George Fox University | Offices and Services | Additional Financial Information for Traditional Undergraduates

Additional Information on Finances

Traditional Undergraduates

George Fox University maintains high educational standards at the lowest possible cost. A portion of the cost is underwritten by gifts from alumni, friends, churches, businesses, and institutions. An extensive financial aid program assists students in meeting
university costs.

The board of trustees reserves the right to adjust charges at any time, after giving due notice. No changes will be made during a
semester, nor, unless special circumstances make such action necessary, will changes be made during a given academic year.

Departmental Fee Examples

Chemistry/Biology Fees $10-160
Communication/video production courses $10-50
Off-campus physical education activity, per semester* $10-450
Private music lessons, per semester, per credit hour (includes one half-hour lesson per week and use of practice room) $260
Other: Several classes require an extra fee to cover special facilities, equipment, transportation, etc.,ranging from $10 to $100 per class, although some specific courses may be higher. 2007-08 class fees are available here and in the Student Financial Services and registrar's offices.

*Students pay a fee of $10-$470 to cover costs of facilities, equipment, and transportation for any physical education course conducted off campus, such as swimming, bowling, golf, skiing, and canoeing. Personal rackets are required for tennis and racquetball.

Late Payment Fees

Balances not paid according to payment schedule are subject to a 1-percent-per-month service charge on the unpaid balance. Participants in the monthly payment plan will be assessed a $20 late $25 fee for payments not received by the 15th of each month.
Insufficient Funds fee per check or failed automatic debit

Schedule of Required Deposits

New full-time students are required to pay a $300 tuition deposit by May 1. This deposit will be credited toward first-semester tuition and is nonrefundable after May 1.

Financial Arrangements

All charges made by the university are due Aug. 15 for fall semester, Dec. 15 for spring semester, or may be made on an installment basis through an approved monthly payment plan (an enrollment fee applies). Students receiving scholarships, grants, or loans must complete all necessary arrangements well in advance of the semester start. Students who are securing a loan from financial institutions or agencies (e.g., a federally insured bank loan) that may still be pending when payment is due must have a letter of commitment from the lender acceptable to the university. Service charges will be made on unpaid accounts even though financial aid and loans are pending, so the application process should be started early.

Earnings from student employment positions are generally paid directly to the student although arrangements to have a portion of the wages applied directly to the account may be made in the Student Financial Services office. A limited number of jobs (about 700) are available on campus, fewer than the number of students with student employment awards. Receiving this award does not guarantee a job .

Payment for May Term and summer tuition is due in full when billed.
Students may be asked to leave at any time during a semester if the arrangements made at the beginning of the semester are not honored.

Restrictions

The university will withhold transcript of records and diploma until all university bills have been paid. Students will not be permitted to attend for a new semester, including May Term, Juniors Abroad, and summer field experience, until all bills are paid for the previous session.

Removal of Institutional Charges and Financial Aid Policies

Explanation of Terms

The term "Title IV Funds" refers to federal financial aid programs authorized under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (as amended). At George Fox University , these programs include unsubsidized Stafford Loans, subsidized Stafford Loans, Perkins Loans, PLUS Loans, Pell Grants, and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG). Federal Work-Study wages are not included in return of Title IV aid. The term "Institutional Financial Aid Funds" refers to George Fox University financial aid dollars, including grants and scholarships.

The "Return" of funds, either Title IV or institutional, refers to the removal of amounts charged, or scheduled to be charged, to the student account.
The "withdraw date" is the date established by the Office of the Registrar in accordance with the Official Withdraw Process. (See Official Withdraw Process.) The "period" used in calculating the return of Title IV and institutional funds is either the payment period or the enrollment period, depending on the academic program involved. Both periods are based on calendar days. They include weekends but exclude scheduled breaks of five days or more. The period used to calculate the removal of institutional charges is always the enrollment period.

The "enrollment period" is defined as the period in which a student is enrolled.
The "payment period" is defined as the loan payment period for which the student is eligible. The payment period is used only when calculating the return of funds for academic programs that have two loan disbursement periods within one academic period, such as the School of Professional Studies MOL and MBIS programs. A "post-withdrawal disbursement" is a financial aid or loan disbursement that the student was eligible for prior to withdraw, but had not yet received.

Removal of Institutional Charges

Students who choose to reduce their course load, and who do not completely withdraw from the university, will generally not receive a removal of tuition, course fees, and other associated fees unless the changes take place prior to the last day to change registration, also known as the end of the add/drop period, which is published in the university's academic calendar and online.

Adjustments of room and board will generally be calculated as follows:
Students withdrawing from housing and or the meal plan during the first two weeks in the enrollment period will receive a prorated adjustment. After the second week there is no adjustment unless the student withdraws for verified and approved medical or hardship reasons.
After the second week of the enrollment period, there is generally no adjustment of health insurance, student body fees, health counseling fees, activity fees, parking permit fees, and course fees. (Removal of course fees will be considered if the student submits faculty approval showing that the institution did not incur costs as a result of the student's anticipated participation in activities and/or that supplies were not issued.) Generally, there is no adjustment of registration fees or interest.

When a student withdraws completely from the university for reasons other than documented and verified medical or hardship reasons, refunds of tuition, excluding May Term, will generally be calculated as follows:

• A student whose withdraw date is within the first week of the enrollment period generally receives a 90 percent removal of charges.
• A student whose withdraw date is within week two generally receives a 75 percent removal of charges.
• A student whose withdraw date is within week three generally receives a 50 percent removal of charges.
• A student whose withdraw date is within week four generally receives a 25 percent removal of charges.
• A student whose withdraw date is within week five or later generally receives no adjustment.

Students requesting medical or hardship financial considerations must do so in writing to the Student Financial Services office within 30 days of last date of attendance.
Adjustments of May Term tuition will be calculated as follows:

• A student who withdraws prior to day one of the enrollment period generally receives a full removal of charges.
• A student who withdraws on day one generally receives a 50 percent adjustment, regardless of attendance.
• A student who withdraws on day two or later generally will not receive any removal of charges.

Note: No transcripts will be released until the student's account is paid in full. This includes current charges, balances that are the result of financial aid funds returned, fines that may be assessed after the student leaves, and computer buyout fees.

Removal of Institutional Aid

If a student withdraws and is granted a removal of tuition, George Fox University allows the student to retain a percentage of the disbursed institutional financial aid equal to the percentage they have been charged, but not to exceed standard charges minus $100. Standard charges are considered to be tuition, fees, and institutional room and board. The order that institutional financial aid is removed is at the discretion of Student Financial Services.

Removal of Title IV Funds

The Return of the Title IV Federal Funds

These policies apply to students who withdraw entirely or take an approved leave of absence from George Fox University without earning credit for the enrollment period, or to students who are asked to withdraw for academic, disciplinary, or financial reasons.
Note: Both the Return of the Title IV Funds and Removal of Institutional Aid policies and the George Fox University Removal of Institutional Charges Policy must be considered when determining the financial impact of withdrawing completely from the university.

Return of Title IV Funds

Federal law requires that all Title IV funds disbursed to the school be included in the return calculation, including funds in excess of the student account balance that the institution has forwarded to the student and eligible funds pending disbursement. (See Post-withdrawal Disbursement.) Federal Work-Study is excluded.

The percentage of Title IV funds returned is based on the number of calendar days the student was enrolled, including the established withdraw date, and allowable charges. After 60 percent of the period has transpired, there is no return.
To estimate the amount that will be returned to federal aid programs:
Divide the days transpired by the total number of days in the period. (See withdraw date and refund calculation period above.)

• a. Convert this number to a percentage by moving the decimal point two places to the right and round to one decimal place.
  This generally equals the percentage of aid that is considered "earned" and subsequently may be retained.
• b. Subtract the percentage of aid retained from 100 percent. This generally, if 40 percent or more, is the percentage that will
  be returned.
• c. (Example: If a student's withdraw date is established as the 21st day of a period 111 days long, 21 days would be divided by 111
  days to equal .1892, which converts to 18.9 percent. This is the amount of aid retained; 100 percent minus 18.9 percent equals 81.1 percent of aid that must be returned.)

When considering the impact of withdrawing, it is recommended that an estimated calculation be requested from the Student Financial Services office prior to withdrawing.
In accordance with federal regulations, the return of Title IV funds is made in the following order:

• Unsubsidized Stafford Loans
• Subsidized Stafford Loans
• Perkins Loans, PLUS Loans
• Pell Grants
• SEOG
• Other Title IV programs

Return of Title IV Funds by the Student

When the Return of Title IV Funds calculation results in the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) having a repayment responsibility, Student Financial Services will notify the student of his or her responsibility.

Post-Withdraw Disbursement

When a post-withdrawal disbursement is available, the institution may, with the student's or parent's permission, credit the late disbursement to the student account to cover allowable institutional charges. When loans are applied to the student's account, the student is notified of the disbursement. If the student (or parent for a PLUS Loan) wishes to cancel all or a portion of a loan, they must do so, in writing, to Student Financial Services within two weeks of receiving notice of the disbursement.
When the post-withdrawal disbursement results in excess funds being available to the student, or when pending disbursements are needed to cover minor noninstitutional charges:

Authorization from the borrower is required. If the borrower has not signed an authorization, the institution will request the needed authorization either electronically or in writing. The borrower will be advised that no late disbursement will be made for these purposes unless authorization is received within 14 days of the date the institution sent the notification.

These policies are in compliance with the Higher Education Reauthorization Act. For refund examples, please stop by Student Financial Services or call 503-554-2291.

Compliance With Federal Laws and Regulations

George Fox University does not discriminate against students on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, gender, age, disability, or any other status to the extent prohibited under applicable non-discrimination law in the administration of its admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, educational programs, athletics programs, cocurricular activities, or other university administered programs.

The following offices may be contacted for information regarding compliance with legislation:

Vice President for Enrollment Services: student consumer information
Vice President for Finance: wage and hour regulations, The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (race, color, or national origin), and age discrimination
Vice President for Student Life: Title IX (nondiscrimination on the basis of sex)
Executive Director of Student Financial Services: Title IV (Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended), student consumer information, the Pell Program, Supplementary Educational Opportunity Grants, the Perkins Loan/Direct Loan Program, the Stafford Loan Program, the Parents Loan for Undergraduate Students Program, and the Supplemental Loans for Students Program
Registrar: Rehabilitation Act of 1973, veterans' benefits, Immigration and Naturalization Act, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act