Refund Information

Disbursement & Refund Information

Disbursement of Federal Financial Aid funds will be processed and credited to student accounts with allowable charges for students who have a completed financial aid file and all Direct Loan paperwork completed as applicable.

Institutional and Outside Scholarships do not require a FAFSA to be on file for disbursement unless specified by your scholarship provider.

Financial Aid will be applied to the student account in the following order:

• Institutional Scholarships (Academic, Athletic, Foundation, Special Ability, Tuition Waivers) - These scholarship amount will never exceed the total amount of charges on the student account each semester
• Outside Scholarships
• Federal Financial Aid (Grants, Direct Loans, PLUS Loans)

If there are excess funds from Outside Scholarships and/or Federal Financial Aid after the student account is paid in full, those funds will be refunded back to the student to be used for other educational-related costs.

Refund Day is when eligible students' refunds are available either by check (if picked up in person, you must have a valid ID) or by Direct Deposit. Refunds as a result of a Parent PLUS Loan will be mailed directly to the parent unless specified otherwise on the PLUS application. There are several Refund Days scheduled throughout each semester. See the chart below for current/upcoming semester scheduled Refund Days.

Students who are issued a refund check may pick up their checks in the Business Office (Concordia Campus) prior to 4:00pm on the scheduled Refund Day.  After 4:00pm, all refund checks will be mailed to the student’s home permanent address on file.

Students who have completed the Direct Deposit/EFT Authorization Form will have refunds directly deposited to the student’s designated account on the scheduled Refund Day. Processing time may vary depending on your banking institution.

Any Title IV funds that the Business Office or payroll office is unable to deliver to student or parent PLUS borrowers will be returned to the appropriate Title IV program account.

Cloud County Community College Students may use their Federal Financial Aid credit to charge books and supplies from the CCCC Bookstore to their student account. In order to charge books using Federal Financial Aid, the student's file must be complete and have a Federal Financial Aid credit on their student account. Students can opt out of automatic charges for electronic books by opting out of each book through their CANVAS when access is granted.

CCCC student's may opt-out of the student account charge process entirely and receive a partial refund of their Federal Financial Aid credit to purchase books elsewhere. If a student wishes to opt-out, complete the Opt-Out Book Refund form and return to the Financial Aid Office. Opt-Out Book Refund forms must be returned by the first day of class for each payment period. The partial refund will be disbursed within the first 7 days of class.

Holding Excess Title IV Funds (Credit Balance):

Cloud County Community College will not hold credit balances to pay for a subsequent semester. All students who have a credit balance will be issued a refund either by check or through Direct Deposit and will be available on the Refund Day.

Students may be considered for a late disbursement under certain conditions and the Financial Aid Office will be determine if the student meets the requirements for a late disbursement.

Financial Aid Refund Dates:

Student and Parent Authorizations

Disbursing Title IV Funds (other than FWS) to pay current Year Educationally-Related Institutional Charges Other than Tuition, Fees, and Contracted Room and Board:

Federal student financial aid can only cover “institutional charges” as defined by the U.S. Department of Education. This definition includes current-year charges for tuition and fees and on-campus room and board. It also includes lab fees and any other fees associated directly with taking a class as well as required books and supplies. Upon written authorization from the student, Federal Financial Aid can be applied to “other institutional charges” including but not limited to permits, fines, damages and child care costs that have incurred at Cloud County Community College.

Disbursing Title IV Funds (Other than FWS) to pay Prior Award Year Educationally-Related Changes Other than Tuition, Fees, and Contracted Room and Board:

In general, FSA funds may only be used to pay for the student’s costs for the period for which the funds are provided. However, a school may use current-year funds to satisfy prior award year charges for tuition and fees, room, or board (and with permission, educationally-related charges) for a total of not more than $200.00. A school may not pay prior-year charges in excess of $200.00.