Disbursement of Financial Aid

Disbursement is defined as when financial aid awards are actually posted to students’ accounts.  Disbursements will happen one week prior to the beginning of each term.  A credit balance may occur when a student’s posted financial aid award is greater than their cost of tuition and fees. If a student has a credit balance, they can get a book voucher from the Service Center, or another BMCC location office, to use for the purchase of books. For Book Voucher information, click here.  The remaining credit balance is mailed to students in the form of a “Credit Balance Check”.

The initial run of Credit Balance Checks will be available for students to pick up at the Service Center by 10 am on the 8th class day each term (typically the 2nd Wednesday of the term) except for Summer term when they will be mailed and no pick up will be allowed.  At promptly 1 pm that day the checks will be mailed.  Credit balance checks beyond the 8th class day will be processed and mailed each Wednesday for the remainder of the term. Other than the initial checks on the 8th day of the term, checks are not available for pick up by students.  Refer to Dates and Deadlines for specific dates.

Students that do not have a financial aid award in place by the tuition payment deadline, or whose award does not cover all of the costs of tuition and fees, may contact the Service Center to make other arrangements for payment in order to avoid late fees.  If a student is uncomfortable continuing in classes without knowing the final outcome of their financial aid, then they do have the option to drop their classes.  In order to not be held financially responsible for the cost of those classes, they must be dropped prior to the Add/Drop deadline of midnight of the 5th day of classes (or equivelant for alternatively scheduled classes).