Refund Policies for Credit Balances, Dropped Courses, and Withdrawal from the University

Credit Balances

Credit balances can result from overpayment of tuition and fees, scholarships, excessive financial aid applied to the student account, or a change in enrollment.

Lesley’s Student Accounts Office will issue a refund if the funds we’ve received exceed the charges on the student account.

Refunds for credit balances generally occur within 14 days after the add/drop period is over for the semester or term for which the student is enrolled or 14 days after the credit balance appears on the student account. This excludes credit balances for pending financial aid or payments.

  • Refund of Charges Due to Dropped Courses

    If a student drops a course prior to the end of the add/drop period for any given semester or term, course-associated charges such as tuition and fees for that course will be refunded in full and there will be no impact to the student’s transcript.

    If a student drops the course after the end of the add/drop period, the student is financially responsible for the entire semester/term of tuition and fee charges for the course. This applies to all courses including residencies, weekend intensives, short courses, conferences, and travel study. The course will remain on the student’s transcript and the student will receive a grade of “W.”

    Non-attendance does not satisfy the requirement for withdrawal and students who do not attend courses and do not withdraw/drop will be charged in full for course tuition and fees.

    University policy does not allow retroactive withdrawals or refunds.

     

    When are you dropping a course?

    Tuition and Fees Refunded

    Transcript Impact

    Before the End of the Add/Drop Period

    100%

    No course attempted.  No grade issued.

    After the End of the Add/Drop Period

    0%

    Attempted course. "W" grade issued.

  • Refund of Charges for Withdrawal from the University

    Students who wish to withdraw voluntarily from the University must obtain and complete an online Withdrawal Form to remain in good standing with the University and receive any appropriate refunds.

    Students who are suspended or dismissed from the University or residence halls for any reason will receive no adjustment of charges.

    In most cases in which the student received financial aid, any credit applied to the account will go to repay financial aid received and no money will go to the student or parent. Unpaid charges remaining on the account after all required adjustments are still owed to the university.

    Students who withdraw from all classes after the add/drop period will be eligible for a reduction of tuition and fees in accordance with the following schedule based on the date the student officially withdraws from the University. This includes students who withdraw for medical reasons.

    Students are eligible for a 100% refund of all tuition and fees if they withdraw prior to the end of the add/drop period except for tuition deposits and housing deposits.

    Time of Course Withdrawal

    Refund

    Add/Drop Period: Day 1 through Day 7 of classes

    100%

    Day 8 though Day 14 of classes

    50%

    Day 15 through Day 21 of classes

    25%

    Day 22 and beyond

    No refund

  • Tuition Insurance

    We believe it's important to offer an easy, affordable way to protect the investment your family has made in higher education. That's why Lesley University has partnered with GradGuard™ to provide our families with tuition insurance by Allianz Global Assistance featuring special plans and rates not available to the general public. 

    This coverage expands the scope of our refund policy by ensuring reimbursement for tuition, room and board and other fees for covered withdrawals at any time during the semester. Plans also include Student Life Assistance: a 24-hour emergency hotline that offers students and parents even greater peace of mind. 

    Learn more at https://gradguard.com/ or call 1-866-724-4384.

  • Additional Refund Policies

    Financial Aid

    Students who receive financial aid and then withdraw or reduce their credit load during the refund period will have a reduction in their aid awarded.

    If the financial aid you received exceeds your direct charges for tuition and fees, the Student Accounts Office will refund you within 14 days of when the financial aid was credited to your student account.

    Credits resulting from a Federal Parent PLUS Loan will be refunded to the parent borrower.

    You will be responsible for any balance on your student account that is a result of a reduction in your financial aid due to withdrawal.
     

    Payment Plans

    If you’re on a payment plan with Nelnet and you later receive enough financial aid to create a credit on your student account, cancel the payment plan with Nelnet directly. Students won’t have their credit balance refunded to them if they have an active Nelnet payment plan.

    If you do not cancel your payment plan, a refund will be issued to the student, once the payment plan has been completed.
     

    eRefunding

    We have partnered with Nelnet to provide electronic eRefunding services to our students.  You’ll receive an email at your Lesley address, asking you to complete your eRefunding account and to choose your refund preference. Click this link to view your account and choose your refund preference. If you do not choose to receive your refund via our eRefunding process, a paper check will be issued to you and sent to the preferred mailing address in our system.

    Refund Options

    • Automated Clearing House (ACH)/electronic check (a deposit into your bank account)
    • Paper check

    To see your account and choose your refund preference, follow this link: https://online.campuscommerce.com/signin/4NWZQ

  • Returning Loan Funds to a Lender

    If you’ve received a refund, and would like to cancel or reduce your loan, please follow the following steps depending on when you are requesting the return.

    Fully canceling your current disbursement(s) results in the cancellation of any future loan disbursements for the current academic year.

    You will be responsible for any balance on your student account that is a result of cancelling your loan disbursements.

    Returns up to 30 Days after Disbursement.

    • If you wish to reduce current and future disbursements of your loan, notify us by submitting a ticket on the Support Hub. We can return or reduce your loan funds up to 30 days after the disbursement to your student account.
    • In the ticket, please include the semester, the loan type, and the amount of the loan you wish to cancel. You will also need to provide us with the refund check you received or a personal or bank check made payable to Lesley for the amount you would like to have sent back.
    • Checks should be sent to Student Financial Services at 29 Everett Street in Cambridge, MA, or drop them off at the Support Hub, located on the 1st floor of University Hall.


    Returns after 30 Days

    If you wish to return all or a portion of your refund after 30 days from the date the funds were posted to your student account, contact your loan servicer directly.

    • Find the servicer of your loan. Go to www.NSLDS.ed.gov and log in or create an account.
    • Select the loan that generated your refund. Get the servicer’s contact information.
    • Contact the servicer directly. Inquire about their procedures for making a payment on your loan.


    Be clear if you’re making a payment on a recently disbursed loan. It may be possible to credit your payment as a return of funds, instead of a repayment.

Contact Student Accounts