Refund Policy

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Students who withdraw or take a leave of absence will be refunded per the schedule outlined below. It is important to note that the official withdrawal date for a student is established by the date that the Registrar receives written notice of her intent to withdraw. Please refer to the section regarding withdrawal procedures in the Bulletin & Course Catalog for more information.

Students will be refunded 100% of their previously paid tuition, room (less room reservation deposit for new students or a $200 room cancellation fee for returning students) and board if the Registrar receives written notice of an official withdrawal before the first day of classes. If a student officially withdraws on or after the first day of classes, refunds occur on the following schedule:

There is no refund of room charges or the Student Government Association fee if a student withdraws on or after the first day of classes. The general deposit is refundable after graduation, or withdrawal, less any amounts due the College.

Students who pay tuition by the credit hour and who reduce their course loads after the drop period each semester, will have tuition adjusted for the dropped course on the tuition refund schedule as noted above. Any federal aid will be reduced per the schedule noted below. College grant will not be increased to cover reduced federal or state aid. (Please note that any credits dropped after the drop period will be counted, for financial aid purposes, toward the 128 credit maximum. For more information, please refer to the financial aid section of the Bulletin & Course Catalog.)
Title IV Financial Aid Refund (Federal Funds only)
Per federal regulation, when a recipient of Title IV (federal) grant or loan assistance withdraws or takes a leave of absence from the College during the semester, the College must determine per a federal formula, the amount of federal aid that the student may retain as of the withdrawal date. Any federal aid the student may not retain according to the federal refund policy must be returned to the federal government.

Up through the first 60% of the semester the amount of federal funds a student may retain is based on the number of days she was enrolled in the semester. After the 60% point in time of the semester a student is eligible to retain all of her federal aid for that semester.

The College's share of federal aid must be returned to the Title IV programs in the following order:

1. Federal Direct Unsubsidized Student Loan
2. Federal Direct Student Loan
3. Federal Perkins Loan
4. Federal Direct PLUS
5. Federal Pell Grant
6. Federal SEOG grant
7. Other Title IV loan or grant assistance

The College must return its share of federal aid within thirty days after the withdrawal date. Any federal aid that the student must return resulting from a loan, is subject to the conditions and terms of the promissory note. If a student must repay a share of federal grant aid, the College may allow her to make payment arrangements with the College, in compliance with federal regulations. Sample Title IV refund worksheets are available upon request via email to Student Financial Services.
State Grant Refund Policy
State grants will be refunded according to the rules of the individual state programs.

Institutional Refund Policy
After the federal refund calculation has been determined any remaining refund will be distributed in the following order:

1. Mount Holyoke College Grant
2. Mount Holyoke College Loan
3. Parent/Student Alternative Loans