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Payment Policies

The purpose is to ensure students understand their obligations and provide payments in a timely manner.

SWOSU Payment Policy

  1. Student account payments are due in full the day before classes start each semester. Students are subject to up to three, 5 percent late fees if not paid in full by the due date.
  2. Online payments plans are available. Students should have their account paid in full or enroll in a payment plan, by the first late fee date, to avoid late fee charges.
  3. The Bursar's Office is responsible for billing and collecting room and board charges. Room and Board charges will be created only after a student pays a $50 deposit, fills out a Residence Life Housing contract, and returns the contract to the Bursar's Office.
  4. Residence hall residents who are habitually late or become more than one payment behind will be referred to the Director of Housing for possible eviction from the residence halls, revocation of meal ticket, forfeiture of deposit, and/or a possible $600 contract breakage fee.

Complete Withdrawal from SWOSU

  • 100 percent refund for dropping all courses before the courses begin. In order to receive a refund for courses shorter in duration than four weeks, the student must drop the course before the course begins.
  • 100 percent refund for dropping all courses during the first 10 class days for a regular term course, first five class days of a regular summer or eight-week course, or first two class days of a four week course.
  • No refund for students withdrawing after the 10th class day for a regular term course, after the fifth day of a regular summer or eight-week course, or after the second class day of a four-week course. For interim/seminar courses, there is no refund if the student drops after the course begins.

Schedule Adjustments (DROP)

  • 100 percent refund for dropping class(es) during the first 10 days of a regular term course, during the first five days of a summer or eight-week course, during the first two days of a four-week course, or prior to the first class meeting of a course less than four weeks in length.
    • No refund for dropping class(es) after the 10th day of a regular term course, after the fifth day of a summer or eight-week course, or after the second day of a four-week course. Courses shorter in duration than four weeks must be dropped before the course starts in order to receive a refund.

Refunds are based upon the day the classes are dropped or the official student withdrawal is completed, not on the date that the student stopped attending classes. To officially withdraw from all courses, student must contact the Academic Records’s Office in person or by their SWOSU e-mail.

Tuition refunds will not be processed until after the 10th class day of each semester or fifth class day of the summer. Refunds are disbursed to students via ECSI.

For schedule adjustments and complete withdrawals:

Course Length
Refund Deadline
16-week 10 days to drop for a refund
8-week 5 days to drop for a refund
4-week 2 days to drop for a refund
Interim/seminar prior to the first day of class

Mary Mabry Savage Apartment Payments

  1. Residents may enroll in an online payment plan to avoid possible late fees or eviction.

Other Payments

  1. Parking fines
    Parking tickets are given by campus police officers. All unpaid tickets will be entered on the students account within 2-3 business days.
  2. Billing to Outside Businesses or Persons
    Departments who provide a service to an individual, group or business outside the University will provide the necessary information to the Scholarship Billing Specialist in the Bursar’s Office. The Bursar's Office will track issuance and payment of all invoices by using a sequential numbering system. All bills are payable at the Bursar's Office.
  3. Financial Aid Repayments
    Student Financial Services informs the Bursar's Office if a student owes funds back to the University. Student Financial Services will then send a letter to the student informing them of their repayment. When the student repays, a receipt is sent to the Financial Aid Office so the student can begin receiving financial aid.
  4. Other University Departments
    All departments must deposit checks or cash within 24 hours of receipt at the Bursar’s Office. A check-up sheet and payer names to verify the money counted is required.

Tuition, Room & Board Refund Policy

  1. The first tuition refund list is prepared after the add/drop period has ended. The list is reviewed by the Bursar's Office and applied to the student's outstanding account balance. Refund lists are produced on an as needed basis after this. A manual refund check may be prepared if a student still owes a balance from a previous semester.
  2. The first room and board refund list is prepared after tuition refunds are prepared. The other list is reviewed by the Bursar's Office and applied to the student's outstanding account balance. Refund lists are produced on an as needed basis after the first refunds are processed. A manual refund check may be prepared if a student still owes a balance from a previous semester.

Bursar Hold & Enrollment Policy

  1. A student with an outstanding balance will have a Bursar Transcript Hold placed on his or her account. The hold will prevent the student from accessing his or her academic records including transcripts and diplomas until the account is paid in full.
  2. A bursar hold will prevent the student from enrolling in future semesters. Students with outstanding balances greater than $1,000 will not be allowed to enroll in the next semester.
  3. A student with a federal financial aid payback or a balance listed with a collection agency will not be allowed to enroll until the balance is paid in full.

Collections Policy

To ensure the efficient pursuit of collection of money owed to the University.

Collection Agency Policy

  1. Account holders with outstanding balances will receive an invoice and/or statement, by mail, requesting payment. A statement will be mailed at the end of the semester and again six weeks before the collection report is processed. The message on the statement reminds the account holder to pay promptly to avoid having the account turned over to a collection agency.
  2. If an account remains delinquent, the University will take action to bring the account into compliance up to and including assignment to a collection agency. If the account holder does not respond to the letters the account is turned over to the University's second collection agency for further efforts to collect the account.
  3. Delinquent accounts may also be forwarded to the Oklahoma Tax Commission warrant intercept program for collection.
  4. Account holders are responsible for any and all collection charges (up to 28 percent of the original debt) incurred on delinquent accounts as SWOSU attempts to collect debts owed to the university. Delinquent account information is disclosed to credit reporting agencies, which may endanger your credit rating.
  5. If an account is assigned to an external collection agency, the account must be paid in full before accessing records or enrolling in additional classes.

Short-Term Loan Policy

The short-term loan program at Southwestern Oklahoma State University is to assist students with emergency expenses pertaining to their enrollment. The Bursar's Office will administer the short term loans. The University's director of Business Affairs, vice-president for Administration and Finance, or president, in that order, shall act for and on behalf of the bursar in his or her absence.

  1. Only individuals enrolled in an active term at Southwestern Oklahoma State University are eligible to request a short-term loan. Short-term loan requests are limited to one per term and may not exceed the actual cost of the emergency for which the loan is requested or $600, whichever is lower. Any exceptions to these limitations must be approved by the director of Business Affairs or vice-president for Administration and Finance. Pharmacy students affected by the split disbursement (one-semester only loans) may request a short-term loan up to $2,000, which will be covered by the second disbursement. 
  2. Short-Term loan applications may be completed online through Etrieve. Completed applications will be reviewed by the Bursar for approval or denial. Applications cannot be submitted without proper supporting documentation.
  3. All applicants must demonstrate adequate resources for Southwestern Oklahoma State University reasonably to expect repayment. Examples include certified financial aid that exceeds the cost of tuition, fees, room and board or a pending student payroll check. Students on Financial Aid Suspension are not eligible. Any application submitted without demonstrating adequate resources for repayment will be denied.
  4. Students or employees who receive a loan due to errors in payroll must sign a payroll deduction form. The amount will be deducted from the next months’ pay check.
  5. The principal amount plus a $10 service charged will be charged to the student account and must be repaid by the first funds available or a personal payment.

Loans are due and payable in accordance with the loan agreement evidenced by a promissory note. Student accounts not paid in full, including the amount of any short-term loan principal and the associated service charge, by the end of the term during which the loan was issued may be referred to a professional collection agency. All costs relating to attempts to collect the debt are the sole responsibility of the borrower.  Students who have been referred to a collection agency may not enroll in subsequent terms at Southwestern Oklahoma State University or request official transcripts until the entire balance plus any collection costs are paid.

SWOSU Book Voucher Policy

For students who:

  • Have a scholarship that specifically covers books
  • Have scholarships that will exceed charges for the semester
  • Have financial aid that will exceed charges for the semester Bookstores voucher can be used at:
  • Follett Bookstore (in the Bulldog Plaza, connected to Henrietta Mann North and South Halls)
  • Ratcliffe’s Bookstore (at the intersection of College Ave. and Custer St.)

Stipulations:

  • Voucher is only good for required books.
  • Voucher will not allow student to receive cash back.
  • Voucher may not be used for costs above the price of the required books.
  • Voucher must be used within 10 days of the date issued.
  • Voucher may not be used for merchandise, clothing, backpacks or non-required books.
  • Vouchers are given at the discretion of the bursar.
  • If students abuse or misuse the voucher program, vouchers may not be given for future semesters.
  • If the scholarship/financial aid does not pay for the book voucher as was originally planned, the student is still responsible for the amount the book voucher covered.

Process:

A student will come into the Bursar’s Office to request a voucher. For a voucher based on scholarships, the student should go to room 109B to speak with the scholarship coordinator. For a voucher based on financial aid, the student should speak with the bursar.

For Scholarship Backed Voucher

The scholarship coordinator will need proof of the scholarship (i.e., award letter). Once that is received, the scholarship coordinator will create and provide the book voucher to the student. It will be a physical printed voucher. The student may then take the book voucher to either bookstore and receive the books.

For Financial Aid Backed Voucher 

The bursar will approve/deny the voucher. If the bursar approves the voucher, the student will receive a voucher form that can be presented at either bookstore and receive the books. A bookstore hold will be placed on the student’s account for the amount requested up to $600. Once the invoice is received from the bookstores after the 10th class day, then the book charge will be adjusted to the actual amount.