Financial Information

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Location of Bursar’s Office- The Bursar’s Office is located in the foyer of Nelson Hall.

All accounts are due and payable at the time of registration. Accounts owed the University must be paid before the student is eligible to register for additional classes. Transcripts will not be mailed until accounts are cleared.

Student Expenses

The cost to attend Mississippi College and the refund policies have been approved by the Board of Trustees and are designed to be as fair as possible to both the University and the student. If a student thinks they have not been administered as written, and in a fair and equitable manner, an appeal to these policies may be directed to the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Telephone: 601.925.3202. The University reserves the right to revise prices as economic conditions warrant.

Payment Arrangements and Financial Assistance

Tuition and fees are due and payable in full by the given deadline each semester unless utilizing the monthly payment plan. Accepted forms of payment are cash, check, money order, Visa, or Mastercard, Discover, and American Express.

Any account balance not paid by the given deadline will be considered past due and will be placed on hold. Students with an account on hold will not be able to register for any upcoming semesters, view grades online, receive transcripts and are subject to possible withdrawal from classes. Past due accounts will also be subject to a late payment penalty.

Monthly Payment Plan

The University offers a monthly payment plan, a convenient method for planning and budgeting tuition and fees for the fall or spring semester. Under this plan, costs may be paid with up to four (4) monthly payments per semester. More detailed information may be obtained by contacting the Bursar’s Office at 601.925.3307 or 1.800.738.1287 or by email at bursar@mc.edu or by visiting www.mc.edu/offices/business.

Financial Aid

All matters concerning financial aid are under the direction of the Committee for Enrollment Appeals-composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students. This committee establishes policies regarding financial aid. The amount of aid awarded a student is based on either scholarship or financial need. Aid is offered under the categories described below.

Institutional and Other Scholarships

A limited number of institutional scholarships are available for which a graduate student may apply. A complete listing of graduate scholarships is available upon request from the Graduate Office. These scholarships are awarded to students who meet qualifications as outlined for each. Generally students may receive only one type institutional scholarship at any given enrollment period. Graduate Students may qualify for scholarships in the following ways:

1. as departmentally assigned graduate assistants,
2. as recipients of occupationally defined scholarships,
3. as participants in an employer reimbursement educational plan, or
4. as participants in a state supported financial aid program for students in Mississippi pursuing a program of study leading to a Class AA educator license, i.e., various scholarships promoted by the Institutions of Higher Learning.

Graduate Assistantships

A limited number of graduate assistantships are available. Individuals interested in these should contact the department chair or Dean of School for information and/or applications. Awards vary based upon the duties assigned and the number of hours employed weekly by department.

Occupationally Defined Scholarships

A limited number of occupationally defined, partial scholarships are available. Individuals interested in these should contact the Graduate School for application deadlines. Currently Mississippi College offers the following:

1. Professional Development Scholarship for Educators.
   
   The PDS for Educators is designed for those graduate students who are currently employed in elementary and secondary public and/or private schools seeking a master’s degree or education specialist. The terminal degrees of the doctorate and the Master of Fine Arts are not eligible for this scholarship. Some restrictions apply since these awards are deadline-sensitive and are not retroactive.
2. Administration of Justice and Homeland Security Scholarships.
   
   The AJU & Homeland Security Scholarships are designed to encourage those graduate students in the Master of Social Sciences degree majoring in Administration of Justice and the Graduate Certificate in Homeland Security and employed by local law enforcement agencies to pursue graduate degrees. A limited number of awards are available annually; these awards are deadline-sensitive and are not retroactive.
    
3. Employer Reimbursement Programs

A number of employers will reimburse all or part of their employee’s tuition based on inhouse company/corporate policy. Contact your employer to see if such a program exists. Payment deadlines established by Mississippi College apply to you regardless of program participation/reimbursement scheme offered by your employer. Contact the Mississippi College Bursar’s Office to obtain information regarding payment arrangements regulating these programs and other company billing options.

Federal Student Aid

Students wishing to be awarded federal student aid must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Mississippi College should be designated as a recipient of FAFSA data. The FAFSA may be completed on the internet at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Be aware that financial aid awards are limited by provisions of admission. Failing to remove provisional admission requirements within one year will impact your federal financial aid eligibility. Contact the Office of Financial Aid for current guidelines.

Receiving and Maintaining Financial Assistance

Students should be aware that admission status (provisional, regular, non-degree) determines federal financial aid eligibility and amounts students are eligible to receive. Provisionally admitted students have one year to remove stated provisions to remain eligible to receive federal financial aid. Non-degree students are not eligible for federal financial aid. Contact Office of Financial Aid for current guidelines.

Students on academic probation will be eligible to receive financial assistance for the first semester on academic probation, and they will be eligible to receive financial assistance for the second semester provided substantial academic progress was made during the first semester.

Students who are denied financial assistance due to unsatisfactory academic progress have the right to appeal the denial. Students should place in writing the request to appeal to the Committee for Enrollment Appeals. (Contact the Director of Financial Aid, Telephone: 601.925.3212.) The full satisfactory academic progress policy can be found in the Financial Aid section of the Mississippi College website.

Graduate Expenses

Table 1

Graduate Students

Table II

Special Fees and Expenses

Table III- Course Fees

Tuition Refund Policies

Refund of Tuition on Courses Dropped (refer to semester academic calendar for specific dates)

Refund on Withdrawal from Mississippi College - A student desiring to withdraw from the University should initiate the process using the Complete Withdrawal link in the MY MC student portal.  It is necessary for the correct procedure to be followed.  Failure to process an official withdrawal earns a grade of F in each course.  Deadlines for withdrawal are the same as those for dropping courses.  Any claims for refunds of tuition will be based on the date on which the student initiates the online withdrawal process.

Any claims for refunds of tuition will be based on the date on which the student files a completed withdrawal form with the Business Office.

Refund of Tuition upon Withdrawal - Note that in counting deadlines (for changes of schedule, refunds, etc.) the first week of the semester is the calendar week in which classes begin. Registration fees are not refundable.

Refund of Living Expenses

Should a student withdraw from school or cease to be a resident student, on-campus living expenses will be refunded at 25% the first week of classes and will decrease by 2% each week thereafter. 

A student withdrawing from Mississippi College will surrender their ID card to the Office of Residence Life at the time the withdrawal papers are processed.

Refund on Other Fees

All registration, special, and course fees are not refundable.

Refunds/Return of Title IV Funds

When a student withdraws from classes, he/she may be entitled to receive money back which had been paid to the University. The University may be able to refund all or a portion of the tuition, fees, etc., the student paid. If the tuition, fees, etc., were paid with Title IV financial aid, all or a portion of the student’s refund must be returned to the student aid programs from which the money was awarded. A student who receives a cash disbursement to assist with living expenses and then withdraws may be required to return money to the aid programs from which the money was awarded.  

Federal regulations require Mississippi College to have a fair and equitable refund policy. If a recipient of Title IV aid withdraws during a period of enrollment, Mississippi College must calculate the amount of Title IV aid the student did not earn. The percentage of aid earned is equal to the percentage of time completed. Unearned Title IV funds must be returned to the Title IV programs. 

The return of unearned Title IV aid is calculated in accordance with Federal regulations.  This calculations applies to any student who meets the following criteria:

1. Withdraws from the university or ceases class attendance prior to the end of the term and
2. Received Federal Title IV aid (Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal Direct Loan, Federal Plus Loan, but not Work Study)

If a student withdraws from the university or ceases class attendance prior to the end of the term, the university is required to calculate the amount of aid earned.  Any unearned aid must be returned according to the provisions of the Higher Education Amendment of 1998.  The withdrawal date is determined when the student initiates the withdrawal process in Banner web.  The withdrawal date for unofficial withdrawals is the midpoint of the semester or the last date of attendance that a professor provides to the Financial Aid Office.  The calculation of the return of these funds may result in the student owing a balance to the university.

The student is responsible for any balance due on the account after the Title IV funds have been returned.  The student’s responsibility also includes earned Title IV aid and any tuition and fees due to the institution.

The university is responsible for the return of unearned tuition and fees.  To determine the institution’s responsibility, multiply the total amount of institutional charges for the semester by the percentage unearned.  Compare this result with the amount of Title IV aid unearned, the lesser amount is the unearned Title IV aid the institution is required to return.

Federal regulations require Mississippi College to have a fair and equitable refund policy. If a recipient of Title IV aid withdraws during a period of enrollment, Mississippi College must calculate the amount of Title IV aid the student did not earn. The percentage of aid earned is equal to the percentage of time completed. Unearned Title IV funds must be returned to the Title IV programs.

If a student withdraws on or before the 60% point of enrollment, the percentage of aid earned is equal to the percentage of time completed. If a student remains enrolled beyond the 60% point of enrollment period, 100% of the aid has been earned for that period.  The percentage of earned days is calculated by taking the number of days the student attended the university and divide it by the total number of days for the semester.  The amount of aid earned is equal to the amount of aid disbursed plus the amount of aid that could have been disbursed multiplied by the percentage of earned aid.  The amount of earned aid is subtracted from the total amount disbursed.  This is the unearned aid that should be returned.

Funds are returned in the following order up to the full amount disbursed:

Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
Subsidized Stafford Loan
Federal Perkins Loan