, a tuition refund is determined by the Bursar's Office. The Financial Aid Office then calculates the Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) calculation. While both calculations use the last day of attendance from the Registrar, the two calculations are separate and have no impact on one another:

PCOM Tuition Refund

Based on the last day of attendance date, the Bursar’s Office will calculate the tuition refund for the term.

Return of Title IV Funds

Based on the last day of attendance date, the Financial Aid Office will use the Department of Education’s calculation. This could result in a portion of the student’s student loans being returned to the lender and the cancellation of any subsequent financial aid disbursements.

Title IV funds are awarded to a student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which aid is awarded. If a recipient of Title IV funds leaves PCOM after beginning attendance, our office must perform a R2T4 calculation. This calculation is based on the Department of Education's guidelines and establishes the amount the student is eligible for based on the time they attended PCOM.

If the amount disbursed to the student is greater than the amount the student earned, the unearned funds must be returned back to the lender. When a student remains enrolled beyond 60% of the term, the student is considered to have earned 100% of all financial aid for that term.

Title IV funds are returned in the following order in accordance with federal regulation:

  • Federal Direct Stafford Unsubsidized Loans
  • Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loans

Calculation Example

If the winter term starts on January 1 and ends on March 31 with no breaks of more than five days, there are 89 days in the term. The student received $17,822 in aid and was charged $17,822 in tuition. The student decides to take a leave of absence on January 27 – this is 26 days into the term.

  1. Determine the percentage of Title IV by taking the calendar days completed in the payment period (26 days), divided by the total calendar days in the payment period (89 days). Subtract this percentage (29.2%) from 100% to get the unearned percentage (70.8%).

    26 / 89 = .292 or 29.2%
    1 - .292 = .708 or 70.8%

  2. Determine the amount of unearned Title IV financial aid by multiplying the unearned percentage (70.8%) by the total of Title IV aid disbursed ($17,822). This equals the unearned amount of $12,618 in aid that must be returned back to lender.

    17,822 × .708 = 12,618 or $12,618

  1. Determine the percentage of tuition refunded by referring to the table under the Bursar's tuition refund schedule. For 26 days, use the 75% credit percentage for “third and fourth week of class.”
  2. Determine the amount of tuition to be refunded by multiplying the 75% by the $17,822 total tuition charged. This equals the refund amount of $13,366.50 for the student.

    17,822 × .75 = 13,366.5 or $13,366.50

  1. The College determines the amount the student will receive in a credit or owe in a balance for the term by subtracting the tuition refunded ($13,366.50) by the aid that needs to be returned ($12,618).
  2. If the final figure is positive, the student is owed a credit ($748.50) from PCOM; but if the figure is negative, the student owes a balance to PCOM.

    13,366.5 - 12,618 = 748.5 or $748.50

    The example student will receive a credit of $748.50 from PCOM.

The Bursar's Office will notify the student of any balance or refund credit on the account.

Questions?

Contact the Office of Financial Aid.

X