Expenses and Financial Aid

Tuition and Fees for 2014–2015

Payment of Fees

An advance tuition deposit of $200 is required of all students. For newly admitted students, the deposit is credited to the student’s account when she/he/zi enters Grinnell. For returning students, the deposit is prerequisite to room draw and preregistration. Notification of the due date for this payment is given to students and parents in March of each year. Students granted a leave are required to pay the deposit, which will be applied to their account on their return semester. The advance tuition deposit is nonrefundable.

After advance payments are credited to the student’s account, the remaining charges for tuition and fees are due approximately one month before the start of each term. If an account is not paid in full by those dates, the College regards the student’s account as delinquent. Students whose accounts are delinquent are not entitled to meals, room, registration, admission to classes, or issue of transcripts. Delinquent balances are subject to a monthly finance charge of 1.5 percent from the date the account is considered delinquent. Grinnell College reserves the right to recover all costs involved with the collection and/or litigation of delinquent accounts.

For parents who prefer to pay college expenses in monthly installments, the College offers an option administered by an outside agency. For further information, contact the Office of the Cashier.

Refunds

The College engages its faculty and assigns residence hall space in advance of each semester in accordance with the number of students who have signified intent to be enrolled. When students withdraw during the semester, they leave vacancies that cannot be filled. The following rules concerning refunds protect Grinnell from losses when students withdraw.

A student withdrawing from the College within the first six weeks of the semester is held responsible for tuition, room, meal plan, and other fees on a prorated basis as of the date the student withdraws. If a student withdraws after six weeks into the semester, no tuition, room, meal plan, and other fees will be refunded. The same policy applies to emergency leaves.

Tuition, room, meal plan, and other fees will not be refunded for students suspended or dismissed for academic or conduct reasons during the semester.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:

Federal student aid funds are awarded to a student under the assumption that the student will attend school for the entire period for which the assistance is awarded. When a student withdraws before completing more than 60% of the semester, the student may no longer be eligible for the full amount of student aid that the student was originally scheduled to receive.

Based on a prescribed federal refund calculation the percentage of the semester attended is used to calculate the amount of the student’s earned/unearned federal student aid funds. The unearned portion of federal student aid funds will be returned to the appropriate aid program(s).

After withdrawal adjustments to tuition, required fees, room, and meal option, funds are returned to payment sources in the following order:

1. Federal Unsubsidized Direct loans
2. Federal Subsidized Direct loans
3. Federal Perkins loans
4. Federal PLUS loans
5. Federal Pell grants
6. Federal SEOG grants
7. Other Title IV aid
8. State loans
9. State grants
10. Private grants
11. Institutional loans
12. Institutional grants
13. Other payment sources
14. Student

Examples of federal refund and repayment calculations are available from the Office of the Cashier.

The student is responsible for payment to the College of any balance due after the required return of funds.

Meal Plan Options for 2014–2015

1. Listed below are the meal plan options available to students living in the residence halls and their charges per year:

First-year students

Returning/Transfer students living in residence halls

2. Students living in College-owned housing, excluding the residence halls, have a variety of options, ranging from no meal plan to the full 20 meals per week (Meal Plan 01). Meal plan options are distributed in the spring of each year for the following fall semester.
    
3. Students living in Cowles Apartments are required to participate at a minimum in Meal Plan 6, 65 meals plus Dining Dollars per semester, $1,980 per year.
    
4. Students living in noncollege housing off campus may purchase any meal plan option from the Office of Dining Services.

Music Fees per semester 

For additional scholarship opportunities for music lessons, please see the Music Department web page.

*    Credits earned in music lessons are NOT counted in the number of credits that determine whether a student is liable for an “overload” fee (over 18 credits).
**  Majors must declare before the end of the add/drop period in order to receive free lessons for that semester. There is not limit on the number of free lessons/semester that music majors may receive.
*** Non-majors are entitled to one scholarship of $290 per semester (on a trial basis for the academic years 2013-2016). Additional lessons will be at full cost. As a condition of receiving the scholarship, students will be required to complete the course (14 lessons/semester); those who do not complete the course will be billed the full amount. Non-majors who drop the course within the first 6 weeks of the semester will receive a pro-rated refund based on the full cost of lessons.

 Special Fees 

Contingent Charges

All Grinnell students make a $100 damage deposit that is separate from the advance tuition deposit and is included in the first-semester billing. The deposit is applied to any fines or outstanding bills at the end of each semester. Before registration each fall semester, students must restore the damage deposit to $100. Any unused portion of the deposit will be returned upon graduation or withdrawal from Grinnell.

Tuition and Fees for Off-Campus Study Programs

Grinnell College charges its own tuition and a handling fee for any student enrolling in an off-campus program for which the tuition and required fees are equal to or less than Grinnell’s tuition. For off-campus programs for which the tuition and fees exceed those of Grinnell, the College charges students the tuition and fees of those off-campus programs. Board, room, program fees, travel, and other miscellaneous expenses are billed according to the charges from each individual program.

The family contribution is determined by using the same federal and institutional formulas for on-campus and OCS programs.  Grinnell makes every effort to meet student’s demonstrated institutional need for off-campus study.  However, based on the comprehensive cost associated with attending an off-campus program, students may have to borrow additional funds or contribute more then they would if they remained on campus.

Financial Aid and Scholarships

In 2013–14, the College awarded more than $54 million for scholarships, grants, and other aid. Furthermore, more than 88 percent of Grinnell’s students received some type of financial assistance.

A majority of the financial aid awarded at Grinnell is calculated on the basis of financial need as determined through the application process. Need is not considered when determining a student’s eligibility for admission to Grinnell. If a student qualifies for admission, the College will meet the demonstrated institutional financial need.

The College requires admission before an award is offered. Financial aid is awarded on an annual basis and may be adjusted in subsequent years if the family’s financial situation or number of family members in college changes, the financial aid application deadline is missed, or satisfactory academic progress is not maintained.

Scholarships, Grants, Employment, and Loans

Institutional grants and scholarships form the largest part of Grinnell’s financial aid funds and are available as a result of great generosity and stewardship over many decades and involving many alumni, parents, and other friends.

The federal and state governments also provide gift assistance to eligible students. Most of these grants are established for very high-need students.

In addition to the financial aid offered by Grinnell College, there are many private sources of scholarships, grants, and loans. Be sure to apply for outside scholarships, as they often reduce loans. Many printed and online resources are available, including: www.fafsa.ed.gov>, www.collegenet.com>, www.finaid.org>, and www.fastweb.com>.

Student jobs on campus are funded by Grinnell and the federal government. Grinnell offers jobs first to students with demonstrated financial need. Students who work eight hours a week can expect to earn about $2,200 during the academic year.

Grinnell awards educational loans primarily from the federal loan programs. These programs provide students and their parents with long-term, low-interest loans.