Official Withdrawals: Students that desire to leave school before the end of the semester should complete the official withdrawal process. Withdrawal forms can be obtained from the office of the Registrar. The date for official withdrawal in respect to the return of Title IV funds will be the date in which a student informed the Registrar of their intent to withdrawal.   

Unofficial Withdrawal: If a student does not inform the school of their intent to withdrawal, it is considered an unofficial withdrawal. The date for unofficial withdrawal is determined to be the last date of attendance as determined by the school. This can occur in two categories: 

⮚The school determines the student did not notify the school of their intent to withdrawal or otherwise start the withdrawal process due to illness, accident, grievous personal loss, or other circumstances beyond the student’s control. 

⮚Any other withdrawal in which the student did not begin the withdrawal process or official notification is not given to the school.   

How a Withdrawal Affects Federal Student Aid: The Title IV (TIV) (federal) financial aid funds are offered under the assumption that students will remain in classroom attendance for the entire period (semester) for which the funds are offered. When students withdraw from all courses, regardless of the reason, they may no longer be eligible for the full amount of TIV funds originally offered. The return of funds to the federal government is based on the premise that students earn financial aid in proportion to the length of time during which they remain enrolled. A prorated schedule determines the amount of federal student aid funds they will have earned at the time of full withdrawal. For example, students who withdraw in the 2nd week of the semester have earned less of their financial aid than students who withdraw in the 5th week. Once the 60% point in the semester is reached, students are considered to have earned all of the financial aid originally offered and will not be required to return any funds. 

Federal regulations require a recalculation of financial aid eligibility if students: ⮚ Completely withdraw. 

⮚ Stop attending before the 60% point. 

⮚ Do not complete all modules (mini‐sessions) in which they are enrolled as of the start date of the mini‐session. 

⮚Do not begin attendance in all courses used in Title IV fund enrollment status. 

DCC students who receive federal financial aid and who do not remain in attendance through the 60% point of the semester could be responsible for repaying a portion of the financial aid originally received. 

Students who do not begin attendance in classes are not eligible for federal financial aid and must repay all aid originally received. 

NOTE: DCC’s institutional tuition refund policy is separate from federal regulations to return unearned aid. Receiving a tuition/fee refund from DCC will have no impact on the amount students must repay to the federal aid programs.

R2T4 Withdrawal Exemptions: Under certain criteria, a student that has withdrawn or ceased attendance may not be considered a withdrawn student for Title IV purposes, removing the need for a R2T4 calculation. This would apply for students who complete all requirements for graduation from their program before completing the days or hours in the period that they were scheduled to complete. 

Students in programs with modules will also be exempt from withdrawal status under the following conditions: 

⮚If a student successfully completes one module that contains 49 percent or more of the days in a payment period, they are not considered withdrawn. This excludes days between modules and scheduled breaks of five or more days. 

⮚A student is not considered withdrawn if they complete a combination of modules that combined contain 40 percent or more of the days in a payment period. This excludes days between modules and scheduled breaks of five or more days. 

⮚A student is not considered withdrawn if they complete coursework equal to or greater than the coursework needed to be defined as a half‐time student by the school for the payment period. 

How Earned Financial Aid is Calculated: Financial aid recipients “earn” the aid they originally received by remaining in classes. The amount of federal assistance earned is based on a pro‐rated system. Students who withdraw or do not complete all classes in which they were enrolled may be required to return some of the aid originally received. DCC is required to determine the percentage of Title IV aid “earned” by students and return the “unearned” portion to the appropriate federal aid programs. DCC is required to perform this calculation within 30 days of the date the school determines that a student has completely withdrawn. The school must return the funds within 45 days of determining the student has withdrawn. The Financial Aid Office completes the R2T4 calculation. 

The following explains the formula used to determine the percentage of unearned aid to be returned to the federal government: 

⮚ The percent earned is equal to the number of calendar days completed up to the withdrawal date divided by the total number of calendar days in the payment period. 

⮚ The payment period for most students is the full, 15, 10 or 6‐week fall and spring semesters or the full or 6‐week summer semester. However, for students enrolled in modules (mini‐sessions), the payment period may only include those days for the module in which students are enrolled. 

⮚ The percent unearned is equal to 100 percent less the percent earned. 

⮚ Breaks of 5 days or longer are not included in the count of completed days and total days in the payment period. 

Institutional scholarship funds are not subject to the R2T4 policy. 

R2T4 Process 

⮚ The Financial Aid Office is notified of the withdrawal. The Financial Aid Office determines the withdrawal date. For official withdrawals, the date of the notification of the student’s intent to

withdrawal will be used. For unofficial withdrawal, the withdrawal date will be the last date of the student’s attendance, as determined by the school. 

⮚ The Financial Aid Office determines the amount of Title IV aid originally offered and whether it is “disbursed” or “could have been disbursed.” 

⮚ The Business Office provides the student’s original tuition and fee and bookstore charges. ⮚ An R2T4 worksheet is completed using the above data. 

⮚ The Financial Aid Office will post the recalculated amount of aid for which students are eligible (as per the results of the R2T4 worksheet) to their student account. 

⮚ DCC will return funds to the federal programs on the student’s behalf and will bill the student. 

⮚ In the instances in which students owe a federal grant repayment in addition to what DCC has returned to the federal programs, they are notified in writing and the amount is reported by the Financial Aid Office as an overpayment. 

⮚ Students are responsible for all DCC charges and federal overpayments resulting from an R2T4 calculation. 

Post‐Withdrawal Disbursement of Loan Funds: When the R2T4 calculation results in student’s eligibility to receive either Federal Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized, or PLUS Loan proceeds, the student will be contacted via e‐mail by the Financial Aid Office within 30 days of determination of withdrawal. Students must accept or decline the loan offer within 14 days of notification. Written authorization from students will be requested and is required before loan proceeds can be processed and offered to them. 

Post‐Withdrawal Disbursement of Federal Title IV Grant Funds: When the R2T4 calculation results in student’s eligible to receive Federal Title IV Grant proceeds, DCC will disburse those funds no later than 45 days after the determination of withdrawal.  The eligible funds will be applied to the student’s account to pay for current allowable charges. 

Post‐Withdrawal Funds: If a post‐withdrawal fund creates a credit balance on the student’s account, the funds will be returned to the student or parent following business office procedures, but will not exceed 14 days from the date of disbursement. 

Withdrawal with an Existing Title IV Balance: If a student withdrawals and their account has a current Title IV fund balance, DCC will first complete a R2T4 calculation. If there is a balance remaining, funds will be released to the student following business office procedures, but will not exceed 14 days from the date of the R2T4 calculation. 

Determination of Withdrawal Date: For official withdrawals, the date of the notification of the student’s intent to withdrawal will be used. For unofficial withdrawal, the withdrawal date will be the last date of the student’s attendance, as determined by the school. 

Withdrawing Prior to the 60% Point of a Payment Period: Unless and until students complete 60% of the term in which financial aid was offered, they will be required to return all or part of the financial aid originally offered for the term.

When Students Fail to Begin Attendance: If financial aid is processed and disbursed to the student who never began attendance in any class for which they registered in a term, all aid will be returned to the funding source. If the student fails to notify the Registrar’s Office of the intent to withdraw, the student will receive an “F” grade for that course. Financial aid originally offered is returned to the funding source for students who failed to begin attendance in all classes in which they were originally enrolled and is adjusted for those who fail to begin attendance in a portion of the classes in which they were originally enrolled. 

When Students Fail All Classes: If financial aid recipients who have not officially withdrawn fail to receive a passing grade in at least one class during the term, the Financial Aid Office will determine whether they actually established eligibility for the aid originally offered. This will be determined from the last date of attendance of the student. If students did not begin attendance, or stopped attending during the payment period, the financial aid originally offered will be returned or adjusted. 

Order of Return to Federal Aid Programs: In accordance with federal regulations, unearned aid will be returned to the federal programs in the following order: 

⮚ Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loans 

⮚ Federal Subsidized Direct Loans 

⮚ Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loans; 

⮚ Federal Pell Grant; 

⮚ Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants 

⮚ Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant; 

Consequences of Non‐Repayment: Students who owe the U.S. Department of Education for an overpayment of Title IV funds are not eligible for any additional federal financial aid until the overpayment is paid in full or payment arrangements are made with the U.S. Department of Education. Students who owe DCC because of an R2T4 calculation will be placed on a financial hold. They will not be allowed to register for subsequent semesters or receive academic transcripts until the balance is paid. 

How a Withdrawal Affects Future Financial Aid Eligibility: Refer to the Financial Aid Office Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy to determine how a withdrawal impacts aid eligibility. 

Note: This policy is subject to revision without notice based on changes to federal laws and regulations or DCC policies. If changes are made, students are held to the most current policy. This statement is intended to provide an overview of policies and procedures related to a complicated and very encompassing regulation. Additional information is available in the Financial Aid Office.