Payback of Tuition Assistance
Students using DOD Tuition Assistance should know that they may owe Gulf Coast a portion of their tuition for any classes from which they are withdrawn.
Per the current Department of Defense Memorandum of Understanding (DoD MOU), Gulf Coast State College will return to the appropriate Military branch unearned Tuition Assistance (TA) funds on a proportional basis through the 60% portion of the semester for which the funds were provided.
When a student is reported as a no show, officially withdraws, or is administratively withdrawn from a registered course paid by a Department of Defense TA, GCSC will perform a proportional calculation of unearned TA funds based on the date of withdrawal or last date of academic activity. A student is considered to be officially withdrawn from a course when they follow the withdrawal procedures listed in the college catalog. Courses withdrawn in this manner are designated with a W1 grade and registration status. On occasion, students may be administratively withdrawn by the instructor. Courses withdrawn in this manner are designated with a W2 grade and registration status.
Shortly after it is determined the student dropped, withdrew, or did not attend a course, the proportion of TA funds to return will be calculated.
- When a student drops a course during the add/drop period of a term, GCSC will return 100% of TA funds paid for that class. If it has not been paid, GCSC will not bill the appropriate entity.
- When a student is reported as a no show in a class, GCSC will return 100% of TA funds paid for that class. If it has not been paid, GCSC will not bill the appropriate entity.
- When a student officially withdraws from a course, GCSC will perform a calculation to determine if a proportional amount of TA funds should be returned. A student is considered to have earned 100% of the TA funds once they attend at least 60% of the semester. Students who withdraw prior to earning 100% will have an unearned percentage of TA funds based on the date of withdrawal compared to the date when they would have earned 100%. In other words; if TA paid $1000 towards a student’s tuition, the student withdraws from all classes at the 50% point of the semester, the unearned percentage would be 10% (60-50), and GCSC would return $100 (10% of $1000) to the appropriate TA funding source.
- When a student is administratively withdrawn from a course, a last date of academic activity is reported by the instructor. This date is used to calculate the unearned proportional amount of TA funds to return in the same manner as official withdrawals.
If the student’s withdrawal was due to their military service, they will be encouraged to contact the Dean of Student Life for a potential refund of tuition and fees.