Disbursements & Refunds

Only financial aid eligible students who have begun participating in one or more courses are eligible to receive financial aid disbursement(s) scheduled for that subscription period.

You must establish attendance for every course you are enrolled in by the 8th day of the subscription period.

On the ninth day of each subscription period, your records are reviewed for academic engagement. If you have participated, you will have the financial aid scheduled for that subscription period released and applied to your student account.  If you have not participated, you will not have financial aid released and may be considered as withdrawn for financial aid purposes.

Schedule of Financial Aid Disbursements

In general, your annual financial aid funds are divided into four equal installments to align with the start of each new subscription period when tuition is due.  Typically, two subscription periods equate to one payment period.  Similarly, two payment periods equate to one academic year.  (For more information on payment periods and academic years, please click here.)

Note:  Not all students will receive a disbursement at the start of every subscription period.  Click here to watch a short video to learn more about the requirements for receiving additional disbursements.

Financial Aid and Tuition Responsibility

In some cases, your financial aid disbursement may be less than your tuition bill.  In those instances, students will be responsible for providing another form of payment to satisfy the remaining tuition balance. Visit this page to learn more about how to make a payment.

Alternatively, if your financial aid exceeds your tuition bill, you will be sent a refund check.

Post-Withdrawal Disbursements

If you did not receive all of the funds that you earned, you may be due a post withdrawal disbursement. You will be notified by the UW Flexible Option Financial Aid Office if you qualify for a post withdrawal disbursement. To learn more about this, please visit this page.

Disbursement of financial aid funds begins on approximately the 9th day of the subscription period to the Bursar’s Office of your home institution so the funds can be applied to your university charges. If the amount of aid you accepted exceeds the amount you owe the university, you will be issued a refund. These funds can be used for your other educational expenses.

Refund Check Issuance

After the ninth day of the subscription period, refund checks are processed. If you haven’t received your refund within two weeks of the refund date in your student information system (e.g. PAWS or SOLAR), you can contact your home campus billing office to get a status of your refund.

If you have received a refund and wish to return the funds, contact the home campus billing office for additional information.

Contact Information:

• UW-Milwaukee Bursar Office
• UW-Parkside Cashier’s Office

You may be eligible to receive a portion of your federal financial aid early to purchase required books and supplies. If you are eligible, you will be notified by the UW Flexible Option Financial Aid Office via your university email account.  How you receive funds to purchase textbooks and supplies varies by institution so be sure to read about your institution’s process below.

Eligibility Requirements for Textbook Purchasing Funds

The following requirements* must be met no later than 10 days before the start of the subscription period to be eligible for a refund for books and supplies:

1. You must have a completed FAFSA.
2. All supporting financial aid documentation (if applicable) must be submitted and processed. Visit the Student Resource Center for your program of study to access and log in to your campus portal and view your To Do List to learn whether you are required to submit any additional documentation to supplement your FAFSA.
3. Your Academic Plan of Study (APS) must be completed and submitted to your Success Coach.
4. Your financial aid must be awarded. Log in to your UW Flexible Option Financial Aid Student Portal to view your award information.
5. You must be registered for a competency set(s) in the upcoming subscription period.
6. The amount of financial aid you are approved for disbursement and accept must be greater than your tuition fee for the upcoming subscription period.
7. If you accept Direct Loans, the Entrance Loan Counseling and Master Promissory Note must be completed at https://studentloans.gov.
8. You must meet Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements.

*Other requirements may apply.

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Eligible students will receive textbook and supply funds in the form of a paper refund check. The check will be sent via mail the week prior to the start of the student’s next subscription period. These funds can then be used to purchase books at UW-Milwaukee’s approved bookstore vendor, eCampus.com.

Opt-Out Information

You may choose not to use financial aid to purchase books and supplies. To opt-out of receiving funds to purchase books and supplies, email the UW Flexible Option Financial Aid Office at financialaid@uwex.edu. The email must be from your university email account. Please note, payment cannot be changed on purchases already made using financial aid.