Withdrawal Policy

Return Of Title IV Funds (Federal Aid)

Return of Title IV funds calculations are performed by the Office of Financial Aid according to the Higher Education Act (HEA 484B; 34 CFR 668.2) and the regulations of the United States Department of Education when a student withdraws officially or unofficially.

Official Notification Provided by the Student

A student is considered officially withdrawn if the Office of the Registrar is notified by the student in writing (e.g., completing a Withdrawal Form) or by telephone of an intent to withdraw.

If a student completes an official Withdrawal form, the withdrawal date is the date the student submits the completed form to the office. If a student sends written notification of intent to withdraw, the withdrawal date is the date the letter is received via postal, electronic, or fax mail.

No Official Notification Provided by the Student

If a student ceases attendance without providing official notification, the withdrawal date will be the midpoint of the term, except that LETU may use the last day of attendance at an academically-related activity, if documented by the University. At the end of each term if a student receives all non-passing grades (W, WF, U, F) the Director of Financial Aid confirms with each faculty member whether or not the student has completed the course with a failing (F) or unsatisfactory (U) grade. A Return of Title IV funds calculation is performed if the combination of grades include W, WF, F (course not completed) and or a U (course not completed). 

In the case when an official notification was not provided by the student because of circumstances beyond the student's control, i.e., illness, accident, grievous personal loss or other circumstances, the date related to the onset of that circumstance will be used as the withdrawal date. This date will be determined by the Dean of Students. In some instances, the Associate Provost may request an administrative withdrawal on behalf of a student and that withdrawal date will be recorded.

Post Withdrawal Disbursements

If the total amount of the Title IV grant and/or loan assistance earned as of the withdrawal date is more than the amount that was disbursed to the student, the difference between the two amounts will be treated as a post-withdrawal disbursement. In the event that there are outstanding charges on the student's account, LETU will credit the student's account for all or part of the amount of the post-withdrawal disbursement of grant assistance (not loan), up to the amount of the allowable charges.

Any amount of a post-withdrawal disbursement that is not credited to a student's account will be offered to the student within 30 days of the date that the institution determined that the student withdrew. Upon receipt of a timely response from the student, the University will disburse the funds within 30 days of the date of determination of the student's withdrawal date.

LETU maintains the right to decide whether or not to make a post-withdrawal disbursement in the event that the student responds after 14 days of the date that the notification was sent. If the University decides not to make this post-withdrawal disbursement, it will inform the student in writing.

If the total amount of Title IV grant and/or loan assistance that was earned as of the withdrawal date is less than the amount that was disbursed to the student, the difference between the two amounts will be returned to the Title IV program(s) and no further disbursements will be made.

By LETU

If a student has received excess funds, the University must return a portion of the excess equal to the lesser of:

• The student's institutional charges multiplied by the unearned percentage of funds, or
• The entire amount of the excess funds.
• The funds will be returned in the order below as prescribed by federal regulations, within 45 days from the date of determination that a student withdrew.
  1. Unsubsidized Federal Stafford loan funds.
  2. Subsidized Federal Stafford loan funds.
  3. Federal Perkins loan funds.
  4. Federal PLUS loan funds.
  5. Federal Pell Grant funds for which a return of funds is required
  6. Federal SEOG Program funds.
  7. Federal TEACH Grant funds

By the Student

In the event that there is remaining unearned aid, the student will be responsible for returning those funds. If the aid to be returned is in the form of a loan that has been released to the student (or parent if a PLUS loan) borrower, the student (or parent) can repay the loan in accordance with the terms of the promissory note over a period of the time. If the aid to be returned is in the form of grant funds, the law provides that the student may repay 50% of a federal grant rather than 100%. The University will return the student's grant obligation to the appropriate federal program.

Both the school's portion and the student's portion of unearned aid returned to programs will be charged back to the student's account, as provided for in federal regulations.