Refund Policy
Medical students who withdraw or drop credits will have their tuition charges adjusted and may have to refund financial aid dollars to the appropriate Title IV student aid sources, as required by federal law.
Medical School policy dictates that all financial aid recipients must meet with a financial aid officer before leaving the school for an approved Leave of Absence (LOA), withdrawal or dismissal. Students anticipating a need to leave medical school may meet with a financial aid officer to review their specific refund/repayment calculations to determine the appropriate refund amount.
Tuition Refund Policy/Return of Title IV Aid Effective 7/1/2000
Occasionally, a student may find it necessary to withdraw from all classes during a semester. Depending upon when this action is taken, students may be refunded all or part of their tuition and fee charges. If the student is a financial aid recipient, the Financial Aid Office, as well as the student, may be required to return to the federal government all or a portion of the aid that had been disbursed to the student and/or the student's account.
Students wishing to withdraw or apply for an approved leave of absence from the University of Michigan Medical School must submit a written statement to the Associate Dean for Student Programs. In the case of a request to withdraw, the statement must include the student's understanding that the withdrawal is a voluntary and permanent action.
Tuition Refund Policy
The University of Michigan has a Tuition Refund Policy that stipulates the amount of tuition and fees that is refunded to a student who withdraws from all classes during a term. The Registrar's Office determines specific refund dates each term and publishes them in the U-M Schedule of Courses and on the Web. The chart below shows the amount of tuition and fees returned to a student, depending upon when the student withdraws.
| Time of Withdrawal (Specific dates are established each term by the Registrar's Office) | Percentage of charges Refunded |
| Prior to the 1st day of the term | 100% tuition, 100% fees |
| Within the first 3 weeks of the term | 100% tuition, 0% fees |
| After the first 3 weeks but before the 6th week of the term |
50% tuition, 0% fees |
| After the 6th week of the term | 0% tuition, 0% fees |
Return of Title IV (Federal) Financial Aid
The federal government mandates that students who withdraw from all classes on or before the 60 percent point in the term may only keep the financial aid they have "earned" up to the time of withdrawal. Title IV funds that were disbursed in excess of the earned amount must be returned by the University and/or the student to the federal government. This situation could result in the student owing aid funds to the University, the government or both.
To determine the amount of aid the student has earned up to the time of withdrawal, the Financial Aid Office will divide the number of calendar days the student attended classes by the total number of calendar days in the semester (less any scheduled breaks of five days or more). The resulting percentage is then multiplied by the total federal funds that were disbursed (either to the student's university account or to the student directly by check or direct deposit) for the semester. This calculation determines the amount of aid earned by the student, which he or she may keep (for example, if the student attended 25 percent of the term, the student will have earned 25 percent of the aid disbursed). The unearned amount (total aid disbursed less the earned amount) must be returned to the federal government by the University or the student. The Financial Aid Office will notify and provide instructions to students who are required to return funds to the government.
Allocating Returned Title IV (Federal) Aid
Funds that are returned to the federal government are used to reduce the outstanding balances in individual federal programs. Financial aid returned (by the University and/or the student) must be allocated in the following order:
- Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
- Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loan
- Federal Perkins Loan
Students whose circumstances require that they withdraw from all classes are strongly encouraged to contact or meet with their financial aid counselor before doing so. At that time, the consequences of withdrawing from all classes can be explained and clearly illustrated. Financial aid counselors can provide refund examples and further explain this policy to students.
