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Office of Financial Aid

What if my family's situation changes after I complete the FAFSA?

Students whose families experience a change in financial circumstances are eligible for a review of those changed circumstances. 

Special circumstances include, but are not limited to the following:

· Loss of job or reduction in income of student (or spouse, if married)

· Loss or reduction of some type of untaxed income or benefit

· Separation, divorce, or death of student’s spouse

If you feel you have circumstances that will affect your eligibility to receive aid, please contact your counselor or submit a letter to our office explaining your situation.

How do I Apply for Aid?

We encourage every student to apply for financial aid. Remember, you need to apply every year; the fact that you did or did not receive aid one year does not mean that the same will be true in a succeeding year.
The Financial Aid Office conducts a number of activities after the first of the year to assist you in completing the FAFSA. You will be notified of these activities through the Financial Aid Office newsletter and through this Web site.

Graduate students applying for financial aid at Illinois State should do the following:

Fall/Spring

Apply for Graduate admission to Illinois State University. If you are a new graduate student at Illinois State University, you must be accepted for admission before any financial aid will be offered. You should contact your academic department to find out the priority consideration date for admission into your program.

To be considered for financial aid at Illinois State University you must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which can be done two different ways.

NOTE: Paper FAFSAs will not be available at high schools or colleges for the 2008-2009 academic year.

You cannot complete a FAFSA until January 1 each year. You can, however, now go to Federal Student Aid Pin Web site and request a U.S. Department of Education PIN. Your PIN number allows you to electronically "sign" your FAFSA and eliminate the need for mailing a signature page.