Skip to main content

2026 Academic Catalog > Tuition, Fees, and Financing > Federal Financial Aid > Return of Title IV Funds

Print this page
/Institutions/Trident-University/json/catalogs.json
3EE9B406-606A-42E9-9D17-81370618EF8D
https://trident.smartcatalogiq.com/
3ee9b406-606a-42e9-9d17-81370618ef8d
https://searchproxy.smartcatalogiq.com/search
38ffff2f-06d3-4a76-8f2a-6dd9516a66af
other
/Institutions/Trident-University/json/current/2026-Academic-Catalog-local.json
/Institutions/Trident-University/json/current/2026-Academic-Catalog.json
Contents
  • Introduction
  • Accreditation
  • Trident Learning Outcomes
  • Admission and Transfer Policies
  • Bachelor to Master Dual Credit Options
  • Tuition, Fees, and Financing
    • Tuition Rates
    • Fees
    • Payment
    • Scholarships and Grants
    • Refund Policy
    • Federal Financial Aid
      • Federal Loans and Grants
      • Financial Aid Payment Periods and Enrollment Policy
      • Disbursements
      • Semester Hour Completion
      • Return of Title IV Funds
      • Payment of Credit Balance Student Accounts
      • Loan Cancellation
    • Military Tuition Programs
    • Information for Students Using Veteran Education Benefits
  • Student Information and Procedures
  • Registration and Enrollment
  • Course and Grading Policies
  • Graduation Requirements
  • General Policies
  • University College
  • Glenn R. Jones College of Business
  • Glenn R. Jones College of Business, Department of Information Systems
  • College of Education
  • College of Health and Human Services
  • Certificates
  • Courses
  • Teach-Out
  • Academic Faculty and Staff
  • Teach-Out - Programs, Certificates, and Courses
Catalog Links
  • Catalog Home
  • Site Map
  • All Catalogs

Return of Title IV Funds

General Requirements

Title IV funds are awarded to a student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which the assistance is awarded. When a student withdraws, the student may be considered ineligible for all or a portion of Title IV funds that he or she received.

If a recipient of Title IV grant or loan funds withdraws from a school after beginning attendance, the amount of Title IV grant or loan assistance earned by the student must be determined. If the amount disbursed to the student is greater than the amount the student earned, the unearned funds must be returned to the Title IV program of the U. S. Department of Education. If the amount disbursed to the student is less than the amount the student earned, and for which the student is otherwise eligible, he or she is eligible to receive a post-withdrawal disbursement of the earned aid that was not received.

 

When a student is considered to have Withdrawn for Title IV purposes

A student is considered to have withdrawn from a payment period or the University if:

  • The student does not complete all the days and semester hours in the payment period that the student was scheduled to complete.
  • The student is not scheduled to begin another course within 60 calendar days after the end of the session the student ceased attending unless the student is on an approved leave of absence.

To determine the amount of funds earned by the student, the Student Finance Department will complete the Federal Return to Title IV (R2T4) Worksheet. This worksheet is used to calculate the portion of the federal funds earned by the student to determine if any portion of federal student aid may need to be returned to the U. S. Department of Education based on the student’s last date of attendance. Attendance at Trident is defined as academic-related activity, such as submission of written assignments and discussion postings or both. Course logins and reading assignments are not used in the determination of a student’s last date of attendance.

The last date of any academic-related activity is used to calculate the percentage of days completed in the payment period, which is equivalent to the percentage of aid for which the student is eligible. If the student has an incomplete for the course(s) and does not enroll in the subsequent session, the session end date will be used as the last date of activity. For students who officially withdraw from all courses and/or Trident, the date of withdrawal will be used to determine the percentage of the payment period completed. The last date of academic activity will be used as the withdrawal date. For students who do not return from an approved leave of absence (LOA), the date of withdrawal will be the date the LOA began. Once it is determined that a student who has received Title IV funds is no longer enrolled, a R2T4 calculation will be completed. A notice will be sent to students when a R2T4 is completed, which will include any balance or eligibility for a post withdrawal disbursement or Title IV refund from R2T4 calculation. Title IV funds are returned in the following order:

  • Unsubsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loans
  • Subsidized Federal Direct Stafford Loans
  • Federal Direct PLUS Loans
  • Federal Pell Grants