Student Success Guide

What to do after you register


What’s next after you register for classes at Owens Community College? This page is a list of what you need to do after you have registered for classes at Owens.

Review the Registered Student Checklist below for your next steps.

Students To-Do Checklist After Registration

  1. Meet with your Academic Advisor
  2. Finalize your financial plan with Student Financial Services
  3. Order textbooks
  4. Sign up for Owens Alerts
  5. Logging into your courses & course policy review
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Step 1: Schedule an Appointment with your Academic Advisor

After your Admissions Advisor assists you with registration for your first term, your Academic Advisor will be ready to guide you regarding any questions you may have about your continuing academic plan or your program of study.

Your Academic Advisor’s name and email address are listed on the Advisor(s) Contact Information card in Ozone; you can also connect by calling (567) 661-7777 or visiting www.owens.edu/advising/ to schedule an appointment.

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Step 2: Finalizing your Financial Plan

The Student Financial Services Office staff assists you with all of your college finance-related needs, including the FAFSA, financial aid requirements, disbursements and payment plan options.

You are assigned a Student Financial Services (SFS) Advisor upon registration, and your SFS Advisor is available to help you throughout your time at Owens.

It is recommended that you meet with your SFS Advisor before the start of each semester to ensure your account is on track.

  • Financial aid includes grants, loans, scholarships and employment opportunities.
  • Your SFS Advisor will be helping many students throughout each term. Because of this, it is important for you to proactively monitor your Ozone and Omail, and then seek out your Advisor’s help with any questions.

For more information on methods of payment for tuition & fees and refund information for account overages, click the drop-down boxes below.

Owens offers several options for making payments for your tuition and fees. In addition to financial aid, we offer a deferred payment plan and third-party payment plans (e.g., employer pay, veteran benefits, etc.).

If financial aid is not covering your balance, let us know how you plan on financing your education each term by declaring your method of payment or submitting the necessary documents through your Owens account.

  • Questions regarding your financial aid eligibility? Contact Student Financial Services at (567) 661-7777 or studentfinancial@owens.edu.
  • Learn how to apply for Financial Aid and find answers to many common questions on the Student Financial Services webpage.
  • For students who need help with their FAFSA, SFS offers daily FAFSA support hours. For details, please visit the FAFSA Support Hours page.

After your first registration at Owens, you will receive an email plus a green envelope sent via postal mail. These contain information on how to select your refund preference should you ever have an account overage. Once you receive this information, visit www.refundselection.com and authenticate your account by typing the personal code that you received inside your green envelope.

Your refund options are:

  • Direct deposit to your existing checking or savings account
  • Creation of a new checking account through our vendor, BankMobile

*If you are a returning student, you may have already chosen a refund option. Your SFS Advisor can review your account and verify whether you previously selected a refund option. Ask your SFS Advisor to help you learn your refund option status.

Questions? Contact studentfinancial@owens.edu or call (567) 661-7777. We’re here to help!

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Step 3: How to purchase textbooks for your classes.

Traditional Textbooks

You may purchase textbooks online at https://owens.ecampus.com/.

Financial aid recipients and some third-party benefit recipients may be eligible for a book voucher. These assist eligible financial aid students in purchasing books when excess financial aid is available and has not yet been refunded. Book vouchers are available 3 weeks prior to the start of the term, then expire approximately two weeks into the term.

To determine whether you are eligible for a book voucher, complete the following steps:

  • Financial aid recipients: log into your Ozone account and navigate to your Financial Aid Summary Card. Click on “Active Messages” to see your book voucher status message. Note: Status messages are available only during the book voucher’s active period.
  • Third-party benefit recipients: Check Omail for a book voucher confirmation email. If you have questions, contact Student Financial Services. 

E-Textbooks

The College has recently begun a transition to e-textbooks and inclusive access materials (including test codes and course materials).

Students registering for courses utilizing inclusive access materials will be billed a book fee at the time of registration.

This charge varies by course. Once added to the student account, this book fee will be covered by financial aid (if applicable) as payments are applied.

Inclusive access e-books are embedded within the course and are available for download 10 days before the start of the class.

All other textbooks must be purchased separately from the bookstore and paid for at the time of purchase. For more information about e-textbooks, consult our list of FAQs.

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Step 4: Signing up for the Owens Alert System

The Owens Alert System is designed to keep you safe and informed. You will receive notices by phone, email and text message when the College or your individual campus is closed due to inclement weather or an emergency.

Signing up for outreach messages is required to receive class cancellation notifications.

To update your contact information and sign up for alerts:

  • Log into your Ozone account
  • Find the Personal Information card under the Discover menu
  • Click Manage Owens Alerts
  • For assistance, contact the Owens Help Desk at (567) 661-7120 or helpdesk@owens.edu
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Step 5: Logging into your courses & reviewing course policy

Logging Into Your Courses

Access to individual courses becomes available on the start date of each class.

Owens uses Blackboard to deliver online course content and materials.

To log into your courses, you will need to click on the Blackboard link on the Owens homepage. Click into your course to review your syllabus, instructor expectations, and assignments, and to actively begin working within your course.

To review course policy, select the drop-down boxes below.

Attendance and active participation are critical to your success and the learning process, so attendance is taken in all classes. Attendance has a different meaning depending on the format of your course (ex. face-to-face or online).

Students whose instructors report that they have not been attending may be dropped for nonattendance. Nonattendance may also negatively impact any financial aid award or disbursement. If you have any attendance concerns or expected absences, please communicate those with your instructor right away.

Students can withdraw from classes in one of two ways:

  1. Through Ozone on the Registration card. Simply click the Add/Drop Classes link and choose the correct registration term. From the course list on the registration screen, choose the web drop option in the drop-down menu. Click Submit to complete the drop.
  2. Via a paper Registration Add/Drop Form. Completed Registration Add/Drop Forms may be submitted to Student Financial Services by fax, mail or in person by visiting Student Financial Services.

You are strongly advised to consult your Academic Advisor and Student Financial Services before making any changes to your schedule.

Remember, you have not officially dropped a class unless the proper form has been submitted to Student Financial Services and you have received confirmation, or you have dropped the course via Ozone.

To verify an official drop via Ozone, please check your class schedule on the Registration card. Once dropped, the class should no longer appear on your schedule.

When you withdraw from one or more courses, tuition is refunded on a graduating scale relative to the time of the drop/withdrawal and the length of the course.

There are three refund deadlines throughout a term, and students can find their course’s refund deadlines on the class schedule search:

  • Full refund: You are refunded all tuition and fees if dropping before this deadline date.
  • 60% refund: You are refunded 60% of the tuition/fees, and remain responsible for 40%.
  • 50% refund: You are refunded 50% of the tuition/fees, and remain responsible for 50%.

If you withdraw after the 50% deadline date, you remain responsible for the course’s full tuition and fees.

Students receiving any type of financial aid or veterans benefits may lose part or all of such assistance if they stop attending or withdraw from one or more courses in any one semester.

Any over-award that results from withdrawing or nonattendance must be repaid before further financial assistance may be received.

In considering whether to withdraw from or stop attending a course, students receiving financial aid should first consult with the Student Financial Services office, and veterans benefits recipients should first consult Veterans Services.

additional info

Additional Information

The Owens Community College Learning Commons provides free tutoring to all students both online and in-person.

The Testing Center creates an accessible location for students to take needed assessments. Whether it’s placement tests, academic testing, or other required assessments, Testing Services is ready to help along your academic journey.

Visit www.owens.edu/testing/ to learn more.

Owens Community College provides accessible parking for students and guests. Parking lot and contact information, as well as directions and campus maps, may be found at www.owens.edu/locations/.

If you have any questions regarding the above information or Owens Community College in general, please contact your Academic Advisor.

For more information, contact Academic Advising:

(567) 661-2387 | advisor@owens.edu