FAQ’s in the Business Office

Q – How will I know if I am going to receive a refund from my financial aid?

A – You may check your balance anytime in BORIS.  As financial aid is credited to your account, it is applied to all the charges that exist on your account.  If a credit balance remains after all charges are paid, you will be refunded the amount of the credit.  All refunds are made through the refund choice that you made with Higher One and the Blinn Bucs refund card.  Once the refund has been sent to Higher One, it will show up on BORIS as a charge to your account that creates a zero balance.

Check your financial aid on BORIS by clicking on the “Financial Aid” tab on the Welcome page.  Check your balance in BORIS by clicking the “Academic” tab; then choose the “view charges” option.

Q – When can I expect to receive my refund?

A - At the beginning of a semester, no refunds are processed until after the Day of Record (12th class date in a long semester; 4th class date in a summer session); it then takes 7 to 10 days for your refund to be sent to Higher One for disbursement to you.  There are circumstances that could delay the disbursement of your refund for an additional time period.  If you have questions as to when you will receive your refund, contact your Business Office or Financial Aid.  You must activate your Blinn Bucs card and make a refund choice in order to receive your refund; all refunds come from Higher One, Blinn College does not issue refund checks.

Q – What is the Installment Plan?

A – Blinn College has an online payment plan that can be accessed through BORIS .  Click on the “Installment Plan” option on the menu along the top right corner of this page for more information.

Q – What is a “book voucher” and how does it work?

A – A book voucher is a service provided to students with financial aid that allows them to purchase textbooks and needed supplies at the Barnes and Nobles bookstores located on the Brenham and Bryan campuses.  The student utilizes the Blinn College student ID card to access the book voucher at the bookstore.  The amount of the book voucher is based upon an estimate of the financial aid that is to be received by the student; and the number of hours the student has enrolled in, normally not to exceed $800.00.  As the student adds and drops classes, the amount of the book voucher can change.  On the date of record; the estimated bookstore voucher is replaced on the student’s account by the actual charges incurred at the bookstore.   Once bookstore charges are placed on the student’s account, it is the responsibility of the student to repay these charges, either through financial aid or other payment sources.

Schulenburg and Sealy Campus students’ book vouchers are handled manually; contact the main offices at these campuses for additional information.

Q – How do I pay my tuition? 

A – You may pay your account in person, by telephone, by mail or online.  Depending on where you pay, you may utilize cash, checks, debit cards, American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa. Go to the “Payment Dates & Methods” option on the menu along the top right corner of this page for more information.

Q - How can I view my fee statement?

A – You can view your fee statement for the current or past semester by accessing your BORIS account and clicking on the “Payments” tab.  You can find helpful hints on the “My BORIS Account” page.

Q – Why can’t I pay my Installment Payment online or on the telephone registration system? 

A – If you have an Installment Payment Plan with Nelnet / FACTS, you should not try to make a direct installment plan payment to Blinn College under any circumstance without first confirming with Nelnet / FACTS and your Business Office that your installment plan has been terminated.  Nelnet / FACTS will make numerous attempts at collecting an installment payment that is due; if you make a direct payment to Blinn College; Nelnet / FACTS may still try to collect its payment and a double payment will result.  If you have any questions regarding an Installment Plan, contact your Business Office.

Q – Will I receive a full refund if I drop a class or withdraw from school.

A – The percentage of your refund depends upon when you register and when you drop / withdraw.  The only way to receive a 100% refund is to drop / withdraw BEFORE the first class date.  This drop / withdrawal must be done in writing or online in BORIS.  You cannot drop a class or withdraw from school verbally or in a phone conversation. 

The refund policy for Blinn College is based upon the assumption that student tuition and fees provide a portion of the actual costs of a student’s education, including costs incurred for registration and administration.  When a student registers for a class, a spot is reserved for that student; therefore, that spot is not available to another student.  If the first student does not pay for the class, or drops the class after the first class date, Blinn College has incurred a significant expense that is not reimbursed to Blinn College by the Higher Education Coordinating Board for the State of Texas. 

In order to recover some of those costs, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has issued regulations that Blinn College follows in establishing its refund policy.  The official Refund and Drop / Withdrawal schedule, per the Blinn College Handbook, is provided below:

Refund Policy

Drop/Withdrawal from College

Tuition and Mandatory Fees

Drops and withdrawal from college are official at the time that the Office of Admissions and Records is notified.

Notification should be made in person or in writing. Students will have their tuition and mandatory fees refunded according to the following schedule:

* Minimester
** Summer I & II Semesters
*** 10 Week Summer Semesters
**** Fall and Spring Semesters

Tuition and fees paid directly to the institution by a sponsor, donor, or scholarship shall be refunded to the source rather than directly to the student. If a student who has a scholarship withdraws before the end of the semester, the scholarship is revoked.

Non-Mandatory Fees

Students who withdraw prior to the first day of class will have all non-mandatory fees refunded. Students who withdraw on or after the first day of class will be refunded as follows:

(1) The refund on room and board is proportional with no room refund after the eighth week.

(2) There is no refund on vehicle registration fee.

Return of Title IV Funds

If a student withdraws prior to the receipt of aid, the aid award is cancelled. If a student withdraws on or before the 60% point in time of period of enrollment, calculated using calendar days, a portion of the total of all Title IV funds awarded to a student (Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal Stafford Loan, Federal PLUS Loans and Academic Competitive Grant) must be returned, according to the provisions of the Higher Education Act Amendments of 1998. The calculation of the return of these funds may result in the student owing a balance to the college and/or the Federal Government. The Business Office must send refunds applied to Stafford and SLS loans directly to the lender. If the student retains a balance, their account will be placed on hold until such time that the balance is repaid. These accounts will be subject to collection actions by the College.

Military Service

If a student withdraws because he or she is called to active military service, the College District, at the student’s option, shall refund the tuition and fees paid by the student for the semester in which the student withdraws. Education Code 54.006(f) Blinn College Board Policy FBB (Legal)

Page Last Updated: September 18, 2009