Withdrawing and Your Federal Aid Eligibility

Federal Financial Aid is awarded to a student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which the aid is awarded.

  • When a student withdraws, Federal Aid may be adjusted based on the percentage of the semester that the student completed, this is called Title IV Recalculation.
  • The date recorded by the Registrar’s Office will be used as the official withdrawal date regardless of the date you dropped or withdrew from your course(s). This date will be used to determine the amount of Federal Financial Aid earned.
  • Tuition liability does not impact the amount of Federal Aid the student will earn when they withdraw from a semester. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the tuition refund/liability schedule.
  • If a student withdraws before 100 percent tuition liability, the charges will be reduced accordingly. This may temporarily create a credit on the student account. Student Financial Services will not issue a refund to the student until Federal Aid eligibility is re-calculated. After the calculation is performed the college will issue a refund or the student will be responsible to pay any resulting balance.
  • If you decide not to attend Purchase College, it is your obligation to properly withdraw through the appropriate office. Non-attendance of classes does not qualify as an official withdrawal and does not relieve the student of his or her financial obligation. See Registrar’s webpage on Leaves and Withdrawals.

Withdrawing and Your New York State Aid Eligibility

  • If TAP was awarded and certified for full time tuition for the term of withdrawal, then it will be de-certified for the following term. A TAP Waiver may be necessary.
  • If TAP was certified as a withdrawal with liability, then the student will receive the reduced amount of the award for the term of withdrawal and will most likely be de-certified the following term. A TAP Waiver may be necessary.
  • If tuition charges are reduced or cancelled for the term of withdrawal, the current TAP award will be reduced or cancelled accordingly.
  • Your Excelsior Scholarship award may be canceled for the current semester and/or for the following semester.

    Please contact the Registrar’s Office for more information regarding your state grant certification.

Leaving Purchase College

When you are preparing to leave Purchase (at the completion of your degree, when you withdraw from classes, including taking a leave of absence, or transfer to another school), it is important that you make sure all financial aid requirements have been satisfied.

Use the following checklist as a guide to confirm your requirements have been met:

  • Review your current financial aid package to make sure all funds have disbursed to your account.
  • Check your account to make sure your balance has been paid in full.
  • If you are a Direct Loan borrower, you will be required to complete exit counseling which will provide you with the information you need to select the appropriate repayment plan and keep your loan in good standing.
  • Important: Whether a student withdraws from the college, takes a leave of absence, or graduates, their enrollment status is reported to their loan servicer as “no longer enrolled” and they will be entered into their grace period. In terms of reporting enrollment status for student loans, there is essentially no difference between withdrawal and a leave of absence—once a student is no longer enrolled in classes; “no longer enrolled” becomes the status.

Please visit the Student Loan Center for more information on student loan repayment.

Reducing Credits from Full-Time to Part-Time

Students who reduce the number of credits, from full-time to part-time, on or after the first day of classes for any given semester are still responsible for paying tuition and fees according to the schedule on the Refund Policy page.

Remember: You, the student, are responsible for knowing that you are registered for courses, what courses you are registered for, paying your billing statements in a timely fashion, and understanding and following the correct procedures to withdraw from courses.