Billing Due Dates and Refunds

Relay tuition and fees are billed in three terms (summer, fall, and spring), with bills generally due at the beginning of the term. The only exception is for incoming students. Their first summer-term bill is not due until the fall term. Students with this extended deadline remain responsible for adhering to the refund policy and calendar below for the summer term. Students will receive billing notifications with payment instructions and exact due dates when charges are applied each term.

 

The refund policy is closely tied to the policies described in Changes to Enrollment. Students who are considering taking a leave of absence, withdrawing, being administratively withdrawn, or being dismissed from their programs should take note of the enrollment and refund policies to determine their financial obligations upon leaving the program. Students are highly encouraged to reach out to [email protected] before changing their enrollment status to discuss the financial implications. 

 

To receive a full refund of tuition and fees paid for a term, students must email [email protected] to initiate a withdrawal or leave of absence by the dates detailed in the refund calendar in Table 11. Students must submit completed request forms to Relay within ten consecutive calendar days of initiating the process. If completed forms are not received within that time frame, the date they are received will be used to determine refund eligibility.

 

The refundable amount includes all billed tuition and tuition from pending unearned awards. An early departure from the program makes any tuition from pending unearned awards payable immediately and will result in a significant amount of tuition becoming due immediately. For more information on extenuating circumstances, please see Extenuating Circumstances for AmeriCorps recipients.

 

The refund schedule for the 2024–25 academic year is detailed in Table 11. All Relay scholarships will be prorated at the same rate as tuition charges. 

 

    Table 11 Refunds

 

Table 12 Billing Due Dates

 

Extenuating Circumstances

Students who exit or take a leave of absence from the program during the academic year due to one of the following compelling personal circumstances* may be eligible to earn a partial Segal AmeriCorps Education Award and may be eligible for reenrollment within one full academic year, pending program, Registrar’s Office, and Student Financial Services review:
 

• Medical conditions; 

• Pregnancy;

• Disability, serious illness, or death of students’ family members should completing a term become unreasonably difficult or impossible as a result;

• Unforeseeable circumstances such as a natural disaster, strike, relocation of a spouse, or nonrenewal or closing of a project/program; and

• Military-service obligations

 

Students who take a leave of absence due to compelling personal circumstances will have their tuition discharged for the term the leave of absence starts. Tuition will not be discharged for any courses where grades have been earned. Details can be found in the Leave of Absence for Compelling Personal Circumstances policy. 

*Relay AmeriCorps members must provide documentation of compelling personal circumstances (e.g., doctor’s note, letter from supervisor, memo explaining reason for exit).

 

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Payment Plans

Students may elect to pay their tuition and fees through a payment plan. A payment plan is a method to split your bill into equal monthly payments for the remainder of the term. Payment plans do not carry over between terms and must be established for each billing term. Payment plans can only be set up for the active term and for the active term’s balance. Students may sign up for a payment plan at any point in the term prior to the third installment due date (or second installment due date for summer-term payment plans). There is a $45 fee to sign up for each payment plan. Students enrolled in a payment plan with a credit or debit card will be charged a service fee of 2.85% for each transaction. Students enrolled in a payment plan with a bank account will not be charged a service fee for transactions. Payment-plan installment dates are listed in Table 12.

 

Table 13

*Deadline to enroll in a payment plan for the term

Returned-Check and Chargeback Fees

Student payments to Nelnet that result in a chargeback or returned check are charged a fee determined and managed by Nelnet. If you have further questions please reach out to Nelnet directly at their student support line (800) 609-8056.

Collections for Overdue Balances

Students who cease enrollment at Relay and have unpaid tuition balances will receive a financial-obligations email (sent to the email address on file). This email explains the balance due, payment options, and collections date. 

 

Students are given 30 calendar days to respond to this email. Students will receive an email with their remaining financial obligations and any additional requirements. Students can cover their balance by signing up for a payment plan or making a direct payment. If students do not respond to our email or take action, accounts will be sent to a collections agency. 

Students whose accounts are sent to a collections agency may be responsible for the costs of collections in addition to the total overdue balance. Being sent to collections also negatively impacts students’ credit.