Return of Title IV Funds Policy
Return of Title IV Funds Policy When a Student Withdraws or Takes a Leave of Absence
The federal government specifies how SUNY Geneseo must determine the amount of Title IV aid that you earn if you withdraw and/or take a leave from school. The Title IV programs that are covered by this law include Federal PELL Grants, TEACH Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOGs), Federal Direct Student Loans, and Federal Direct PLUS Loans.
Though your aid is posted to your account at the start of each semester, you earn the funds as you complete the semester (otherwise known as the payment period). If you withdraw or take a leave during your payment period, the amount of Title IV aid that you have earned up to that point is determined by a specific formula. If you received (or your school or parent received on your behalf) less assistance than the amount that you earned, you may be able to receive those additional funds in the form of a post-withdrawal disbursement. Conversely, if you received more assistance than you earned, the excess funds must be returned by the school and/or by you.
The amount of assistance that you have earned is determined on a pro rata basis. For example, if you completed 30% of your payment period, you earn 30% 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.
You will not be subject to returns of your Title IV aid if you meet one of the following exemptions:
- You complete all of the requirements for graduation
- You successfully complete a class or multiple classes that comprise at least 49% of the days in the payment period (for programs offered in modules only); or
- You successfully complete a class or multiple classes that comprise at least half-time enrollment (for programs offered in modules only)
If you did not receive all of the funds that you earned, you may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement (PWD). If your PWD includes loan funds, Geneseo must get your permission before the funds can be disbursed. You may choose to decline some or all of the loan funds so that you don’t incur additional debt. Geneseo may automatically use all or a portion of your PWD of grant funds for tuition, fees, room, and meal plan charges. Geneseo needs your permission to use the post-withdrawal grant disbursement for all other school charges. If you do not give your permission, you will be offered the funds. However, it may be in your best interest to allow Geneseo to keep the funds to reduce your debt on your student account.
There are some Title IV funds that you were scheduled to receive that cannot be disbursed to you once you withdraw because of other eligibility requirements. For example, if you are a first-time, first-year undergraduate student and you have not completed the first 30 days of your program before you withdraw, you will not receive any Direct Loan funds that you would have received had you remained enrolled past the 30th day.
If you (or Geneseo or parent receive on your behalf) excess Title IV funds that must be returned, Geneseo must return a portion of the excess funds equal to the lesser of:
- Your institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of your funds, or
- The entire amount of your excess funds
Geneseo must return this amount even if you didn’t keep this amount of your excess Title IV funds.
If Geneseo is not required to return all of your excess funds, you may be required to return the remaining amount.
For any loan funds that you must return, you (or your parent in the case of a Direct PLUS loan) will repay the loan funds in accordance with the terms of the promissory note. That is, you will not be required to return any loan funds immediately, but instead, you will make scheduled payments to the holder of the loan over a period of time.
Any amount of unearned grant funds that you must return is called an overpayment. The maximum amount of a grant overpayment that you must repay is half of the grant funds you received or were scheduled to receive. You do not have to repay a grant overpayment if the original amount of the overpayment is $50.00 or less. You must pay the overpayment in full or make arrangements with Geneseo or the Department of Education to return the unearned grant funds.
The requirements for Title IV program funds when you withdraw or take a leave are separate from Geneseo’s financial liability policies. Therefore, you may still owe funds to Geneseo to cover unpaid institutional charges. Geneseo may also charge you for any Title IV funds that the school was required to return. Geneseo’s financial liability policy can be found on the Student Accounts webpage, along with procedures for officially withdrawing or taking a leave of absence from the College.
Please reach out to the Student Accounts Office at 585-245-5621 or at staccts@geneseo.edu with specific questions related to the financial implications of withdrawal and/or leave of absence.