<p>I think you are getting the amounts you will owe and the financial aid you will be remain eligible for mixed up. If your school policy is that if you withdraw at this point you will have to pay 60% that does not necessarily mean you will receive the aid you were awarded to pay it. Federal rules specify that you have to complete a certain percentage of the semester to receive all your aid. Up until that point you can only receive a proportionate amount of your aid.</p>
<p>For instance at my daughter’s school she does not have to pay the tuition/fees of classes dropped the first week of school, she has to pay 50% of any classes dropped the 2nd week of school, and 100% of any classes dropped after that.</p>
<p>But the rules for federal aid state that aid must be “earned” by staying in school a certain period of time. At her school she must be in school at least 60% of the semester, about 10 weeks. If she withdraws before that she has to repay a proportionate amount of aid. For instance if she was in class for 3 weeks out of 15 then withdrew, she would only have “earned” 20% of her aid, so would have to repay 80% of her aid. But she would have passed the stage when she could not have to pay 100% of her classes. So say her tuition and fees were $5,000 and she received aid of $10,000. She would still have to pay the full $5000, and she would have to repay 80% of the aid she received - $8000. So she would only end up keeping $2000 of her aid, and she would have to pay $5000 in tuition, leaving her $3000 in the hole for classes she has dropped.</p>
<p>It is essential that you talk to an FA officer before you do anything. Don’t just ask how much of your fees you will still have to pay, ask if you will have to repay any of the aid. Make sure you are talking to an actual officer who knows all the ins and outs, not a student helper who may not know.</p>
<p>Also if you drop below 1/2 time before loans are disbursed, the loans will not be disbursed to you at all. Federal rules require that a student be enrolled at least 1/2 time at the time of disbursement for any loans to be disbursed.</p>