In short, when you drop/withdraw from some or all of your classes for a session or semester, your financial aid can be affected depending on:
- What sessions you are currently enrolled in (i.e., A, B or C).
- The date you drop/withdraw.
- How many credit hours you are dropping/withdrawing from.
Please note: Your enrollment affects your financial aid disbursement.
Some awards fluctuate until your
census date. Your census date is the point in time that Financial Aid and Scholarship Services evaluates your official enrollment status for financial aid disbursement. The actual time that your census date occurs depends upon your class schedule. See the
Financial Aid Calendar for census dates for sessions A, B and C.
If you are considering dropping from a class or withdrawing, we recommend you consult with a financial aid counselor to discuss your options. The financial aid funds you received for that semester were based on the amount of credits you were enrolled in at the time of disbursement. Should your credits decrease, you may have to repay some of your financial aid funds. Use
our calculator to see if your decision will result in a bill, and get an estimate of how much you could be required to repay.
If you withdraw from all of your courses in a session or semester, our
Withdrawing as a Financial Aid Recipient policy will apply.
Withdrawing may require disbursed aid to be returned to ASU
If you completely withdraw from a session or semester after it has begun, federal regulations require ASU to determine if you were enrolled long enough to keep all of the federal financial aid that was disbursed (i.e., avoid a bill back of your federal financial aid). You earn your federal financial aid in proportion to the number of days completed in your enrollment period.
- If you complete more than 60% of your enrollment period: you are considered as having earned your federal financial aid disbursement and no adjustments will be made (i.e., no bill back).
- If you complete less than 60% of your enrollment period: your federal financial aid will be billed back by the percentage of your enrollment period you did not complete. You are responsible for paying any billed back aid immediately to ASU. Do not submit payment for these charges to Direct Loans.
How ASU calculates the session or semester’s percentage of completion
We count the number of days from the first day of class until the last date you were enrolled and divide it by the total calendar days of your scheduled enrollment period. This includes the first day of classes through the last scheduled day of exams, including weekends and holidays, and excluding any scheduled breaks of at least five consecutive days.
Number of calendar days you completed
(divided by)
Total number of days in your enrollment period (i.e., session or semester)
(equals)
Session or semester's percentage of completion |
If you are considering dropping from a class or withdrawing, we recommend you consult with a financial aid counselor to discuss your options. Use
our calculator to see if your decision will result in a bill, and get an estimate of how much you could be required to repay.
Remember: Withdrawing from classes affects your financial aid
Satisfactory Academic Progress. "W" grades are counted as hours attempted and not completed so they will negatively affect your Pace Rate. You must pass at least
67 percent of the courses you attempt to remain eligible for federal and institutional financial aid. Pace Rate is measured annually after spring term.
Need additional help? Access 24/7 live chat, create a case from
My ASU Service Center or call 855-278-5080.
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