What If Students Reduce their Course Loads?

A reduction in course load occurs when students either withdraw from class(es), change to audit or fail a class after the drop/add period in a given semester. There are three categories of withdrawals/audits:

Category 1 occurs when students withdraw from, fail or audit all classes and never attend class. Awards in this category will be canceled to reflect nonattendance and zero funding. Students will be in institutional overpayment of funds received.

Category 2 occurs when students withdraw from, fail or audit a class and attend at least one class meeting. Awards in this category will not be reduced except when students withdraw from, fail or audit all classes prior to completing 60 percent of the semester. (Classes audited during registration, including the drop/add period, will not be paid for by financial aid.)

Category 3 occurs when students withdraw from, audit or stop attending all classes prior to completing more than 60 percent of the payment period or period of enrollment. A proportional amount of the Federal Title IV funds received may require repayment. This procedure is referred to as "Title IV Repayment" which is a federal U.S. Department of Education regulation. The same repayment calculation would apply to students receiving all "F" grades who do not complete 60 percent of the semester.

Late applicants who submit the necessary documents (e.g., the Student Aid Report for the Federal Pell Grant) after the first class day of the semester will be processed based on the enrollment status at the time these documents are received by the College.