The timing of a course withdrawal will impact eligibility for a refund of tuition.
Prior to the course contract start date: A refund of tuition, less the course withdrawal processing fee, may be granted if you formally withdraw from an individualized study course prior to the course contract start date and you are not involved in a disciplinary proceeding involving either academic or non-academic misconduct.
Within the first 30 days of the course contract: A refund of tuition, less the students' union fees and the course withdrawal processing fee, may be granted if you formally withdraw from an individualized study course from the course contract start date up to 30 days after, providing the course final exam has not been written (or if all coursework has been submitted for marking, if there is no final exam) and you are not involved in a disciplinary proceeding involving either academic or non-academic misconduct.
The Undergraduate Course Withdrawal and Refund Policy – Individualized Study states the conditions for a refund. Complete and submit the Course Withdrawal Request Form – online, or download the PDF at Course Withdrawal Request Form – PDF and submit: in person, by fax, by mail, or email. The date of withdrawal will be the date of the online submission, the postmark on the envelope, the date of the email if the form is scanned and emailed, or the University date stamp if the form is hand-delivered or faxed (780.675.6174). No tuition refunds are issued if you withdraw more than 30 days after your course contract start date.
Tuition refunds are processed within approximately 45 days of Athabasca University's receipt of the course withdrawal request. Your refund will be processed according to your method of payment, e.g., your credit card account will be credited, a cheque will be forwarded to your current mailing address, etc.
For information on how a withdrawal request impacts your academic record, please refer to Individualized Study/Online Courses in the Registration section.
Course materials are items such as texts, student manuals, study guides, reading files and/or other instructional materials such as software and access to online resources. The course materials fee contributes to the development and procurement for any online resources which may be part of the course (some courses may be entirely online). This fee also covers packaging, shipping, and handling of course materials. You may be required to purchase additional items to complement the course such as binders, calculators, home lab materials, etc., and these are your responsibility.
A refund of the course materials fee will only be considered if you meet the course refund criteria and the University receives the course materials complete, unmarked, and undamaged within 30 days of your course withdrawal date. You will not receive a refund for course materials received by the University outside this time frame (late return).
Note: All returned course materials become the property of the University and will not be returned to you. Most AU courses include software, and/or software access codes. If the packaging around the software or the software access code has been opened you will not be eligible for a refund of the course materials fee. Once opened, the software cannot be re-issued and the material should not be returned.
To obtain a course materials refund, complete and submit the Course Withdrawal Request Form (Individualized Study), along with the course materials eligible to be issued to another student (e.g. returned complete and unmarked, including any unopened software packaging) to:
Athabasca University
Materials Management
Tim Byrne Centre
4001 Highway 2 South
Athabasca, AB, Canada T9S 1A4
Fax no: 780-675.6174
Include your full name, address, and student identification number with any returned course materials. Your course materials refund will be processed according to your initial method of payment, e.g., your credit card account will be credited, a cheque will be forwarded to your current mailing address, etc. You are required to pay the postage on any returned materials.
eTextbooks
If the course materials for the course are only eTexts, the student does not need to do anything further than submitting their withdrawal request. The refund will be automatic if the withdrawal is received within the 30-day withdrawal period.
Information effective Sept. 1, 2020 to Aug. 31, 2021.
Updated July 24 2020 by laurab
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