Your financial aid offer is based on the number of financial aid eligible credits you are enrolled in. Most types of aid, including state grants and student loans, require at least half-time status.

Full-time status = 12 or more credits
Three-quarters time status = 9-11 credits
Half-time status = 6-8 credits
Less than Half-time status = 1-5 credits

If you are not enrolled in classes at the time your file is reviewed, your financial aid offer will be based on a full-time enrollment status. Your financial aid offer will be revised to your enrollment status at census date.

Special Circumstances for 2024/25 (Fall ’24, Spring ’25, Summer ’25)

If you (or your parent) have experienced a change in income that may affect your ability to pay for college, complete the following Special Circumstance Appeal Form:

• Special Circumstance Form

Situations may include loss of job, reduction of income, loss of benefits, one-time income in 2022.

If you are a student with a 0 Expected Family Contribution (EFC) already (you can determine this by logging into your����account, selecting��Accept Awards��and reviewing the��Total Resources), you are receiving the maximum grant amounts available and do��not��need to complete the Special Circumstances form.

Budget Increase

If you have additional expenses or other unrelated expenses not already included in your Cost of Attendance/Budget, you can ask to have your��Cost of Attendance evaluated for a potential adjustment. In some cases, these adjustments will have no impact on the financial aid award, depending on the type and amount of the award.

Additional expenses that would be considered in a COA/Budget Appeal include:

• Computer expenses
• Transportation expenses, such as major vehicle repair
• Dependent care
• Program expenses that are not already included in the current budget allocation
• Study Abroad expenses

Additional expenses that are��NOT��considered in a COA/Budget Appeal include:

• Credit card debt or loan payments
• Routine car maintenance
• Moving expenses
• Cell phone bills

If approved, the Cost of Attendance budget increase may allow you to receive additional loan funding if you are not already receiving the maximum annual loan eligibility. To request a budget increase contact Jerolyn Grandall at��grandallj@westerntc.edu.

Dependency Override

A dependency override allows a student who traditionally meets dependency status requirements for financial aid purposes an opportunity to appeal based on a special circumstance.��

Students who seek a dependency override appeal generally face parental relationship challenges such as estrangement, abusive family environment, abandonment, extended incarceration or other situations.

If you do not have a special circumstance under the dependency override appeal criteria or meet any of the conditions to be considered an��Independent student��for financial aid purposes, your parents must provide their information on your��FAFSA. This is required even if your parents do not claim you on their taxes, you do not live with them, or receive any financial support from them.

To learn more about Dependency Overrides, contact the Manager of Financial Aid Resources and Planning Services at��grandallj@westerntc.edu.

Add Policy -��Dates of Record (2nd Wednesday of the Term)��

Student��enrollment status��will be reviewed prior to the first disbursement and awards will be adjusted accordingly. After the Date of Record, a student's aid package may be adjusted if classes are cancelled or if they drop a class that has not started. Students may owe a repayment.��

Payment of financial aid is based on the number of credits enrolled as of the Date of Record for that trimester. If you add any classes after the Date of Record, your financial aid grant eligibility will not��increase. There are no exceptions. Contact Financial Aid Resources and Planning Services at 608-785-9579 for student loan options.

Upcoming Dates of Record

Summer ���ϳԹ� term: May 14, 2024 at 4:00 p.m.
Fall ���ϳԹ� term: September 10, ���ϳԹ� at 4:00 p.m.
Spring 2026 term: January 21, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.
Summer 2026 term: May 20, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.

Always contact Financial Aid Resources and Planning Services before dropping classes to determine the effect on your award.

Total Withdrawal

Federal law states that if students receive federal aid and withdraw or drop ALL classes before completing 60% of the trimester, students may have to return a portion of the federal aid received. Federal law also states that once students have completed 60% of the trimester, they have��earned 100% of their aid. (Refer to the Return of Title IV Funds Calculation below).

Return of Title IV Funds Calculation

Federal Regulation 34 CFR 668.22 specifies how a school must determine the amount of Title IV program assistance a student earns if they withdraw from school. The Title IV programs offered by ���ϳԹ� that are covered by this law are as follows: Federal Pell Grants, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants, Direct Loans, Direct PLUS Loans, and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG).

Financial aid will be posted to a student’s account, beginning the 4th week of the term or once a student’s financial aid is complete. You will earn the fund as you complete the period. If you withdraw during the term, your federal financial aid will be re-evaluated to determine the amount you have earned as of the date of withdrawal. This process is called Return of Title IV (R2T4) calculation. If the R2T4 calculation results in a credit balance on the student’s account, the balance will be disbursed as soon as possible and no later than 14 days after the calculation of R2T4.��If the R2T4 calculation results in an amount to be returned that exceeds the school’s portion, it is the student’s responsibility to repay the funds.��If the total amount of federal financial aid earned is less than the amount of federal financial aid funds disbursed to you, the difference between these amounts is returned to the applicable federal financial aid programs. ��If federal financial aid funds earned is greater than federal financial aid funds disbursed, the difference between these amounts is treated as a post withdrawal disbursement (PWD).

The total amount required to be returned will be adjusted on your student account. If you have a pending refund of tuition, it will be used to offset the amount you are responsible to repay, if any. If you are receiving a PWD, this will also be reflected on your student account. Please review your MyWestern student account to review the adjustment and see if a balance is owed.

Western will disburse directly to the student any amount of post-withdrawal disbursement of grant funds that is not credited to the students account as soon as possible, but no later than 45 days after the date of the institution’s determination that the student withdrew.��Loans will be offered to the student within 30 days, allowing the student at least 14 days to respond to accept or decline the funds. If the student is eligible for a post-withdrawal of loan funds, Western will offer to disburse the funds directly to the student, or parent in the case of a parent PLUS loan, any amount of post-withdrawal disbursement of loan funds that is not credited to the student’s account. Prior to making the direct disbursement of any loan funds, Western will obtain the students, or parents in the case of a parent PLUS loan, confirmation that the student or parent still wishes to have the loan funds disbursed.

The amount of Title IV assistance earned is determined by calculating the percentage of the term the student completed and applying this percentage to the Title IV funding the student was originally scheduled to receive. For example, if you complete 30% of your payment period, you earn 30% of the Title IV funding you were originally scheduled to receive. Once you have completed more than 60% of the payment period or period of enrollment, you earn all the Title IV funding you were scheduled to receive for that period. ��

If you begin attendance and do not officially withdraw, you must complete the term which you received funding for and earn a grade, or a repayment may be processed based on the mid-point of the term or your last records date of academically related activity.

Financial Aid Resources and Planning Services will determine the amount to be paid back to the financial aid programs within 30 days of your withdrawal and the funds will be returned to the program within 45 days.

The impact on a student's financial aid will depend on several factors:

• Date of Withdrawal—the actual date the withdrawal process began, or the student's last date of��attendance
• Total amount of tuition and fees
• Amount of Federal Financial Aid awarded (disbursed & not disbursed)

All post-withdrawal disbursements are applied to the student account first, and any resulting credit balance is handled as follows.��Any return of tuition will go to the following federal funds in priority order:

1. Direct Unsubsidized Loan��
2. Direct Subsidized Loan
3. Direct Parent PLUS Loan
4. Federal Pell Grant
5. Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant
6. Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)

Date of Withdrawal

Regulations define the withdrawal date as the date:

• The student begins the withdrawal process by notifying the school of their intent to withdraw or otherwise provides official notification, OR

• The midpoint of the payment period in which the student received Title IV aid, OR

• The last date of an academically related activity that the student participated in.

Attendance Policy

Instructors are required to take attendance by the end of the first week of each course. Students who do not attend class or begin the course during the first week of each course are reported to the Registrar's Office by their instructor as not attending. The Registrar's Office will drop the student from the course. In accordance with Title IV, the college must cancel any financial aid that has been processed for students who fail to begin attendance.

The College defines "beginning attendance" as attending class or beginning the course by the end of the first week of the course. Such attendance is not based on qualitative performance in the course but rather on attendance as follows:

Attendance Requirements for Online Courses

Students enrolled in an online course must complete at least one assignment by the end of week one.

Attendance Requirements for All Delivery Methods with a Face-to-Face Component

Students enrolled in any course with a face-to-face component such as traditional, hybrid, blended, etc. must meet the following attendance requirements:

• Attend class during the first week of the course or
• Complete at least one assignment by the end of week one.

Planned Absences

In the case of planned absences for all class types, the student must notify the instructor in writing if unable to attend class in week one as defined above. If the student does not begin attending by the agreed-upon date, the student will be dropped from the course. For all situations, students reported as not beginning the course are considered "not attending" and

• Will be charged 20% of tuition and fees for any courses from which they were dropped for not attending. Federal financial aid recipients reported as not-attending may owe a repayment to the College.
• May be reinstated into a class due to extenuating circumstances upon approval of the Dean in consultation with the instructor of the course

See Refund Policy

Unofficial Withdrawal

If you received all “F” grades and an instructor indicated you ceased attendance during the term, you will be considered an “unofficial withdrawal” and a “Return of Title IV Funds Calculation” will be processed by Financial Aid at 50% completion of the semester. You may owe a repayment.

If you received a “F” in a class and an instructor indicated you never attended, your aid package may be revised and you may owe a repayment.

Withdrawal date is defined as the actual date you begin the withdrawal process or your last date of attendance. If you receive all “F” grades for a term, you may be considered an “unofficial withdrawal” and may be required to repay at least 50% of the institutional costs. Your drop and/or withdrawal will affect your Satisfactory Academic Progress.

Developmental Coursework

Certain developmental coursework (if referred by counselor) can be added to a student’s credit load for financial aid purposes. Dropping or being dropped from a credit course(s) may��require repayment of ALL or a portion of financial aid.