FAQs: Refund Exceptions
The decision to withdraw from a course is made at your sole discretion and is a personal decision. You can consult with your advisor, instructor, and/or a financial aid counselor to help make this decision.
A request for exception is not a formal request to withdraw from a course. Visit drop and withdrawal for more information on how to properly withdraw from a course.
All students are subject to UMGC's Course Drop and Withdrawal Policy. You are permitted to drop a course within the timeframe specified in the policy. If you drop in accordance with the stated deadlines, you will be allotted a full tuition refund. Please be advised the application fee is nonrefundable. You will be responsible for all fees and all or a portion of the tuition if you drop outside of the stated deadlines, as this is considered a withdrawal.
To file a request for an exception to UMGC withdrawal and/or refund policies, you must meet the criteria as described in UMGC's Course Drop and Withdrawal Policy. All requests for exceptions to the UMGC withdrawal policy must be submitted within 90 days from the last day of the term during which the circumstance occurred.
Yes. Your request for an exception may be submitted after the 90-day deadline if you offer a compelling reason why you were unable to submit the form in a timely manner. Compelling reasons may include major illnesses requiring extensive hospital stays and lengthy military deployment. Please note, administrative remedies may be limited due to the passage of time.
Submit the Request for Exception Form via e-mail to the UMGC Asia registrar at registrar@asia.umgc.edu or the UMGC Europe registrar at registrar-europe@umgc.edu.
Circumstances are unique to each student, but generally, exceptions are considered for a circumstance where you have suffered an unforeseen or unexpected event that impaired your ability to complete classes during a particular semester.
If you experience a death of a family member during a semester, an exception is generally granted only if the deceased was a member of your immediate family.
Generally, unexpected or increased workload may qualify as a special circumstance. We will require a letter from your employer corroborating that during the relevant timeframe, you were unexpectedly required to work more hours or your duties significantly changed.
It is your responsibility to manage such minor, unforeseen incidents such as being busy at work, volunteering for too many activities, or minor illnesses. These do not qualify for an exception.
Generally, an appropriate authority will be an independent source who can corroborate and/or verify the circumstances that caused you to file a request for an exception. Following are common examples.
Medical: A signed letter on your physician's letterhead providing dates of the condition, as well as the dates of treatment corroborating that your medical condition/treatment impaired your ability to complete your class. Please do not submit your medical records, prescriptions, or care instructions, as we are not able to interpret medical documents.
Death: Copy of a death certificate and/or a copy of the obituary. The documentation must show the familial relationship. An exception for this reason is generally granted only if the deceased was a member of the student's immediate family.
Military: Copy of the orders that provide the date you were notified of your deployment and the date you were deployed or a letter from a commanding officer (an 05 or above in the chain of command) that addresses the issues that interfered with your ability to satisfactorily complete your class.
Job: A signed letter from your employer that provides dates and corroborates the issues that interfered with your ability to satisfactorily complete your class, or a notice of termination, application for unemployment benefits, or any other third-party documentation that verifies you suffered a job loss that interfered with your ability to satisfactorily complete your class.
If you have questions regarding documentation required to be submitted with your petition, please e-mail exception.request@umgc.edu.
Yes. We recommend that all students submit a detailed and persuasive typewritten statement that fully explains the reasons for their request for exception. This statement should not exceed one page in length.
We will research the issue internally. If you have documentation that supports your claim, this documentation must be submitted with the request for exception. This information should include but is not limited to e-mails or letters from UMGC, instructors, advisors, and/or the Help Center support tickets.
No. The request for an exception cannot be used to dispute grades or request a change to an earned grade. Grade appeals must be directed to the appropriate academic school. See UMGC Policy 130.80 - Procedures for Review of Alleged Arbitrary and Capricious Grading.
No. The request for an exception cannot be used to complain about an instructor. Concerns about an instructor's actions or inactions must be directed to the dean of the appropriate academic school. See UMGC Policy V-1.02 - Student Grievance Procedures.
No. Questions concerning Satisfactory Academic Progress as outlined by financial aid regulations can be addressed by Financial Aid.
A determination may take up to eight weeks from the date the request for exception is received. However, the process may take longer if you didn't include a personal statement or documentation from an appropriate authority.
You will receive a request for additional information if you did not submit a personal statement and/or appropriate documentation. You may also receive a request for more information if the provided documentation needs to be supplemented or further explained. You will have 14 days to respond to requests for additional information. Failure to respond will result in a denial of your request. You may request additional time, if necessary.
Yes. You can e-mail exception.request@umgc.edu. Please allow 30 days from the submittal of all documentation.
No. Collection activities will not cease during the review of your request for exemption.
No. Please make payment arrangements while the request for exception is being reviewed.
Please allow at least 15 business days for any changes to be made to your account, refunds to be processed, or grades to be changed. Please allow at least 30-45 business days for any changes to be made on accounts at the State Central Collections Unit.
Refunds are returned in the manner that payment was originally received.
You should expect the grade change to be reflected on your transcript shortly after you get an approval letter.
Withdrawing from a course(s) can cause financial aid consequences in some cases. According to the Return of Title IV Funds, you may be responsible for returning financial aid that has already been disbursed. In addition, in some cases, students who are receiving a Federal Pell Grant may show a decrease or increase in the Pell amount awarded.
You must present a new personal statement explaining why the denial was made in error or proving new or additional information pertaining to the original request. Please refer to the denial letter for instructions on how to appeal the decision.
No. You are not permitted to raise an issue on a second-level review that was not included in your original request for exception. You can, however, submit a new request if it is still within the 90-day time limitation.