Northwest University is a private, church-related university. Therefore, no operating funds from taxes or public funds support its operation. Each student is charged tuition and certain fees which cover about eighty-five percent of the cost of his/her education. The remainder of the cost is provided by gifts from friends of the University, supporting districts, endowment income, and other earnings.
Payment of Accounts
The total cost of each term is based upon the total number of credits taken that term. It is the policy of the University that there can be no outstanding past due accounts at registration. All past due and old accounts must be settled or alternate arrangements must be agreed upon with the Student Financial Services Office prior to registering for the following term. Negotiated arrangements for paying anything other than the full amount must be established prior to registration. The Payment of Accounts Policy also applies to those qualifying for veteran’s benefits and outside scholarships.
Pay In Full Plan
Tuition, fees, and semester housing charges are to be paid in full before the first day of classes each semester.
Monthly Payment Plan
Nelnet - Students who wish to make monthly payments based on the annual cost of tuition, housing and fees will enroll with Nelnet. Nelnet is a budgeting service that allows the student to pay an entire year’s education costs in monthly installments. They provide an annual ten or nine month payment plan to help students manage the cost of education. A single semester plan is also available, if necessary.
A budget is set up with this agency based on estimated charges less estimated financial aid (including loans) for the entire academic year/semester. The first payment must be received by Nelnet not later than July 1 (10 pay plan) or August 1 (9 pay plan) of each year to enroll for this option. Those enrolling with Nelnet after August 1 include June and/or July payments with their application. Although there is a $125.00 annual enrollment fee for this plan, there are no finance charges to non-delinquent participants.
Educational Benefits
Northwest University is approved as an educational institution for the training of veterans or their dependents. Applications are available on the Department of Veterans Affairs website at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/. Those qualifying under the extended Social Security Act should apply for benefits at their local offices of the Social Security Administration. The University will make the proper certifications as to enrollment and attendance after the student has enrolled in the University.
Any veteran receiving GI Bill® benefits while attending Northwest University is required to obtain transcripts from all previously attended schools and submit them to the school for review of prior credit.
In accordance with Title 38 US Code 3679 subsection (e), this school adopts the following additional provisions for any students using U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Post 9/11 G.I. Bill® (Ch. 33) or Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Ch. 31) benefits, while payment to the institution is pending from the VA. This school will not:
- Prevent the students enrollment;
- Assess a late penalty fee to;
- Require student secure alternative or additional funding;
- Deny their access to any resources (access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities) available to other students who have satisfied their tuition and fee bills to the institution.
However, to qualify for this provision, such students may be required to:
- Produce the Certificate of Eligibility by the first day of class;
- Provide written request to be certified;
- Provide additional information needed to properly certify the enrollment as described in other institutional policies
Late Fees
Northwest will charge late fees as follows: For balances between $0.00 and $25.00, the late fee will be zero. For balances $25.01 and over a 1.5% late fee not to exceed $100.
Financial policies apply to all students (except those that qualify for VA benefits under Chapter 31 and 33). If you qualify for VA benefits under Chapter 31 and 33, late fees will not be assessed due to the late receipt of VA benefits.
Nelnet will assess a $65.00 late fee for each late payment made on the monthly plan established at the beginning of the school year/semester the student is attending. Please contact Nelnet for further details.
Past Due Accounts
A student is considered past due:
- If they have an owing balance after the first day of class.
Students failing to meet the payment schedule will be contacted by Student Financial Services. Efforts to communicate will be made for a period of approximately 45 days.
If, after these efforts are accomplished and it is clear that the student is aware that payments are delinquent, reasonable attempts to address the financial obligations have not been made, the student will no longer be allowed meal card privileges, and/or Internet privileges.
If the financial problems persist, on-campus resident students will no longer be allowed to live in on-campus housing, and may be suspended from class until a solution is reached between the Student Financial Services Office and the student. Students failing to respond will be withdrawn from the University by the Provost.
Since financial responsibility is part of the educational process, Student Financial Services encourages students to counsel with the University personnel any time a financial problem arises. Many problems may be avoided and/or resolved with communication. Communication is the key to successful fiscal responsibility.
The University reserves the right to assign delinquent accounts to an agency for collection.
Cancellation of Registration
The Registration Cancellation policy applies to all semesters. Note that private music lesson fees (after the contract is signed); Trip Fees for the MA in International Community Development Orientation Trip, and cancellation penalties may not be indicated below. See the Academic Calendar or specific program pages at eagle.northwestu.edu for the applicable First Day of Class.
Cancellation of Registration – A student who registers for class but decides not to attend must notify the Registrar’s Office in writing before the end of business on the Last day of the Add/Drop period. Proper notification will cancel the tuition and related charges.
Cancellation after Add/Drop period if any classes were attended – Considered a Withdrawal from University – see next section.
Withdrawal from the University
Students who officially withdraw during the add/drop period will have tuition refunded 100%. Fees are nonrefundable.
If a student withdraws after the add/drop period tuition will not be adjusted. The student will be responsible for all tuition charges.
Withdrawal From University – Financial Aid
Students who receive financial aid during the term in which they withdraw are not considered to be making satisfactory academic progress. Future aid will be cancelled. Students should contact Student Financial Services to determine how to regain eligibility should they choose to return to Northwest University.
The date of withdrawal will be based on the day the student contacts the Registrar’s Office and indicates a desire to officially withdraw, or the last date of documented attendance, whichever is later. For financial aid purposes students who unofficially withdraw from Northwest University (cease to attend classes without notifying the Registrar), will be considered to have withdrawn after 50% of the semester has passed or the last date of documented attendance, whichever is later.
According to federal regulations, federal funds must be returned to federal programs based on the percent of the term that a student is no longer enrolled. Student Financial Services will determine how much of a student’s federal aid was “unearned” as defined by the federal regulations, and then return the “unearned” aid in the following order to the programs from which the student received aid:
- Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan
- Federal Direct PLUS Loan
If you have received federal aid in the form of cash to assist you with non-institutional charges, you may need to repay the funds that you received.
Withdrawal from University – Administrative
If a student is absent from all classes for more than two weeks consecutively without contacting the Registrar’s or Provost’s Office to explain the reason for his or her absences, the University has the authority to administratively withdraw the student from all course enrollments and to assign grades of “F” to each course. In this case, the official withdrawal date for financial obligation purposes will be two weeks after the last date of class attendance as certified by faculty and verified by the Registrar’s Office.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Students enrolled in a graduate program and who receive financial aid are required to meet a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA for all terms of attendance, including terms when no aid is received.
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