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Billing, Allowance Process, and Refunds

Billing for semester off-campus study on an approved Partner Program

 
Students enrolled in an approved semester off-campus study program will be billed directly by Wheaton College and charged fees comparable to a standard on-campus semester, regardless of the published cost of the partner program. The semester fees include:
 
  • Wheaton tuition for 12-18 credit hours
  • An Off-campus Study Program Fee equivalent to on-campus housing and food costs
Wheaton College will pay approved/required program fees on behalf of Wheaton students who have been approved to participate in partner programs. Approved/Required program fees include tuition, standard housing fees, meals included in the program, and other required fees billed directly to the College. The College will not cover select or supplemental housing fees for non-standard housing, optional program activities, or additional/optional language courses in advance of the program. 

Eligible financial aid is applied toward the cost and then the remaining balance is billed to the student account. Note that students are responsible for any non-refundable participation confirmation deposit, typically paid after acceptance to the program, and must pay that directly to the program provider. Should there be a housing or security deposit required, students are also responsible for those payments.
 
  • Students need to maintain Course Program of Study (CPOS) eligibility during their off-campus semester to receive federal financial aid. At least the equivalent of 12 credit hours (full-time student status) taken during any off-campus program need to count toward degree requirements to be eligible for full-time federal financial aid.
     
  • Wheaton College scholarships/grants (institutional aid) not restricted to an on-campus semester are applied to a student’s billed fees for the off-campus semester.

Allowance process for semester off-campus study

Where meals or lodging are not included in the program or only a percentage of total meals are included and the program does not provide a stipend, students receive an allowance for meals or lodging from Wheaton College. The allowance will come as a payment directly to the student prior to the start of the off-campus program. Note that the meal allowance provided by Wheaton College will never exceed Wheaton’s current semester rate for food. The meal allowance provided is intended for groceries to prepare meals and is calculated based on the total program time (number of weeks), location of the program, and program partner guidance or estimates for the semester. Similarly, the lodging allowance for programs where housing is not included will never exceed Wheaton’s current semester rate for double/triple dorm housing.


Withdrawal/Refund policy and financial obligations for semester off-campus study

The Wheaton College catalog states the following:

Refunds for Off-Campus Programs
Summer and semester off-Campus education abroad experiences are subject to different refund policies than on-campus. Policies are outlined in a student’s GoGlobal application for Wheaton sponsored programs and will vary for Off-Campus approved partners based on the partner’s refund policies.

The information may be found in the Special Programs section of the catalog under Global Programs and Studies.

In addition to Wheaton College’s refund policies and schedule, students participating in an approved off-campus program are also subject to the program partner’s refund schedule even though semester fees are paid directly to Wheaton College. Students need to understand the withdrawal and refund policies of their selected off-campus program, whether that be published on the partner’s website or in participant materials provided during the application and on-boarding process for study with the partner program. The student will be responsible for any financial penalties should their decision to withdraw be made after the off-campus program’s deadline for a full refund.

The refund policies apply as follows:
 
  • The partner program’s refund policies apply up to the start of the program or the beginning of Wheaton’s academic term, whichever occurs later.
  • Wheaton College’s refund policy applies after the start of Wheaton’s academic and after the start of the program, whichever occurs later.  
Students are responsible for any charges incurred should they withdraw prior to the start of the program and/or the beginning of Wheaton’s academic term. In cases where a program’s start date falls after the beginning of Wheaton’s academic term, the student is responsible for both the program’s withdrawal/cancellation fees and subject to Wheaton’s published withdrawal schedule for tuition. Refunds of the Off-campus Program fee will be calculated by the GPS Office. If Wheaton College has already paid the program invoice on the student’s behalf and is billed for those penalties, the charges will be placed on the student’s account.

Information on Wheaton’s tuition refund schedule may be found in the Financial Information section of the catalog.

Students who plan to cancel or withdraw from their off-campus study program must typically notify the program in writing of their intent, and withdrawals/cancellations are effective upon receipt of written notification. In addition, because students are registered at Wheaton College for the academic term, a student must notify the Global Programs and Studies (GPS) office at Wheaton College in writing of his/her intent to withdraw or cancel. Written notification should be sent to GPS at gps@wheaton.edu from the student’s Wheaton College email address. Applicable tuition or off-campus study program fee refunds, should there be any, will be calculated based on the date of receipt of the written notification.

Students must also withdraw or cancel enrollment at Wheaton College if they do not plan to take on-campus courses at Wheaton in the same academic term. Should a student decide to withdraw from off-campus study and remain on-campus at Wheaton College for the academic term, he/she must do so before the add/drop deadline for the academic term and may incur additional on-campus charges for the academic term.

Students receiving a meal and/or lodging allowance in advance of participation in their off-campus program will be required to reimburse the College for all or part of the allowance paid to them should they withdraw or cancel their off-campus semester participation. The required reimbursement will be calculated based on the date of withdrawal or cancellation from the program. Where a reimbursement of the meal and/or lodging allowance is owed to Wheaton College, the charges will be placed on the student’s account.