Federal financial aid is disbursed to students on a schedule that ensures fairly even distribution over the course of an academic year. This distribution is based on divisions of the year into payment periods, based on the length of the academic year or academic program. Disbursement by payment period helps students budget their resources and also holds the line on overpayments should the student's enrollment change or cease.
Related terms: Academic Year; Disbursement; Overawards and Overpayments, Program Eligibility
See also Subtopics for more specific references.
Aid Disbursement Delays: Measures, Causes, Solutions
(The International Journal of Management Research and Practice)
Preventing Abuse in Federal Student Aid: Community College Practices
(The American Association of Community Colleges)
Incremental Disbursements of Student Financial Aid: Final Report on Aid Like a Paycheck
(MDRC)
See top list entries for Cash Management and Disbursement
Electronic Announcement, 11/5/19
Revised Policy for Standard Term Length