Costs
A Gordon education is a valuable investment worthy of hard work and sacrifice. Students are expected to draw upon every resource available to them in financing their share of the cost.
Basic Term Expenses for 2021
The academic year is divided into six terms. The following rates are per four credit course. Full-time students enroll in two courses per term. Part-time students enroll in one course per term.
| Tuition |
Tuition per credit |
Total tuition per course |
| Courses taken for credit |
$425 per credit |
$1,700 per 4-credit course |
Internships. Credit-bearing internships will be charged per credit hour. Zero credit internships have a course fee of $50.
Fees
Late Fee: $25 per course when petitioned late changes are approved.
Validation Examination Fee: $50 per examination
Graduation Fee: $180
Leave of Absence and Withdrawal
Leave of Absence. A student who desires to take a leave of absence for one or two semesters must complete the online leave of absence process by contacting Student Life at studentlife@gordon.edu. Students who are absent for more than two semesters must apply for readmission.
Withdrawal. A student who wishes to withdraw from Gordon College must complete the online withdrawal process by contacting Student Life at studentlife@gordon.edu.
IMPORTANT NOTE: A student who leaves Gordon College without completing the official leave of absence or withdrawal process will be considered to have withdrawn, and will be required to apply for readmission if he or she later wishes to return to the College. Failure to officially withdraw may result in an inability to obtain a financial refund.
Balance due. When a student withdraws or takes a leave of absence, and his or her account has a balance due, it must be paid in full. If full payment cannot be made at that time, the student must enroll in a Non-Current Student Payment Plan with AutoPay, through CASHNet (automatic monthly deductions from a checking account or credit card). If the student fails to do so, the College may charge interest at the rate of 1.25 percent per month (15 percent annually), or refer the account to an outside collections agency. All collection fees are charged to the student.
Gordon College Refund Policy
Tuition charges: If a student withdraws from Gordon College before a term begins, or in the first week of the term, the College will refund some or all of their tuition charges. The portions that will be refunded depend on the date of withdrawal. In the chart of dates and percentages, the right column lists the dates by which a student must initiate the formal process of taking a leave of absence, or withdrawing, in order to obtain the percent refunds listed in the left column. Processing a refund takes approximately two weeks. If the refund creates a credit balance on the student’s account, that refund may be requested in writing.
Refunds for Withdrawal
Students who officially withdraw from the College may be granted refunds on tuition charges based on the following schedule:
- 100% refund - During 1st week
- 50% refund - During 2nd week
- 0% refund - After 3rd week
The refund policy reflects the highly concentrated schedule of accelerated courses. A student who withdraws after registration without advice and consent of the dean of the school of graduate, professional and extended studies, or who is suspended for disciplinary reasons or nonpayment of a financial obligation to the College, receives no refunds. An appeals process exists for students who believe that an unusual circumstance exists which warrants exception to the published College policy. The appeal must be initiated through Student Life.
How Withdrawal Affects a Student’s Federal Aid
The Office of Student Financial Services is required by federal statute to recalculate federal financial aid eligibility for students who withdraw, drop out, are dismissed, or take a leave of absence prior to completing 60% of a semester. For unofficial withdrawals, the withdrawal date used for aid recalculation is the midpoint of the semester. The student’s eligibility for funds received from federal Title IV financial aid programs must be recalculated in these situations. Recalculation is based on the following Federal Return of Title IV funds formula:
- Percentage of earned aid = number of days of the semester completed up to the withdrawal date divided by the total days in the semester.
Funds are returned to the appropriate federal program based on the percentage of unearned aid using the following formula:
- Aid to be returned = (100% of the aid that could be disbursed minus the percentage of earned aid) multiplied by the semester total amount of aid that could have been disbursed during the semester.
If a student earned less aid than was disbursed, the institution is required to return a portion of the funds that have been received by the student. Keep in mind that when Title IV funds are returned, the student may owe a balance to the institution.
If a student earned more aid than was disbursed, the institution would owe the student a post-withdrawal disbursement, which must be paid within 120 days of the student’s withdrawal.
If a student who began attendance and did not officially withdraw fails to earn a passing grade in at least one course over an entire semester, the college must assume that the student has unofficially withdrawn. Federal financial aid recipients will have their awards reviewed and recalculated based on that status.
Failure to officially withdraw may result in an inability to obtain a financial refund. For Summer Term withdrawal and refund policies, click here.
Students who withdraw or take a leave of absence from the College and are receiving federal financial aid may be subject to the federal Return of Title IV Aid and state financial aid return policies. Students who plan to withdraw or take a leave of absence must notify Student Life. Non-attendance does not constitute official withdrawal. If a student who began attendance and did not officially withdraw fails to earn a passing grade in at least one course over an entire semester, the College must assume that the student has unofficially withdrawn. Unofficial withdrawals will be determined within 90 days of the end of the semester. Federal financial aid recipients will have their awards reviewed and recalculated, causing a reduction in aid awarded.
Remember that if you are not enrolled at least half-time for more than six months, your student loans will go into repayment.
Refunds for Dropped Courses
Students officially dropping from courses may be granted a tuition refund to the level of the new course load as follows:
- Full refund is allowed for any difference in tuition charges due to reduced load when such a drop takes place during the first five days of classes;
- No refund is allowed thereafter (except for course fees if any).
Withdrawing from courses beyond the full refund deadline does not remove hours from the tuition block. A student may be within a block tuition level at a particular point during the semester, billing is based on total credits registered for during the semester, less refunds for courses dropped before the refund deadline.
Payment Schedule
An optional monthly payment plan is available. Payment plan details are outlined at www.gordon.edu/paymentoptions. Payment in full, or approval of a payment plan, is required to gain financial clearance to register or finalize registration.
Financial Aid
Furthering education represents a significant investment of a family’s resources. Gordon’s Student Financial Services Office is committed to helping students meet the costs of a quality liberal arts education. The Student Financial Services Office identifies financial resources for eligible students.
Applying for Need-Based Aid
New students applying for need-based aid must submit financial data by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The FAFSA for the 2021-22 academic year will be available beginning October 1, 2020. If a FAFSA is selected for verification, students will also need to submit to Student Financial Services the Gordon Verification Worksheet and all required documentation.
Returning students must reapply for financial aid each year using the FAFSA.
It is not necessary for a student to be accepted for admission before submitting financial aid applications.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Federal regulations require that schools monitor the academic progress of each student receiving federal financial assistance and that the school verify that the applicant is making satisfactory academic progress (SAP) towards earning his/her degree. SAP is monitored at the completion of every semester to ensure financial aid recipients are maintaining satisfactory progress in the following two areas:
1. Cumulative Grade Point Average
2. Maximum Time Frame and Credit Completion Rate
Cumulative Grade Point Average
Students must maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average outlined in the chart below to meet the cumulative grade point average requirement. These cumulative grade point average standards are consistent with academic standards required for graduation.
| Credits Attempted* |
Minimum Grade Point Average |
| 0-26 |
1.60 |
| 27-55 |
1.80 |
| 56-above |
2.00 |
* Included in the credits attempted are accepted transfer credits and all courses attempted at Gordon, which includes withdrawals, incompletes and failed courses.
Maximum Time Frame and Credit Completion Rate
Federal regulations state that students will not be eligible to receive financial aid once they have attempted more than 150% of the normal credits required for their degree program. At Gordon, students will no longer to eligible to receive financial aid once they have attempted 186 credit hours. To ensure that students will finish their program within this time frame, Gordon requires that 67% of cumulative credits attempted be completed in order to meet this requirement. A student’s completion percentage is determined by dividing the number of attempted cumulative credit hours by the number of cumulative credit hours that were earned. This figure will be evaluated at the end of each semester.
Important Considerations
The following are considered when evaluating a student’s satisfactory academic progress:
- Withdrawals, incompletes and failures are considered attempted but not earned hours.
- Passing credits received for pass/fail courses are considered attempted and earned credits; failing grades in pass/fail courses are considered attempted but not earned.
- Satisfactory grades received for satisfactory / unsatisfactory courses are considered attempted and earned credits; unsatisfactory grades in satisfactory / unsatisfactory courses are considered attempted but not earned.
- All repeated courses are included in the calculation of both attempted and earned hours.
- Transfer credits accepted by Gordon College are included in the credit completion rate and maximum time frame calculations, but not the GPA.
Financial Aid Warning
A student who fails to meet the prescribed minimum requirements for satisfactory academic progress will be placed on Financial Aid Warning for the subsequent semester attended. During the semester the student on Financial Aid Warning is eligible to receive federal and state financial aid. At the end of the Financial Aid Warning semester, the student must meet satisfactory academic progress standards or eligibility to receive federal and state financial aid will be lost for the following semester.
Appeals
Students who are not meeting the prescribed minimum requirements for satisfactory academic progress after the Financial Warning semester may appeal to have their situation reviewed by Student Financial Services. Approval of a student’s financial aid appeal will be based on extenuating circumstances outside the normal school activities that had an impact on the student’s ability to achieve the minimum standards of satisfactory academic progress. The appeal must be submitted in writing by the student to the Student Financial Services Office and include:
- Why the student failed to make satisfactory academic progress.
- What has changed that will allow the student achieve the standards of satisfactory academic progress.
Financial Aid Probation
If the appeal is approved, the student will be notified and placed on Financial Aid Probation. This provides the student with one additional semester of financial aid eligibility in which to regain compliance with satisfactory progress standards. Alternatively, an appeal may be conditionally approved, with the requirement that the student have an academic plan in place. If SAP is not met after the probationary semester, or the academic plan is not followed, the student loses eligibility to receive federal and state financial aid.
Regaining Eligibility
Students whose appeals have not been approved may regain eligibility for aid when they reach the minimum standards of satisfactory progress. Students may continue to attend courses at Gordon College without the assistance of federal and financial aid. In addition, students may be able to attend classes elsewhere in order to demonstrate eligibility for reconsideration of aid. Students are determined to be eligible for funds when they have satisfied the minimum standards of satisfactory progress.
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