Financial Aid: Disbursement & Refunds

Disbursement Schedule

12 Week, 1st 8 Week, & 1st 6 Week Courses Disbursement Dates
May 28: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans, and Scholarships
June 19: First-time Federal Direct Loan Borrowers

Refunds
Begin processing on or around May 30th, 2024

2nd 8 Week Only Courses Disbursement Dates
June 25: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans and Scholarships
July 17: First-time Federal Direct Loan Borrowers

Refunds
Begin processing on or around June 27th, 2024

2nd 6 Week Only Courses Disbursement Dates
July 9: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans and Scholarships
July 31: First-time Federal Direct Loan Borrowers

Refunds
Begin processing on or around July 11th, 2024

16 Week & 1st 8 Week Courses Disbursement Dates
August 30: Federal Pell Grant, SEOG, CAP Grant, Federal Direct Loans and Scholarships
By Mid-September – KEES
September 19: First-time Federal Direct Loan Borrowers
Refunds are now being processed September 6th, 2024

2nd 8 Week Only Courses Disbursement Dates
October 25: Federal Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans and Scholarships
November 15: First-time Federal Direct Loan Borrowers
Refunds begin processing on or around October 30th, 2024

What is Disbursement?


A disbursement is the payment of federal student aid funds to the student’s account by the school. The aid goes to pay your direct costs owed to your school –like tuition and fees. Please note that students enrolled in multiple parts of terms will follow the disbursement schedule of the full-term courses and 2nd term disbursements are reserved for students enrolled in that part of term ONLY. Students can review full-term and part-of-term dates on Colonel’s Compass. Disbursement can be delayed due to several factors.

If there are any excess financial aid funds that exceed your EKU charges, then the remaining amount will be processed as a refund and sent to the student’s selected refund method. Students can get instructions for setting up their preferred refund method below.

Students are highly encouraged to regularly check their EKU email and view their billing account to remain up to date on their current charges, disbursements, as well as refunds if eligible. Students can learn how to get their bill.

What Can Delay Disbursement?


Any environmental event that disrupts University operations will result in a delay in disbursement, and therefore refund processing will be delayed as well.

In terms of federal aid disbursement, there are a variety of reasons disbursement can be delayed.

  • The student must be eligible to receive federal aid. Ineligible students may be packaged
  • If a student elects to borrow a federal direct loan, the disbursement of their loan could be delayed if the student does not complete the required steps to be eligible for disbursement.
  • First-time federal loan borrowers are required to complete loan entrance counseling as well as sign a Master Promissory Note before disbursement can happen. Get the steps needed to complete this.
  • First-time federal student loan borrowers (i.e., a first-time freshman with no federal student loan debt) are also delayed 30 days from the start of the student’s program.

What You Need to Know About Refunds


Refunds will begin processing on or about the dates listed to the left. Changes in university operations may cause a delay in processing a refund. Moreover, please note that refunds are entirely subject to the date of financial aid disbursement. If a student’s financial aid is not received or fully meets all requirements, the refund date will be delayed accordingly.

By default, a student’s financial aid refund will be issued as a paper check through the US Postal Service and sent to the primary mailing address on file. Students are encouraged to enroll in direct deposit to receive their refunds in a designated bank account more quickly. However, please remember that even electronic fund transfers take time and may vary between financial institutions. It can take 3-5 business days after the processing notice is received by the student’s official EKU email address for the funds to become available.

Note that any changes to a student’s account, including but not limited to: schedules, meal plans, housing, and/or campus residency after a refund is processed could result in debt owed to the University.

Receiving EKU Refunds


EKU refunds are processed electronically through Transact. To receive your refund the quickest way:

  • Log in to myEKU.
  • Select Billing and Payments under the Big E Central card.
  • Select Pay My Bill.
  • Once redirected to Transact, select My Account in the top left.
  • Select Sign up under Direct Deposit Refunds.
  • Review the terms and conditions, agree, and e-sign.
    You will enter your bank routing number and account number.
    Note: Your account number is not the same as your debit card number.

For the Fall 2024 term, students can expect refunds to be sent to their electronic refund preference in Transact beginning September 4th. Please allow 2-3 additional business days for the deposit to be available for use in your bank account.

You may monitor the progress of your refund by logging into myEKU and checking your account balance. When your balance changes from a negative balance to a $0 balance, your refund has been processed and will be sent on the next refund date. Refunds will be uploaded to Transact every Tuesday and Thursday that the university is open. We reserve the right to send additional files, based on Holidays or other factors. Keep in mind that any schedule changes after a refund is processed could result in debt owed to the university.

If you choose not to receive your refund electronically, a paper check will be mailed. Please ensure your most current address is on file with the university. A paper check can take up to two weeks to reach you. Additionally, EKU does follow Title IV regulations on refunds issued for Title IV payments. If you are issued a check for a Title IV disbursement, you must cash it immediately. We are required to return outstanding refunds to the source of the Title IV payment within 45 days of issuance.

Other Refunds


Payments are applied to charges based on the type of payment and not in the order it was received. Therefore, if a check payment is received, a refund will not be generated for the amount of the check for at least 14 days. Additionally, if a credit card payment is made on the account for the same term, we reserve the right to credit that card rather than to issue an eRefund or check refund to the student.