Help with my financial aid
The first step, EVERY YEAR, for financial aid is to complete your FAFSA, which opens on October 1 and is due by March 1.
What is FAFSA?
Your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will have to be updated and resubmitted for the upcoming academic year to receive aid. Tax information and any dependent/independent status changes will be needed to determine the maximum amount of aid you are eligible for. Remember the FAFSA is a free application, so stay away from sites requesting payment.
- Visit the Office of Financial Aid's Financial Aid for Current Undergraduate Students Links to an external site. website for more information on the FAFSA.
Visit Bear Central Links to an external site. for help from the Financial Aid counselors about your FAFSA and how to complete the application.
Accepting your aid
You will need to accept or decline your awards every year too. You can view your awards in Ursa under your Financial Tab.
Again, visit Bear Central Links to an external site. for help from the Financial Aid counselors about your awards. Some of these awards will be grants and others might be student loans (which you will need to pay back on after you graduate). Your parents might also be attached to some loans, so read over all the awards and ask questions.
Visit the Office of Financial Aid's Grants Links to an external site. and Student Loans Links to an external site. websites to learn more about both award types.
Keeping your aid
It is possible to lose your financial aid, especially if you have FAFSA. Students need to meet "Satisfactory Academic Progress" or SAP to stay eligible for aid the next year.
- Visit the Office of Financial Aid's Maintaining Your Aid Links to an external site. website to learn more about SAP and associated policies.
- Visit Bear Central for help from the Financial Aid counselors about your SAP, especially if you receive a warning. You can appeal for your financial aid status and create plans with financial aid.
Your other scholarships probably have expectations too, so check with that program. In general, most financial aid requires things like:
- Full-time status (12 credits a semester)
- 2.0 GPA, and sometimes higher for private scholarships
- Passing 2/3 of all the classes you registered for after the drop deadline
Bonus materials
Check out these additional resources and ways to apply this content to your life:
Additional resources
Mark the deadlines below in your calendar:
October 1 – FAFSA becomes available.
March 1 – FAFSA Deadline: File by the March 1 deadline to be fully considered for all types of aid. Students whose applications were received by the U.S. Department of Education after March 1 last year missed out on state grants and work-study due to a shortage of funds.
June 15 – Accept or decline financial aid award amounts through Ursa. Remember, you will only have 20 days to make a decision or all aid may be forfeited.
Challenge
Review, read, and click on all the links in your Financial Tab in Ursa so you know what information is in there and any action steps you need to take this semester.