Dropping Classes and Financial Aid FAQs

If you drop all of your classes (either before classes start or during the drop period), your financial aid will be canceled. If your financial aid has already been disbursed to you, you will have to repay that amount to UMGC. Dropping classes may also affect your Satisfactory Academic Progress. For the latest information on your financial aid eligibility, check Financial Aid in MyUMGC.

If you stop participating in your classes and do not actually withdraw from them, you will receive grades of FN (failure for nonattendance) and will be considered to have withdrawn from classes when you ceased participating. FN grades may also affect your Satisfactory Academic Progress. For the latest information on your financial aid eligibility, check Financial Aid in MyUMGC.

If you intend to return to UMGC but find that you are unable to do so, your financial aid will be recalculated. Typically, this recalculation will result in a balance owed to the university.

If you return to UMGC within the same semester, your eligibility for financial aid will be reevaluated, and your original financial aid award could be restored. However, you must complete your class(es) to keep your aid.

Federal regulations prohibit us from processing appeals to Return of Title IV Funds reviews, and all adjustments are final. However, if your enrollment change was caused by extreme extenuating circumstances, you may request an exception to UMGC's course drop and withdrawal policies.  

In addition, if there are sessions still available in the current term and you re-enroll, you may be eligible to have all or part of your financial aid reinstated.

If you are unable to re-enroll in classes, you can pay off your remaining balance in a number of ways:

• Pending Award: You may use a pending financial aid award to pay for a prior balance. To be eligible:
  • You must meet Satisfactory Academic Progress.
  • You must be enrolled in at least 6 credits in current term.
  • Your financial aid award amount must be enough to cover current and prior term balances.
  • Your prior balance charges must be financial aid eligible. Contact collections@umgc.edu to determine if this is a possibility for you. 
• Payment Plan: You may be eligible for our interest-free prior balance payment plan, which allows you to satisfy your balance with monthly payments (up to seven monthly installments). Contact collections@umgc.edu for more information. 
• Credit Card or E-Check: Pay online through the Student Account Center or by phone at 800-888-8682 to satisfy the balance using a credit or check card. If you received a financial aid refund (excess aid after tuition and fees are paid), we recommend you use those funds to cover the balance.

When institutions have to return unearned Title IV funds from institutional charges, the money is returned to programs in the following order: 

• Federal Direct Unsubsidized loans (other than PLUS loans)
• Federal Direct Subsidized Direct loans
• Federal Direct GRAD PLUS loans
• Federal Direct PLUS loans
• Federal Pell Grants
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
  

Title IV Funds Earned: You earn Title IV funds in proportion to the percentage of the enrollment period that you completed prior to withdrawal. Once 60 percent or more of the enrollment period has been completed, 100 percent of Title IV financial aid funds have been earned. At the time of the calculation, if the aid earned is more than the amount that was disbursed, you will not have to repay any funds and may be entitled to a post-withdrawal disbursement.  

Title IV Funds Unearned: Unearned funds are the percentage of funds that must be returned to the Title IV programs from which they originated. These are funds that were awarded for the portion of the enrollment period that was not completed prior to withdrawal.

If you decide that you will not be able to complete a class, you need to officially drop or withdraw using MyUMGC. You can do so by going to your Class Schedule and clicking the trash can icon next to the class.

When you drop or withdraw from your last active class via MyUMGC, a message will appear that asks you to confirm that you are aware of the financial consequences of changing your class schedule. You will then be asked to certify your intent to return to the university during the same semester. If you will not be returning, then you are considered to have withdrawn from the university and are subject to the Return of Title IV Funds Policy. You indicate this by checking "I do not plan to take classes later this semester."

By withdrawing from a class, you are changing your enrollment status. Even though you have completed 60 percent of your enrollment period, your enrollment status has changed, and therefore your Federal Pell Grant was adjusted to match your new enrollment status.

UMGC uses your last date of participation in classes to determine if you need to return Title IV funds. The last date of participation is used whether you officially withdraw from a class or receive an FN grade for nonattendance.