Due to the Higher Education Amendments of 1998, Congress passed new provisions governing what happens to your federal financial assistance if you withdraw from or receive F grades in all of your classes in the semester for which you were funded.
In essence, these provisions maintain that you are not entitled to 100 percent of your federal funds (Pell Grant, SEOG, Perkins Loans and Stafford Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loans) until you attend and/or participate in class (attendance and participation requirements are established by each instructor and noted in the class syllabus) a minimum of 60 percent of the semester (approximately 9.5 weeks).
This applies to both W grades applied within the semester, and F grades posted after the semester is over.
Of course, the vast majority of students will have received 100 percent of their grant and/or loan funds before the 60 percent point of the semester.
Therefore, if you receive your funds and withdraw before 60 percent of the term has passed, or receive all F grades, or a combination of F and W grades, at the end of the semester AND stopped attending prior to the 60 percent point, you will owe a portion of the funds back to the particular program or programs from which they were disbursed.