Disbursements and Refunds
Disbursement
Disbursement means the Financial Aid Office has applied funds from your financial aid award (such as grants and student loans) to any tuition, fees, or book charges owed on your student customer account.
It does not, as many people believe, mean that you are being refunded any credit balance from your financial aid. It simply means the funds are rolling over from the financial aid side to your student account side.
If you see information on Cougarweb or on the Financial Aid Calendar that says “Disbursement Date”, this is the date the funds will roll over to your account. It is not the date the money is being deposited into your personal bank account (if you have Direct Deposit) or mailed to you in a check.
Refunds
If there is any money left over once your disbursement pays your tuition, fees, and/or books and supplies charged at the bookstore, you will receive the remainder of that money in the form of a refund.
Refunds typically get deposited into the student’s personal bank account (if they have set up Direct Deposit) or sent as a paper check via the postal service (to the address they have on file with Admissions) approximately a week after the census date.
Remember, after the census date, the Financial Aid Office and the Bursar’s Office are double-checking that students are still eligible for their financial aid monies (per federal regulations) by reviewing the Certified Rosters as well as confirming the number of hours the student is enrolled in.
Loans and First-time Freshman
Per federal regulations, the first disbursement for first-time, first-year borrowers of subsidized and unsubsidized loans will occur 30 days after the beginning of the first semester enrolled at least half-time. If you have a federal student loan balance of $0 and are listed in Admissions as a First-time Freshman, you are considered to be a first-time borrower.
View the Financial Aid Calendar to see First-time Freshman disbursement dates.
Important Dates
You can see all the important dates for financial aid on the Financial Aid Calendar here.
However, below are some of the most important dates for 2021-2022 with regards to payments, disbursements and refunds.
| Term | Payment Deadline | Disbursement | Refunds |
| Fall 2023 | July 19 | Sept 6 | Sept 11-15 |
| Spring 2024 | Dec 6 | Jan 30 | Feb 5-9 |
| Summer 2024 | May 4 | June 13 | June 17-21 |