Student Tuition and Fee Refunds (Procedure 5.0450)

Purpose

To provide a mechanism for refund of College tuition and fees.

Definition

Immediate family member - For the purpose of this procedure, an immediate family member is a spouse, parent, child, or sibling.

Procedure

1. Dropped or Cancelled Classes
   In order to receive a refund, the student must officially drop from a course or there must be a college action such as a course cancellation. The drop date will be determined by the date of the Drop Form (form) or on-line self-service transaction date as received by the Registrar/Enrollment Services Office. To be eligible for a refund for a student-initiated drop, add/drop forms or on-line self-service transaction must be received prior to the end of the add/drop period for each term and session as published in the Seminole State College Catalog.
   
   A full term is divided into the following: "A" session (first half of a full term); "B" session (last half of a full term); Odd Term (OT) session (OT sessions occur within the full term and have a predetermined start and end date. OT sessions may start and end at any time and they may last for a day, week, month, or more.); and Open Entry/Exit (OEE) session (OEE sessions occur within the full term ad have a predetermined start and end period; however, these classes are normally learner-paced and the student may enter and exit within the predetermined start and end period.)
   
   Refunds will be made as follows:
   
   
   1. College and Vocational Credit

      Session	Time Period		Refund
      A, B, 12W, or Full Term	Courses dropped by the close of business hours or online by midnight on the last scheduled date of add/drop		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund
      Odd Term	For classes meeting one(1) to three (3) days:
      	Courses dropped prior to the first scheduled class day		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund
      	For classes meeting four (4) days or more:
      	Courses dropped within one (1) calendar day after the first scheduled class day		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund

   2. Non-Credit Courses

      Session	Time Period		Refund
      A, B, 12W, or Full Term	Courses dropped by the close of business hours or online by midnight on the last scheduled date of add/drop		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund
      Odd Term	For classes meeting one(1) to three (3) days:
      	Courses dropped prior to the first scheduled class day		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund
      	For classes meeting four (4) days or more:
      	Courses dropped within one (1) calendar day after the first scheduled class day		100% refund
      	Thereafter*		No refund
      Open Entry/Exit (OEE)	Refund is by request only.

   3. Corporate Contracted Classes

      Time Period	Refund Amount
      Refund is	Refund is subject to terms of applicable contract.
      Thereafter*	No refund

   4. General Information
      Courses cancelled by the College - 100% refund.
      College error - 100% refund.
2. Refund
   1. Seminole State College may refund 100% of the tuition and fees after the published refund deadline if a student withdraws from a course(s) due to death of an immediate family member, death of the student, or involuntary call to active military duty. No refund will be approved unless the student provides the necessary documentation which supports the reason for a refund. If documentation cannot be provided, the request for refund cannot be considered. Students must file a Request for Refund form prior to the beginning of classes for the next successive term to the Registrar/Enrollment Services Office. A family member may submit the Request for Refund based on death of the student. Failure to file the request in a timely manner may be considered as a reason for the denial of the request. The request is reviewed and decided by the Registrar/Enrollment Services Office and no appeal process is offered.
   2. Forms can be found online.
      
      
3. Money-Back Guarantee Program
   1. Program Description:
      The Money-Back Guarantee Program was created by the Florida Legislature in 2021 with the Reimagining Education and Career Help (REACH) Act. Students who complete a program designated for the money-back guarantee and are not employed six months after graduation in their field of study are now eligible to request a full refund of their tuition costs.
   2. Eligibility Criteria:
      A student is considered eligible if they are unable to obtain employment in the field in which the student was trained within six (6) months of graduating from the program.
      
      The student must be legally eligible for employment in the US and in the field of study completed at Seminole State College of Florida.
      
      
      1. Student Attendance
         The student must have met classroom attendance or clock hours requirements for their program of study.
      2. Student program performance
         The student must have enrolled in and completed any of the eligible programs with at least a 2.0 GPA or earned a "C" or better in all program course requirements and major course requirements.
         
         The student must have registered for the industry certification(s) required for employment within one (1) month of program graduation.
         
         The student must have passed all state and/or industry certification (s) required for employment.
         
         
      3. Career Service or Career Day attendance
         The student must have attended at least three (3) industry-related career fairs and/or registered with the College's Office of Career Success for employment assistance.
      4. In internship or work-study programs
         The student must have participated in at least one (1) Work-Based Learning opportunity such as internship placement, job shadowing, career mentorship, on-the-job training, clinical, practicum, apprenticeships, simulated work-based learning etc.
         
         
   3. Job search documentation
      The student must have documentary evidence of at least five (5) employer contacts per week for jobs in the field of their program of study.
      
      
   4. Development of a student career plan with the institution's career services department.
      The student must utilize services from Seminole State College of Florida's Office of Career Success to develop a career plan within the first semester of enrollment and provide evidence of a plan.
      
      The student must have completed at least four (4) unique pre-approved career development workshops while enrolled at the college.
4. A student may file an application for a refund six months after they graduated from a Money Back Guarantee Program provided, they meet all the above criteria at the time the application is filed. Applications will not be accepted after one year from the date of their graduation from the program. Applications are available on the Seminole State College website:  Money Back Guarantee - Seminole State College.

Rulemaking Authority and Law(s) Implemented: Florida Statute 1001.64, FAC 6A-14.0541, and College Policies 1.020, 5.040

History – Adopted 12/2005 Revised 1/2013, 2/2014, 5/2014, 5/2024, 8/2026