Step 4: Receive Your Funds

Use the links below to access documents related to your receipt of financial aid at Eastern Oregon University.

Disbursement Policy

The following disbursement policy is applied to all students receiving financial aid for every term of the academic year.  The objective is to deliver eligible financial aid in the timeliest manner possible, with less paperwork required from students.

Official Enrollment Level Your enrollment level for financial aid purposes is the same as your enrollment level with the Registrar’s Office:  the number of credits you are enrolled in each term (including summer). Please refer to chart below:

Student LevelFull Time3/4 TimeHalf TimeLess Than 1/2 Time
Undergraduate129-116-81-5
Post-baccalaureate129-116-8N/A
Graduate97-84.5-6N/A

Disbursement Policy Summary

1. Aid disbursement begins typically the week before fall, winter and spring terms.  Summer term aid disbursement begins on or after July 1st each year.

2. The Census Date is the end of the 4th week of fall, winter and spring terms.  On the Census Date, we will “freeze” your enrollment for the term and base your financial aid on the number of credits that you are enrolled in. If you drop credits during summer term, aid may be adjusted through the last day of summer term.

3. Some financial aid for fall, winter and spring terms will be adjusted to reflect your enrollment on the Census Date.  For example, if you received aid for full time enrollment at the beginning of the term and then dropped credits, your aid will be adjusted to reflect your enrollment status on the Census Date.  These adjustments may include reductions or cancellations of some or all aid.

4. Reduction or cancellation of aid can create a balance due on the student’s account.  It is the student’s responsibility to make payment arrangements with the Student Accounts Office.  The Student Accounts office can be contacted at cashier@eou.edu or 541-962-3590.

5. Students enrolled less than half time are not eligible for federal loans.

6. Retroactive aid (aid for a term that has ended prior to disbursement) must be disbursed based on completed classes/credits only.  A completed class is a grade for that class that is either an A, B, C, or D.  The student’s GPA must also have been at least a 2.0 for that term.

Disbursement of Loan Funds After a Term Ends

To receive loan funds after a term ends, students must successfully complete a minimum of half-time credits for the previous term(s). Student must also be enrolled at least half-time and requesting loan funds for the current term.

If the student is receiving a loan for just one term (e.g., fall term only), the financial aid award must have been offered, accepted and processed before the end of that term.  Federal regulations mandate that a loan for a term that has already ended can be certified only if the student is currently enrolled at least half time and there has been no break in enrollment.  For example if a student attends Fall and Spring terms, we cannot process a Fall loan because there has been a break in the enrollment.

Minimum Enrollment Requirements for Disbursement

Aid TypesUndergraduatePost-BacGraduate
Pell Grant1n/an/a
OR Opp. Grant6n/an/a
SEOG6n/an/a
Perkins Loan1n/an/a
Stafford Loan664.5
Parent PLUS6n/an/a
Grad PLUSn/an/a4.5
Scholarshipsvaries by scholarshipvaries by scholarshipvaries by scholarship

* Federal Pell Grant must be prorated based on the number of credits.  Full time (12+ credits) receives 100%, 3/4 time ( 9-11 credits) receives 75%, 1/2 time ( 6-8 credits) receives 50%, and less than 1/2 time ( 1-5 credits) receives 25%.  Not all students enrolled less than full time will receive Pell Grant funds, as the award is based upon the student’s EFC.


Enrollment Changes

Enrollment Changes Before Aid Is Disbursed

All initial financial aid award packages are based upon full time enrollment.

Full time enrollment is defined as 12 credit hours per term for undergraduates and 9 credit hours per term for graduate students.

Students who plan to attend part time must contact the financial aid office before the beginning of a term to have their aid revised.

Pell Grant and Oregon Opportunity Grant award amounts vary with attendance level (full time versus part time).  Depending upon each student’s financial aid package, other aid programs award amounts may be the same for full or part time attendance.

Enrollment Level Table by Student Level and Credit Hours

Student LevelFull timeThree quarter timeHalf timeLess than half time
Undergraduate12 or more9-116-81-5
Post-baccalaureate12 or more9-116-81-5
Graduate9 or more7-85-61-4

Enrollment Changes After Aid Is Disbursed

Commonly, students add and drop courses at the beginning of a term as they adjust their course schedules.  When these course schedule adjustments result in enrollment level changes (i.e. from full time to part time), financial aid award amounts may change.  Award amount changes may occur through the end of the 4th week of fall, winter and spring terms.  At the end of the 4th week of these terms, financial aid is “frozen” and no further changes will be made.  The Financial Aid Office refers to the end of the 4th week as the “freeze date.”

As an example, if a student received financial aid at the start of the term calculated on full time enrollment, and the student’s enrollment is less than full time on the freeze date, some aid will be recalculated based upon the student’s enrollment as of the freeze date.

Students enrolled less than half-time on the freeze date are not eligible for some federal funds (some students have Pell Grant eligibility at less than half-time).  In these cases, financial aid disbursements will be reversed (taken back).  When the Financial Aid Office reverses disbursements, students then have a balance on their student accounts.  Students are responsible for paying any balance on their accounts.


Financial Aid Refunds

Financial Aid refunds are processed by The Student Accounts Office.  All credit balances on a student’s account  are refunded to students within 14 days of disbursement via check, or eRefund. 

Financial Aid funds are disbursed directly to student’s account based on the published disbursement dates shown on the academic calendar.  All refunds to students are mailed by check, unless students register for eRefund (Electronic Deposit).

For questions about financial aid refunds, please Contact Student Accounts at 541-962-3590 or email cashier@eou.edu or visit their home page at www.eou.edu/student-financial-services

PLUS Loan Refunds

All credit balances on a student’s account resulting from PLUS loan funds received will be mailed directly to the parent borrower, unless otherwise authorized.  If the parent of a PLUS loan recipient would like any excess funds to be refunded directly to the student, please complete the PLUS loan release authorization provided by the student accounts office.

Student Accounts – PLUS loan release authorization


Returning Loans

Returning Loan Funds Within 14 Days After Disbursement

Borrowers of federal student loans (Perkins, Stafford, PLUS, GradPLUS) have the right to return all or a portion of their loan disbursements to EOU within 14 days of disbursement.  This means that we will take your loan disbursement amount back and return funds to the lender for you.  This will reduce your debt.  If we return direct loans to the direct loan account, the direct loan servicer should send you an updated statement showing the reduction.  The return of loan funds will also show on NSLDS.  Since the the direct loan servicer updates NSLDS, it will take about 90 days for the returned amount to show up on NSLDS.

Perkins loan funds returned to EOU within the 14 day period are administered by EOU.

After the 14 Day Time Period

If you decide to return direct loan funds after the 14 day time period, you will need to work with the direct loan servicer to return funds.

After you receive your funds…

After you get your funds, make sure you keep your funds: learn more at Step 5: Maintain eligibility.