MassBay Community College policies and procedures for Refunds, Extenuating Circumstances, Withdrawal Policy, and withdrawal/refund deadline calendars per type of course(s) taken.
Students who voluntarily withdraw from course(s) or the College are granted a refund or reduction of tuition and fees according to the schedule below. Lack of attendance or course abandonment, does not constitute course withdrawal. Students who do not withdraw in accordance with college procedures are subject to full payment of tuition and fees. The withdrawal date is determined by the date all forms are completed and turned into proper offices.
A student may submit a financial petition if extenuating circumstances occurred preventing the student from completing coursework for a term. The financial petition process can be used to request a tuition and fee adjustment after the published deadline due to these circumstances. Any grades received and recorded on the student’s transcripts will not be affected by this process and will remain a part of the student’s academic record.
A refund may be available if there is a credit balance on your Bay Navigator Account. A credit balance could result from the following:
All refunds are subject to the withdrawal and refund policy schedule. If you would like to see if a refund has been generated, please log into Bay Navigator and view your Account Activity.
| Tuition & Mandatory Fees | |
| Before the 2nd class meeting | 100% |
| Before the 3rd class meeting | 50% |
| Thereafter | 0% |
| Tuition & Mandatory Fees | |
| Before 11:59 pm on 05/23/25 | 100% |
| Before 11:59 pm on 05/28/25 | 50% |
| Thereafter | 0% |
| Tuition & Mandatory Fees | |
| Before 11:59 pm on 05/23/25 | 100% |
| Before 11:59 pm on 05/28/25 | 50% |
| Thereafter | 0% |
| Tuition & Mandatory Fees | |
| Before 11:59 pm on 07/11/25 | 100% |
| Before 11:59 pm on 07/15/25 | 50% |
| Thereafter | 0% |
Refunds for courses that are dropped in accordance with the official refund and withdrawal policy schedule for the semester are issued after the add/drop period for each semester.
There is a two-week minimum waiting period for refunded check payments, including electronic (e-check) payments. This waiting period allows you to finalize your enrollment, and for any payments to clear before refunds are processed.
If you have excess financial aid, a refund will be issued two weeks after the funds have been disbursed to your account. If financial aid has not disbursed to your account as expected, you can reach out to finaid@massbay.edu for questions.
Please note:
For the fall semester financial aid refunds are typically processed at the end of October.
For the spring semester financial aid refunds are typically processed in the middle of March.
For the summer semester financial aid refunds are typically processed in the middle of July.
Refunds may be issued as a check, direct deposit, or credit card refund.
Credit Card Refunds
Per common payment card industry standards, refunds for payments made by credit/debit card will be credited back to the card that was used for the payment. If the credit card payment was made more than 120 days prior to the credit balance being created, refunds will be issued as either a check or direct deposit. The 2.85% credit card service fee is NOT refunded.
Direct Deposit Refunds
If your payment was not made by credit/debit card, we suggest you enroll in direct deposit refunds in your Nelnet account within Bay Navigator. Direct deposit is the fastest way to receive a refund. You must enroll in direct deposit in advance of a refund, otherwise a paper check will be mailed.
If you make a mistake when entering your direct deposit information, an error will occur, and a check will be issued instead.
Check Refunds
If you have not enrolled in direct deposit refunds, a check will be sent to your mailing address on file in Bay Navigator. For all payment types except credit/debit cards, refunds are issued in the student’s name, regardless of who made the payment. Please ensure your mailing address is up to date in the MassBay Profile tab in Bay Navigator.
You must enroll in direct deposit in advance of a refund, otherwise a paper check will be mailed.
If you have excess financial aid, you will receive a refund after the funds have been disbursed to your Bay Navigator account and generated a credit balance. If financial aid has not disbursed to your account as expected, you can reach out to finaid@massbay.edu for questions.
If you would like to see if a refund has been generated, please log into Bay Navigator and View your Account Activity. If your credit balance is the result of a student loan, all required loan documents must be completed before a refund is issued.
If you voluntarily withdraw from course(s) or the College, you will be granted a refund or reduction of tuition and fees according to the official withdrawal and refund policy schedule for the semester. Please review these dates carefully when making decisions related to course withdrawals.
Lack of attendance or course abandonment does not constitute course withdrawal. If you do not withdraw in accordance with college procedures, you will be responsible for full payment of tuition and fees. The withdrawal date is determined by the date all forms are completed and turned into proper offices. If you withdraw from courses past the official withdrawal and refund policy schedule for the semester, you will not qualify for a refund of any portion of tuition and fees.
Withdrawing from a course may impact financial aid awards. You are strongly encouraged to seek counseling from the MassBay Financial Aid Office prior to withdrawing from the college so we can help inform you about possible monetary impact. This will help you make an informed decision.
If classes are dropped in accordance with the semester refund and withdrawal policy schedule, then tuition and fee updates will be posted to your Bay Navigator account within 48 hours. If classes are dropped after the semester refund and withdrawal policy schedule, no portion of tuition or fees with be refunded or removed from your account. Please review these dates carefully when making decisions related to course withdrawals.
Withdrawing from a course may impact financial aid awards. You are strongly encouraged to seek counseling from the MassBay Financial Aid Office prior to withdrawing from the college so we can help inform you about possible monetary impact. This will help you make an informed decision.
There are two ways to drop a class: submitting an add/drop form to the registrar or using the Self-Service option in the Bay Navigator portal. Students who wish to drop a course should complete only ONE of these options: