Normandale provides the following general information and policies to help students better understand their rights and responsibilities with financial aid in order to make the most informed decisions on their financial aid options.
Your financial aid won't apply to your bill until the 10th day of the term. Until that point, your bill in e-Services will show an amount due.
Financial aid disbursement happens in two steps:
If your financial aid is complete by the 10th day of the term, it will apply to your tuition and fees bill on that day. If your total financial aid is more than your bill, the overage will be sent to you on 13th day of the term.
If your financial aid doesn't cover your bill, you must pay the balance due by the deadline for the term.
If you complete your financial aid after the 10th day of the term, your aid will be disbursed on Monday, Wednesday or Friday of the week it is completed.
You must maintain eligibility for the aid programs to receive your financial aid. You must be enrolled and regularly attending classes. If you do not maintain eligibility or stop attending, you may be responsible for repaying all financial aid that was disbursed to your account.
You can view your financial aid awards and the amount credited to your account at e-Services. We also have a guide to help you look up your financial aid eligibility and calculate how much you might owe or have in excess financial aid.
Normandale offers a book charging service for students who have applied for financial aid and need to purchase their books prior to when aid is disbursed. You may only take advantage of this service if Normandale has received your FAFSA or MN Dream Act application and you are registered for classes.
Students with balances due for prior terms may not be able to participate in the book charging program.
Book charging ends on the 7th day of the term, and financial aid does not disburse until the 10th day. Therefore, if you plan to use financial aid to pay for your books, we strongly recommend you use the book charging program.
Financial aid eligibility is calculated by mathematical formulas beginning with Federal Methodology (FM). FM is the Federal formula that calculates your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) based on the information that you provide on the FAFSA, and is calculated by the Central Processing System (CPS).
Your EFC is the amount you and your family are expected to pay toward your educational expenses. The next step in the eligibility calculation process is done by Normandale. Normandale determines how much it costs to attend for an academic year. This figure is called the Cost of Attendance (COA).
The COA and EFC are used to determine all of your financial aid awards. We calculate aid as follows: COA - EFC = remaining need.
The Federal PELL Grant award is based on the EFC. All other programs are based on remaining need.
Your aid package cannot exceed your financial need, however, some forms of aid may be used to meet your EFC.
Use the EFC Calculator to prepare an estimate of your contribution towards the cost of attending Normandale for an academic year.
The 5th day of the term is the end of the drop/add period and also the date that your classes are considered set for financial aid purposes.
While there are multiple summer term start dates, the 5th day of the first summer term (last day to drop a class for the first summer term) is considered the date that ALL summer classes are set for financial aid purposes. If you are considering making a change in your summer schedule after that date, we recommend you contact the financial aid office.
You must make satisfactory academic progress towards a degree or certificate to attend Normandale and remain eligible for financial aid.
Read the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
(effective Fall 2011 and beyond)
As a reminder, you are responsible for reading the full Satisfactory Academic Progress policy in the College Catalog. It describes in much more detail all aspects of the policy and your rights and responsibilities.
After you have read the full policy, if you have questions, please see an academic advisor or counselor.
Financial aid recipients who completely withdraw from a term or stop attending prior to the 60% point of that term are subject to the federal return of Title IV fund rules for any federal aid not earned and the Minnesota Office of Higher Education refund calculation for Minnesota State Grant and SELF Loan.
Examples of both calculations are available in the Student Services Office at the student's request.
The student may also be eligible for a refund of a portion of the tuition and fees paid to Normandale for the semester, according to the Normandale refund policy. If the student received financial aid, then a portion of the refund will be returned to the grant or loan program from which it was received and the student may owe Normandale for a portion of the tuition and fees.
If a student will be withdrawing completely from a term, they must do so according to Normandale's withdrawal policies.
The transaction must be completed in person or via Normandale's online system.
If done through the online system, the student MUST contact the Student Services Office at 952-358-8100. The withdraw must be completed by the published deadlines and the student is responsible for understanding the impact of such action on their student account.
Normandale's Refund Policy exists for calculating the refund of institutional charges. The federal "Return of Title IV Funds" formula dictates the amount of federal Title IV aid that must be returned to the federal government by the school and the student.
Refund Allowed for Partial or Total Drop in Credits for Fall/Spring Semester:
Refund Allowed for Total Withdrawal for Fall/Spring Semester:
*Or one class day (next business day) after first class session for late starting or weekend classes.
For Summer Term: Refer to summer information.
The federal formula requires a return of Title IV aid if the student received federal financial aid and withdrew or stopped attending all classes on or before completing 60% of the semester.
The percentage of Title IV aid to be returned (that which is unearned) is equal to the number of calendar days remaining in the semester divided by the number of calendar days in the semester. Scheduled breaks of more than four consecutive days are excluded.
The responsibility to repay unearned aid is shared by the institution and the student in proportion to the aid each is assumed to possess.
The institution's share is allocated among the Title IV programs, before the student's share, in the following order:
Any remaining unearned aid is the responsibility of the student, must be collected from the student, and then allocated among the Title IV programs in the order indicated above.
Normandale will calculate and return its share of unearned Title IV funds and notify the student no later than 30 days after it determines that the student withdrew and return the funds within 45 days.
Students return their share of unearned aid attributable to a loan under the terms and conditions of the promissory note. Normandale may allow the student to repay unearned aid attributable to a grant under a payment arrangement satisfactory to Normandale. However, the student is not responsible for returning funds to any grant program to which they owe $50 or less.
When you register for classes, you are responsible for the tuition and fees. You must make payment arrangements before your payment arrangement deadline in order to make sure that you registration is not dropped for non payment.
If you change your mind and do not plan to take classes at Normandale, you must drop them or you will be billed for them. You may drop them in e-Services or in person at the Student Services Office.
Students have the responsibility to submit forms on time and keep financial aid appointments and use the aid for the purpose of attending college and related expenses.
Visit Financial Aid and Scholarship, check the Financial Aid and Scholarship Bulletin Board and the Weekly Bulletin regularly for updates and new information.
If you are interested in learning more general information about financial aid, good sources on the Internet are:
1st Floor, College Services
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