First Day Program

When students register for a First Day™ course, the cost of digital course materials is included as a charge on their student account. This charge is automatically added to the student e-bill and is only applicable to courses enrolled in the First Day™ program. This charge is applied each time a student registers for a First Day™ course, including if a class is repeated.

To pay for the First Day™ course material charge, simply make a payment to the e-bill. See Student Account e-bill issue and due dates. 

Special OAP Billing

Students should pay their bills as stated on the bill issue date. Any changes to the bill, such as refunds or credits due to opting out of the program, or opting out then opting back into the program, will be reflected on the second OAP-issued bill. See more information on the OAP bill issue and due dates.

What are Title IV funds?

Title IV funds are federal student aid funds, which are from federal student aid programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education. Title IV funds include: Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans, Direct Graduate PLUS Loans, Direct PLUS Loans, Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), and Federal Perkins Loan. It does not include scholarships from the university or other private organizations, or State Grants.

Why does this matter?

In compliance with federal regulations, Student Accounts must obtain voluntary permission from the student to apply federal financial aid proceeds to pay for charges other than tuition, mandatory fees, and room and board contracted by the University. These fees might include but are not limited to: health insurance premiums, library fines, bookstore dollars, parking fines, prior term charges, health center charges, and FirstDay program charges(s).

What if I don’t grant the authorization?

If you do not grant authorization, your federal financial aid and loans cannot be used to pay for charges other than tuition, fees, and University housing and meal plans. Any excess aid will be refunded to you. Therefore, you may receive a refund and may simultaneously still have unpaid charges. Receiving a refund does not indicate that your account is paid in full, and you will need to take action to make a payment for the unpaid charges.

Can I opt out of the First Day™ course materials?

Students may opt out of purchasing the First Day™ digital course materials, however, students are still responsible for completing all work assigned by their professor. To opt out, select the option for the course in Canvas.

Opt-Out requests must be received for each semester by the add/drop deadline:

1. Log into Canvas
2. Navigate to your course
3. Click on Course Materials located in the left-hand course menu
4. After clicking Course Materials you will be redirected to the Course Materials page
5. To opt out you need to click the Opt-Out link at the top right side of the window. (On this page you will also see the opt-in price, the opt-out price, and the deadline to make a decision)
6. A pop-up window will open asking you to confirm that you would like to opt out. Select the check box and click Confirm to opt-out
7. You will then get the confirmation page that you have opted-out

See opt-out video instructions by visiting this link.

Opting out of First Day™ course materials is not recommended because students are still responsible for accessing materials assigned by their instructor. The First Day™ program offers significant savings on course materials. If you chose to opt-out, you may opt back into the program before the August 25 deadline.

What are the benefits of First Day™?

Some of the benefits of the First Day™ program are:

• First Day™ materials are digitally accessible so it goes where you go, on whichever device you want.
• The cost of First Day™ course materials has been negotiated to be the lowest price available from the publisher.
• Students are prepared with their required course materials on the first day of class, leading to greater student success.

What if I want a physical copy of the textbook?

Most publishers give students the option of purchasing a very affordable loose-leaf copy of the book through the UNCW bookstore. The loose-leaf copy can also be ordered online from the bookstore and shipped directly to your home.

What happens if I drop a class?

If you drop a First Day™ course, you will be refunded according to Student Account's refund policies. If you add the course back, you will be charged the First Day™ Course Materials cost again.