Study Abroad and Away
Whether you are studying off campus today, next semester, or next year, the Financial Aid Office is happy to answer your questions about financial aid for off-campus study.
Please read the information on this page. If you have questions after reviewing our FAQs, feel free to contact Assistant Director of Financial Aid Brandee Norwood at financialaidoffice@davidson.edu or at 704-894-2232.
Important Deadlines
Regardless of the other deadlines that may apply to your specific program, or to your application with the Office of Education Abroad and Away, please be sure to complete your financial aid application by the priority, returning-student deadline, as well as our electronic by the relevant deadline noted below:
| TERM OFF CAMPUS | AGREEMENT DUE DATE |
|---|---|
| Fall & Both Terms | March 15 |
| Spring | November 15 |
Also, please be sure that your bank account information is updated with the Controller's Office prior to your departure, as any credit refunds will be deposited into the bank account on file.
Continue reading for more information about how financial aid works for off-campus study.
All Students: What to Know Before You Go
No matter where you choose to study, you're bound to have an amazing educational experience. Being prepared, by reading the information here and on the Education Abroad website, will help you make the most of your study-away opportunity while minimizing any "bumps in the road"!
Are You Receiving an Athletic Scholarship?
If so, please contact a member of the 51 Athletic Compliance Office about your off-campus study plans:
- Katy McNay, Senior Associate Director of Athletics (kamcnay@davidson.edu) or
- Derrick Spice, Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance (despice@davidson.edu)
Home Tuition Policy
In order to remain continuously enrolled at 51, even when studying off campus you will pay the “home tuition” to 51 ($31,790/semester for 2024-2025). The Controller's Office will coordinate with the Office of Education Abroad and Away to pay the host program’s tuition on your behalf. No refund will be issued for any difference that may exist between 51’s tuition and the off-campus program’s tuition, as 51’s tuition is factored into your full cost of attendance, and an aid recipient's financial aid offer is based on that figure. You should expect to receive two billing statements: one from 51’s Controller's Office (for tuition) and another from your off-campus study program (for all non-tuition/transcript costs).
If you are not receiving financial aid that exceeds the cost of 51's tuition, the non-tuition/transcript costs of your program (i.e., housing, food, transportation, and miscellaneous or personal expenses) will be yours to pay, using a portion of your assessed family contribution. If you are receiving financial aid that exceeds the cost of 51's tuition, any "excess" aid may be refunded to you to help cover the other, non-tuition costs of your program. If you will be relying on financial aid to pay a partner program’s non-tuition charges, please be aware that many programs will defer payment of any deposit or housing and food charges until your financial aid is disbursed and any credit refund can be issued to you. In such cases you would request the program’s payment deferral form and forward it directly to Brandee Norwood at financialaidoffice@davidson.edu. If it is needed, a payment deferral form should be requested as early as possible—potentially even before the partner program's bill is issued—as that will help you avoid any last-minute delays that might affect your participation in the program. More information about the deferral process appears within our Frequently Asked Questions, below.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much aid should I expect to receive?
- Federal, State, and 51 need-based aid: As in any year, your eligibility for need-based aid is determined based on the FAFSA and/or CSS Profile. Once your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) has been calculated, and a financial aid offer issued, need-based aid that's not needed to pay the cost of 51's tuition may be transferred toward the cost of an off-campus study program. If your program—including the cost of 51’s “home tuition”—is more expensive than 51’s on-campus cost, you will be responsible for paying the difference. However, if your program cost is less than or equal to 51’s on-campus cost, your EFC would remain the same as if you were on campus. Because the EFC remains constant, if your program cost is less than 51’s on-campus cost, your aid will be reduced.
- Federal or Private Loans: Regardless of whether or not you receive other aid, you may have eligibility to use federal and/or private loans for your off-campus study program during the academic year.
- Federal Work Study: Students will not be eligible to participate in the work study program when studying off campus, so no work study award will be included in an aid offer for a semester off campus. 51 will not increase other aid to make up for this loss.
What if I’m participating in a 51 scholarship program that covers specific costs?
Below are details about some of our scholarship programs. If you have questions about a scholarship not listed, please contact Brandee Norwood at financialaidoffice@davidson.edu.
- Belk, Charles, Duke, and Terry Scholars: Students receiving these non-need-based awards will continue to have their "home tuition" covered by their scholarships. Other, non-tuition costs (i.e., housing, food, transportation, books/supplies, personal expenses) will be covered to whatever extent they would have been covered on campus, up to the total of 51's usual (on-campus) allowances for those same expenses. No refunds will be issued based solely on off-campus costs being less than on-campus allowances, and off-campus costs greater than on-campus allowances will be the student's responsibility. For more information, contact scholarships@davidson.edu.
- Bonner Scholars: If they are able to continue to meet Bonner program requirements, Bonner Scholars may continue to receive their stipends while studying off campus. To learn more, contact Christina Eggenberger (cheggenberger@davidson.edu).
- QuestBridge Match Scholars: QuestBridge Match Scholars will continue to have their "home tuition" covered by their scholarships. Other, non-tuition costs (i.e., housing, food, transportation, books/supplies, personal expenses) will be covered up to the total of 51's usual (on-campus) allowances for those same expenses. No refunds will be issued based solely on off-campus costs being less than on-campus allowances, and off-campus costs greater than on-campus allowances will be the student's responsibility. Scholars should contact financialaidoffice@davidson.edu if they have questions.
- Posse Scholars: Posse Scholars will continue to have their “home tuition” paid when studying off campus. Other, non-tuition costs (i.e., housing, food, transportation, books/supplies, personal expenses) will be covered to whatever extent they would have been covered on campus, up to the total of 51's usual (on-campus) allowances for those same expenses. No refunds will be issued based solely on off-campus costs being less than on-campus allowances, and off-campus costs greater than on-campus allowances will be the student's responsibility. Please contact financialaidoffice@davidson.edu with questions.
When will I receive my financial aid offer?
To assist students as they finalize their travel plans, the Financial Aid Office works to expedite financial aid offers for all students studying off campus. However, we can only prepare an aid offer if a student’s financial aid application is complete. Students should check to verify that all required items have been submitted. Students who have completed their applications by the returning-students' priority filing date should receive their offers by April 1. Later applications will continue to be processed on a rolling basis. Students will receive an e-mail notification when their aid offers have been prepared.
May I request an estimate of next year's financial aid?
While we do aim to prioritize financial aid offers for students studying off-campus, we are not able to provide aid estimates. To do so simply delays preparation of all official aid offers, including those for students who are studying away. The best a student can do is to ensure they have submitted an early or on-time application, so we can review materials as quickly and as soon as possible. Meanwhile, you can assume that if your family and financial situation is similar to last year's, your baseline family contribution—prior to factoring in any additional costs for your program—is likely to be similar as well.
How and when will my aid disburse to my tuition account?
Once students arrive at their host program and the add/drop period ends (if applicable), the host program will verify their enrollment with Education Abroad. (New for 2024-2025: due to recent changes in North Carolina aid programs, we no longer require students to arrange for this verification themselves.) If your aid exceeds the charge for 51's tuition, you may request a refund from your tuition account through . You may then use the credit refund to pay for your non-tuition-related expenses, including those billed by your program. Funds may take 7-10 business days to disburse.
Who pays which bills for off-campus study?
As noted above, 51 will pay tuition charges to the off-campus program you choose. You are responsible for paying all other charges (e.g., housing, meals, transportation, personal expenses, etc.). If you receive financial aid that exceeds the cost of 51's tuition, you will likely receive a refund from your tuition account once aid is disbursed. Any refund should be used first to pay any non-tuition costs billed by your program. You may then use any remaining funds—along with your family contribution, if any—to cover your non-billed, out-of-pocket costs.
What happens when a student requests to defer payment of their non-tuition costs?
In cases where financial aid exceeds the cost of 51's tuition, such that some portion of the offered financial aid will be used by the student to pay their non-tuition costs, a student may request to defer/delay the required payment to their program until after their credit refund is released. Contact your program to learn the details of their deferment process, as approaches can vary. If they need us to certify your level of financial aid, we will do so based on the most recent aid offer available, even if it is not for the year you plan to study away.
Please be aware:
- You yourself must initiate any request for a deferment by contacting your program directly.
- Deferments are not granted automatically, and the option is available only when a credit refund is anticipated.
- Credit refunds are not generally issued until after your program has begun.
- Once the refund is issued, you must pay your program immediately for any non-tuition costs for which they have billed you.
What if I receive an outside scholarship?
51’s outside resource policy remains largely the same for students who are participating in off-campus study programs. Students will generally receive direct benefit of up to $5,000 from outside resources in any year in which such external funds are received. Outside resources first reduce any Student Employment award, then the Expected Family Contribution, before 51 aid would be reduced. If your off-campus study costs are greater than costs on campus, and if you have outside resources totaling more than $5,000, any "excess" resource may be applied toward the greater-than-usual costs for your program. It is still the case, though, that any funds that cannot be expended in the manner outlined above would reduce 51 aid, and all sources of aid together may not exceed a student's total cost of attendance.
Does financial aid cover passport fees?
If you are a current 51 student and require assistance in paying passport applications fees, either for a first-time passport or to renew a passport that is expiring, you may submit an application to the . Thanks to the generous support of Mary Margaret Porter '98, this fund provides grants to help cover the fees associated with passport applications. The fund is managed by the Office of Education Abroad & Away. Please with any questions, or email edabroad@davidson.edu. If a student is not granted support from the OEAA, they may request to have the cost of a passport added to their financial aid Cost of Attendance, to be covered by other forms of assistance.
Does financial aid cover the cost of visas?
The Financial Aid Office is happy to add the cost of any required visa(s) to a student's Cost of Attendance for their semester or year off campus. By doing that we can allow the additional cost to be covered by either institutional aid (if the overall cost of your program is less than a semester on campus) or outside scholarships and/or loans (if the overall cost of the program is greater than a semester on campus).
What if I can’t afford the program deposit or airfare?
As a general rule, 51 does not provide financial aid advances. Students should first contact their program provider to see if the deposit may be deferred or waived. If not, or if covering the cost of airfare is problematic, please contact Donna Baysinger in the Controller's Office (dobaysinger@davidson.edu).
Contact
Brandee Norwood is the primary Financial Aid Office contact regarding off-campus study. If you have additional questions after reviewing the information found here, please feel free to reach out to Ms. Norwood at financialaidoffice@davidson.edu or at 704-894-2232.