Tuition Refund Policies | UAMS Student Financial Services

Students Withdrawing from UAMS – Non Financial Aid Recipients

The refund amount for students withdrawing from UAMS shall be based on the following schedule. The schedule applies to both tuition and fees paid.

Refund for Tuition and Fees Only

The refund amount for students withdrawing from UAMS shall be based on the following schedule. The schedule applies to both tuition and fees paid. The date is based on the academic calendar start date for the college and/or program.

1-5 Business Days 100%
6-10 Business Days 50%
11th Business Day 0%

Special consideration may be given by the Bursar’s Office to students who experience extraordinary, extenuating circumstances during a term and who officially withdraw from UAMS after the refund period. These students may submit a petition for a partial refund which, if approved, will be prorated according to the date of the official withdrawal, see below for additional details. If a student is dismissed for any reason after the 11th business day, they are not eligible for a refund.

Special consideration may be given to a College of Medicine student dismissed due to final failure of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USLME) up to 30 days after the UAMS official start date of the term. This special consideration would be a joint decision made by a representative of the College of Medicine, Provost and CFO.

Refunds for Dropping a Course

The refund amount for students who drop a course is based on the following schedule for tuition and fees. Students are only refunded fees that are specific for the course dropped. The refund schedule is based on the session dates of the course.

Sessions 11 weeks and longer

1-5 Business Days 100%
6 -10 Business Days 50%
11th Business Day and After 0%

Sessions lasting 5 weeks and less than 11 weeks

1-3 Business Days 100%
4-7 Business Days 50%
8th Business Days after 0%

Sessions lasting less than 5 weeks

Prior to the Start of Session After the Start of the Session

Programs that have tuition charged on a full-time flat rate are exempt from this policy (ex. Medicine, Pharmacy, Physician Assistant, Physical Therapy), and students will not receive a refund for individual courses that are dropped. Students that are in programs charged per credit hour are covered by this policy.

Students Withdrawing from UAMS – Financial Aid Recipients

According to Federal Regulations, a Title IV Return of Funds calculation will be processed for those students who withdraw after receiving federal financial aid (Pell Grant, SEOG, subsidized Direct Loan, unsubsidized Direct Loan, parent PLUS loan, Graduate PLUS loan or Perkins). The calculation is based on the number of days the student attended divided by the number of days in the term. The results of the calculation determine how much financial aid the student has earned. After 60% of the term has passed, the student is considered to have earned 100% of his/her aid. If the student has not earned 100% of his/her aid, the portion of the “unearned” aid is returned to the Title IV programs stated above. After the Return of Title IV financial aid calculation is processed, a student may owe a balance to UAMS. It is the student’s responsibility to make arrangements for payment of the balance with the Bursar’s Office. The following dates are needed to perform the federal return of funds calculation:

Date of Determination – The student’s withdrawal date or the date of notification, whichever is later.
Date of Withdrawal – The date the student begins the school’s withdrawal process or the date the student provides notification of his/her intent to withdrawal. If both circumstances occur, use the earlier withdrawal date.
Last Date of Attendance (optional) – a school that is not required to take attendance may always use a last date of attendance at an academically related activity as a student’s withdrawal date. Therefore, a school could use a later last documented date of attendance at an academically related activity if this date more accurately reflects the student’s withdrawal date than the date the student begins the school’s withdrawal process or notifies the school of his or her intent to withdraw.

A student receiving financial aid that has been granted an approved financial aid leave of absence is considered withdrawn, for loan repayment purposes, if he/she fails to return within 180 days (6 months) in any 12-month period. Furthermore, any student receiving financial aid that has been granted an unapproved financial aid leave of absence is considered withdrawn, for loan repayment purposes, as of the start date of the leave of absence. Refer to the calculation explanation reference in the above paragraph.

Housing refunds for students who withdraw shall be subject to the rules established by Campus Life and Student Support Services.

Military Tuition Assistance Refund

This policy applies only to students receiving Military Tuition Assistance (TA) from their branch of service.

TA is awarded to a Service Member while actively serving in the (National Guard, Reserve or on Active Duty) under the assumption of attending school for the entire term/semester the assistance is awarded. When a student withdraws, the student may no longer be eligible for the full amount of TA funds originally awarded.

To comply with the Department of Defense (DOD) policy, UAMS will return any unearned TA funds on a prorated basis through at least the 60% portion of the period for which the funds were provided. TA funds are earned proportionally during an enrollment period. Any unearned Military TA funds will be returned directly to the military service, not to the service member.

The calculation of the return may result in the service member owing a balance on their student account. If the service member withdraws due to military service obligation, UAMS will work with the affected service member to identify solutions that will not result in a student debt for the returned portion in compliance with the DOD policy.

If a service member withdraws after the 60 percent portion of the term, all Military TA will be considered earned. The following is an example of the return process.

Schedule for Returning Unearned TA

16-Week Course: withdrawal submitted

Before or during weeks 1-2 100% return
During weeks 3-4 75% return
During weeks 5-8 50% return
During weeks 9-10 40% return (60%, of course, is completed)
During weeks 11-16 0% return

For courses that have durations differing from those listed above:

Unearned TA funds will be returned on a prorated basis, depending on the length of the course. To determine the amount of TA that needs to be returned, the institution will determine the date the withdrawal was submitted, and then divide that by the number of days in the term to determine the percentage of TA that was earned by the student.

Example: The student enrolled in a course that’s duration is 30 days. The withdrawal was submitted on the 14^th day. The institution would perform the calculation to determine how much TA was earned by the student’s attendance: (14 divided by 30 equals 46.6%. 47% of the TA authorized was earned by the student, which means 53% of what was authorized will be returned to the DOD)

Petition for a Refund of Tuition and Fees

Students who experience extraordinary extenuating circumstances during a term and who officially withdraw from UAMS after the refund period may submit a petition for a partial refund which, if approved, will be prorated according to the date of the official withdrawal. The petition request MUST be submitted within one year of the start date for the requested term.

Students who withdraw after the University’s official refund period will not receive a full (100%) refund by petitioning. Percentages for approved petitions are based on enrollment status. Fees are non-refundable if the student attended during the term. Examples:

Enrolled 25% of the term – Receive 75% refund
Enrolled 50% of the term – Receive 50% refund
Enrolled 75% of the term – Receive 25% refund

For non-standard classes, the refund will be calculated based on the percentages above.

Students who received federal, state or institutional financial aid, including loans or other scholarships for the semester in question, should contact the Financial Aid Office before submitting a petition. The Financial Aid staff will explain how a Title IV Return of Funds calculation may impact the student’s account balance in in GUS.

Conditions that could be considered for refunds but not limited to:

Written verification from a recognized profession (physician) that the student must withdraw because of serious illness, injury or personal emergency of the student or a member of the immediate family.
Death of an immediate family member.
Written verification from an appropriate representative or publication of the University proving that the student was given misinformation as to the correct deadline for receiving a refund of tuition and fees.
Other hardships or extraordinary circumstances that have arisen after the refund deadline.

(Definition of immediate family member: mother, father, brother, sister, child, spouse, domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, mother-in-law, father-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, legal guardian or other person who stands in place of a parent.)

Reasons that will not result in an approval for receiving a refund of tuition and fees after the deadline but not limited to:

Student’s lack of knowledge or misunderstanding of the deadline
Student waited to get the results of an exam or other assignment
Nonattendance of classes or failure to pay for classes does not constitute an official withdrawal
Student’s grades have declined since the deadline
Student does not need the course for graduation

Students should request the petition and provide supporting documentation to:

UAMS Student Financial Services – Bursar’s Office Slot 758
4301 West Markham
Little Rock, AR 72205
Or email: studentfinancialservices@uams.edu

Continuing students will be notified of the review committee’s decision via UAMS email and students who are no longer enrolled will be notified via letter mailed to the address provided on the request. Notification of the request will be processed within 10 business days.

The appeals committee will consist of the Bursar’s Office, Office of the University Registrar and Associate Dean of the appropriate college. The Provost and the Associate Vice Chancellor for Finance will attend when deemed necessary.