Cost of Attendance

Mercer University will maintain a fair and equitable refund policy by adherence to the Institutional Refund Policy in all programs, in all schools, and on all campuses. This policy is subject to change if there are future changes to the Federal Return Policy or other federal, state, accrediting agency, or institutional policy with which it may conflict.

The criteria for the Mercer Institutional Refund Policy are based upon federal mandates established by the Federal Return Policy, which took effect on all Mercer campuses on August 15, 2000, replacing all existing refund policies throughout the University. The policy applies whether or not Title IV awards are involved.

Tuition, fees, and any other educational charges will not be refunded if the operation of the University is suspended at any time because of an act of God, strike, riot, disruption, or for any reason beyond the control of the University.

Questions regarding refund procedures and amounts should be directed to the Office of the Bursar, 1501 Mercer University Drive, Macon, GA 31207 (Telephone: 478-301-1111.) Students are charged tuition and fees for all attempted hours, regardless of completion.

Refunds will be calculated based on enrollment of either semester-based programs or session-based programs, as defined below.

Semester-Based Programs: Class enrollment spans the entire semester. Classes typically run 16-weeks.

Session (or module)-Based Program: Enrolled in one or more courses that do not span the entire semester. Typically, there are two 8-week sessions within the semester.

*Special requirements for session-based program refunds will be notated throughout this policy by an asterisk.

 * The drop/add period for the winter intersession classes at Mercer Law ends on the first day of class. It is the student’s responsibility to return the full amount of federal aid received for any winter program, if the student decides not to earn the credit hours for which aid was awarded.

PLEASE NOTE: The last date for a tuition refund MAY NOT correspond with the last day to withdraw for the term. Please contact the Bursar’s Office for the last day to withdraw for a tuition adjustment.

Eligibility for refund of tuition, fees and other institutional charges:

A student is not eligible for any refund if:

1. The student fails to formally withdraw.
2. The student is suspended.
3. The student withdraws when a disciplinary action or honor code violation is pending.
4. The student withdraws from a class or classes while currently enrolled in other classes for the semester.
5. *The student provides written confirmation that they will return for a future session in the same semester.

Official and Unofficial Withdrawals

Officially Withdrawing

1. To officially withdraw from the semester, a student must drop or withdraw from all courses for the term.
2. Students contemplating dropping or withdrawing from courses are urged to first consult their student financial aid counselor for information regarding the impact of this action on their financial aid award.
3. To officially withdraw, the student must submit the online withdrawal form in their MyMercer student portal, upon submission the completed form will be submitted to the Registrar’s Office for finalization. The completed form must be submitted by the Registrar’s Office before withdrawal can be finalized.
4. Refund calculations will be based upon the date the student officially notifies the Registrar’s Office in writing via the online form or in person of his/her intent to withdraw.
5. Per federal regulations, a calculation for the return of federal funds will be completed within 30 days of the student “officially withdrawing.”
6. Any balance or overpayment created due to financial aid disbursements being returned to their original source of funding per the withdrawal calculation will become immediately due and payable, by the student, to the University and in some cases to the U.S. Dept. of Ed.
7. Once all calculations are completed, the Bursar Office will invoice the student for any outstanding balance.
8. *Session-Based students who officially withdraw from Session I and are also enrolled in Session II must provide written notification they plan to attend Session II classes. Without this written documentation, the student will be dropped from the Session II classes and a Term Withdrawal Calculation will be completed
9. **Session-Based students who drop Session II courses while still attending Session I are not considered withdrawals. Students who drop/withdrawal session II courses after successfully completing at least 49% of the semester or successfully completing courses equal to half-time enrollment are not considered withdrawals. Successful completion is defined as earning credit with a passing grade (D or higher). If the student is Pell eligible or receiving the Georgia Tuition Equalization Grant, a downward enrollment calculation is necessary for any course in which the student didn’t begin attendance

Unofficially Withdrawing

1. Non-attendance or ceasing to attend a course(s) does not constitute an official schedule change, course withdrawal, or term withdrawal
2. Failure to “officially withdraw” will result in academic penalties and may affect the student’s Satisfactory Progress rating.
3. Students failing to officially withdraw will be held financially accountable for tuition, fees, and stipends issued to them for the term
4. If a student ceases attendance without notifying the university, a Federal statutory provision allows the university to use the midpoint of the payment period as the withdrawal date for calculating the return of financial aid funds. Otherwise, the university may use the student’s last verifiable day of an academically related activity.
5. Per federal regulations, a withdrawal date will be determined within 30 calendar days from the end of the semester for those students who ceased attendance without “officially withdrawing” from the University and those students who are determined not to have earned any credit for the semester.
6. Any balance or overpayment created due to financial aid disbursements being returned to their original source of funding per the withdrawal calculation will then become immediately due and payable, by the student, to the University and in some cases to the U.S. Dept. of Ed.
7. Once all calculations are completed, the Bursar Office will invoice the student for any outstanding balance.

Refund of Non-Tuition Charges

1. If a student withdraws before the first day of classes for the term, housing and/or meals will be charged based on usage up until that point in time.
2. If a student withdraws prior to the beginning of the semester or during the official drop/add period, lab fees, facility/technology fees, book and material fees, and insurance premiums will be reversed.
3. If a student withdraws after the end of the official drop/add period, housing and meal plan refunds will be calculated by Residence Life and Auxiliary Services respectively, based on usage.
4. Pre-enrollment deposits and dormitory or housing deposits are non-refundable.
5. Insurance Premiums are non-refundable after the waiver deadline.
6. Additional charges for housing and meals will be assessed on a prorated basis from the date of withdrawal until the student vacates the room and returns his/her key and keycard.
7. Additional Book and Material Fees may be assessed for items not returned by the deadline if participating in the Bear Book Bundle Program. Once all calculations are completed, the Bursar Office will invoice the student for any outstanding balance.

Refund Appeals

The Retroactive Enrollment and Refund Appeal Committee was established to consider refund and/or retroactive withdrawal appeals from students who believe their extraordinary circumstances entitle them to additional consideration outside the University’s Official Refund Policy. Student appeals must be submitted through their MyMercer Portal by the beginning of the semester following the one in dispute. The committee meets each semester and responds in writing. This is the student’s final venue of appeal.

Withdrawal Refund Calculations

The federal government requires the Office of Financial Aid to calculate how much Title IV aid a student has earned.  Federal regulations state that a student earns Title IV aid based on the period of time the student remains enrolled for a particular term.

A student who has completed more than 60% of the enrollment period is considered to have earned 100% of the Title IV aid awarded; no return of Title IV aid is required.

Enrolled Days

                                                =  % of Title IV Earned By Student

Days in the Enrollment Period

Pursuant to federal regulations, any federal funds not earned by the student must be returned to the Title IV program in the following order:

• Unsubsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loan
• Subsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loan
• Federal Direct Plus Loan
• Federal Pell Grant
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant
• Other Title IV Aid Programs

Non-Title IV financial aid funds will be returned in the following order:

• Mercer institutionally-funded loans
• Mercer endowment-funded loans
• Mercer institutionally-funded grants/scholarships
• Mercer endowment-funded grants/scholarships
• Other loans
• State loans
• State grants/scholarships
• Other scholarships
• Student/parent payments

Semester-Based Federal Return Calculation Example

The following scenarios illustrate how Federal Return calculations are performed for Semester-Based programs:

• First day of class: August 20th
• Last day of exams: December 14th
• Holidays: Thanksgiving – November 27-December 1
• Number of calendar days in this enrollment period = 112 days

A Macon undergraduate student completes and submits a term withdrawal form in the Registrar’s office on October 17th.

Total number of days student is enrolled = 59 days

58 days

Financial Aid Refund Calculation

Session-Based Federal Return Calculation

A student is enrolled in 4 classes for the Spring term. Two of the classes begin on January 6th and two of the classes begin on March 7th for a total of 12 hours. The student is enrolled in sessions. The student begins both session 1 courses on January 6th. On January 22nd the student withdrawals from both session 1 courses and drops both session 2 courses on the same day.

Total number of days student is enrolled = 17 days

Financial Aid Refund Calculation

Total Title IV aid Earned $6,185 x 14.4% = $890.64

Total Title IV aid Unearned $6,185 – 890.64 = $5,294.36

Total Title IV aid to be returned by the Institution = Lesser of Unearned Title IV aid vs. Unearned Charges returned by the Institution

Mercer to return $5,294 in Title IV aid.

The amount of Title IV aid required to be returned by the student = Total Unearned Title IV aid – Amount of Title IV aid returned by the Institution

Title IV aid to be returned by the student $5,294-5,294 = $0.00

For the most up-to-date information on withdrawals/refunds and examples of Semester-Based Federal Return Calculations, please review Mercer University’s Catalog at: https://registrar.mercer.edu/macon/catalogs.cfm, and the Bursar’s Office website at: https://bursar.mercer.edu/macon/withdrawal/, and the Mercer University Student Handbook at: https://provost.mercer.edu/handbooks/studenthandbook.cfm.

For additional information on the Law School’s Withdrawal Policy, please review Mercer University’s website athttps://bursar.mercer.edu/macon/withdrawal/.

Refunds and Stipends

The Bursar’s Office encourages students to enroll in Direct Deposit to ensure the fastest and most efficient handling of their refunds. All payments made by or on behalf of a student shall be receipted to his/her account. Refundable credit balances are processed on a regular basis by the Office of the Bursar. Credit balances resulting from overpayment by credit card payment will be refunded to the credit card. Credit balances resulting from financial aid will be refunded to the student through their Student Choice Refund option. A student may select their refund method through their MyMercer student portal. Refunds can be issued by check or by direct deposit to a bank account or to a reloadable debit card. Paper checks are the default refund method and are mailed to the address listed on the Student’s Master file, each student is responsible for ensuring his/her address is accurate to avoid delays in receiving their check.

If a credit balance is created by a Parent PLUS Loan, the refund will be mailed via a paper check to the borrower of the loan.

If a school attempts to disburse the credit balance from federal funds by check and the check is not cashed, the Bursar’s Office will return the funds to the Department of Education no later than 240 days after the date the check was issued.  If a Direct Deposit of federal funds is rejected or a check returned to the school, the Bursar’s Office may make another attempt to disburse the funds or the funds must be returned no later than 45 days after the rejection date.  Any refunds that are rejected or returned and are generated by non-federal funds will be reattempted for five (5) years.  After this timeframe, refunds will be escheated to the State.

All students are required to have health insurance. You are automatically enrolled in the Mercer University Health Plan at the beginning of each school year, but if you have other health insurance, you may opt-out of university coverage. You MUST opt-out each semester, otherwise you will continue to be enrolled in university coverage and billed accordingly.

Mercer University Campus Health

All financial aid, including scholarships and loans, will be disbursed at the beginning of each semester. All aid will be applied to your tuition and fees first. Any remaining funds will be disbursed to you for your living expenses. We encourage you to enroll in direct deposit so you will receive your living allowance faster. Learn more about student refunds on the Bursar’s website.

1.    Sign into your MyMercer portal.
2.    On the left-side menu, click “My Finances.”
3.    Select “Pay and Manage My Account.”
4.    Click “Manage Refunds.”
5.    Please have your bank account information ready, and follow the steps.

Please make sure that all account information is correct prior to submitting enrollment. If a bank account or routing number is entered incorrectly, you will receive a paper check and your refund may be delayed.

The living expense allowance for financial aid purposes is set based on the average living expenses of our students for the 9-month academic year, as determined by surveys and a review of area expenses such as rental rates. The living allowance includes housing, utilities, transportation, food, books, personal expenses, and average loan fees. It does not (and cannot) include car payments, credit card payments, or other expenses unrelated to obtaining an education.

The federal government only allows expenses related to obtaining an education to be included in the living allowance for financial aid purposes. It considers car payments and credit card payments to be consumer debt and not related to obtaining an education.

The living expense allowance reflects the average amount students spend on living expenses during the academic year. We encourage students to minimize living expenses. Federal regulations allow limited exceptions or adjustments to information reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Such exceptions or adjustments are known as “Professional Judgement”. These requests are considered on a case-by-case basis based on supporting documentation of a student’s circumstance. Students who have extenuating circumstances and may require additional aid may request a living expense budget increase by submitting the relevant form and documentation to the Financial Aid Office. If approved, the increase typically allows the student to borrow additional loan funds, subject to annual loan limits and/or credit approval.