Enrollment Service Center (ESC)
This menu of student services shows various resources and processes we can assist you with.
Upcoming dates
Student accounts
- Billing statements
- Make a payment
- Past due balance and collections information
- Payment plans
- Setting up automatic payments
- Third party billing
- Tuition assistance
- 1098-T
- Verification of payment and itemized billing requests
Financial aid
Office of the Registrar
- Add/drop classes
- Address change
- Course withdrawal
- Name change
- Register
- Third party release
- Transcript request
Main Campus (Day) refund timeline
| Term | Enrollment period | Expected start date for credit balance disbursement |
|---|---|---|
| Fall | 08/27/18 — 12/15/18 | 09/14/18 |
| Spring | 01/07/19 — 04/27/19 | 01/25/19 |
Evening Nationwide and Online refund (Graduate & Undergraduate) timeline
| Term | Enrollment period | Expected start date for credit balance disbursement |
|---|---|---|
| August (Early Fall) | 08/27/18 — 10/20/18 | 09/14/18 |
| October (Late Fall) | 10/22/18 — 12/15/18 | 11/09/18 |
| January (Early Spring) | 01/07/19 — 03/02/19 | 01/25/19 |
| February (Late Spring) | 03/04/19 — 04/27/19 | 03/22/19 |
| May (Early Summer) | 04/29/19 — 06/22/19 | 05/17/19 |
| June (Late Summer) | 06/24/19 — 08/17/19 | 07/12/19 |
Understanding the refund process
Payment Plans: At time of course registration, all students are required to be enrolled in a payment plan arrangement. The payment plan includes all of the 16-week Semester Charges (Early and Late 8-week sessions combined). By default, most loans are established as a multiple semester loan. If this is the case and all eligibility is met, then the entire semester loan will disburse upfront early in the session. If financial aid disbursements or outside payments credit the student’s account on a session-by-session basis, then a refund may not occur until the midpoint of the semester (the late session). For more information regarding how to check for session specific disbursements, see chart and links below. For additional information on payment plans, visit payment plans.
For steps on how to enroll into payment plans, please visit ePayments Guide.
Registration: Since payment plans include all of the available 16-week semester charges, and have the potential for the entire semester loan disbursement to credit upfront in the Early 8-week Session, it is important to note that both sessions of course registration will need to be completed before the first round of refunds are prepared. This will ensure the semester loan will credit toward both early and late session tuition charges. For more information, visit the refund timeline.
Disbursement: This means active and eligible Financial Aid has been credited to your account, lowering the balance. This still may be adjusted/reversed and is only finalized once a refund has been released from Columbia College to the student. Loan eligibility requires a minimum of 6 credit hours of enrollment (within the entire 16-week semester) to receive a disbursement
Attendance: Since Columbia College is an attendance-driven institution, course attendance must be marked “present” in order to determine eligible disbursements. Being marked “absent” for the first week of courses will delay the first refund. The Department of Education does not recognize “absent” or “excused absence” as eligible for Financial Aid disbursements.
Refund: This is the process when any combination of disbursements and/or payments have exceeded the current payment plan charge and the excess amount is released from Columbia College and sent to the student.
The first step is that the overall term balance will reflect a negative number. Columbia College Policy is to only release refunds when this occurs. If the over-payment or disbursement occurs by a Monday, then the refund is expected be set up during the week and be ready to release on Friday (refund timeline). Once a refund is put together, the Term Balance will return back to $0.
For information on receiving refunds directly to a bank account, please visit Direct Deposit Setup.
The Earliest Refund release date for each session is the 3rd Friday of the session
Important disbursement notes:
For information about withdrawing or dropping courses, see if courses are not completed.