Already completed a FAFSA? Advance to Step 2!

Not planning to file a FAFSA? Skip to Step 5!

Review your Financial Aid Award Letter and the included materials. 

Financial aid award packages are sent to admitted students on a rolling basis starting mid-February. We'll provide a gold pocket folder for you to keep all your BW financial materials handy!

Use the "Your Next Steps" insert, included with your Award Letter, to stay on track between now and the start of classes in August!

If you haven't received your Award Letter yet, and 1) it's been at least two weeks since you filed your FAFSA and/or 2) it's the end of February or later, make sure the FAO isn't waiting for additional information from you. When additional information is needed, we let you know by sending both an electronic notice to the email address you provided on your application for admission and mailed a notice to your home address (look for the envelope with the neon green or neon yellow sticker on it!). If you're not sure, you can log into WebExpress to check!

Advance to Step 3!

Review Your Financial Responsibility listed on your financial aid Award Letter. Use the "Understanding Your Award Letter" insert, included with your financial aid Award Letter, for a complete explanation of your financial responsibility.

Are you planning to use your Federal student loan eligibility? Do you need additional funds for non-billed items?

• Computer purchases?
• Travel expenses (to and from BW throughout the academic year)?
• Commuter students - will you need extra funds for items like books, meals, and transportation since they aren't included in your charges?
• Any other miscellaneous education-related expenses?

Next up, Step 4!

Decide on your financial plan. Use our Financing Worksheet to help you calculate your financial needs, after financial aid that's already been awarded. Know and research your options:

• Cash payments or a payment plan directly with the 
  Cashier's Office
• Federal student loans (FAFSA required)
• Federal parent loans (FAFSA required)
• Private education loans

Now it's time for Step 5!

Understand the billing process: things to keep in mind:

• The first semester billing statement is mailed at the beginning of August. Payment in full is due the first Friday of classes unless you are participating in an approved payment plan option with the Cashier's Office.
• Your bill will show your current semester charges (as of the date the bill was printed) as well as your financial aid assistance being applied to the fall semester.
  • Note: any Federal financial assistance (Pell Grant, Federal student loans, etc.) will show as pending provided all requirements are met. Federal financial aid cannot be credited to your student billing account until the week before classes. You can access your student billing account at any time (24/7) through WebExpress.
• Your financial aid award is for the entire academic year but you are billed by the Cashier's Office one semester at a time.
• Loan amounts are borrowed for the whole year and then applied equally to each semester.
• Student billing account balances not paid by the due date, or not being paid through a payment plan program, are assessed a finance charge by the Cashier's Office.

Advance to Step 6!

Federal Direct Student Loans require additional steps on your part.

If your financial aid Award Letter includes Federal Direct Subsidized and/or Federal Unsubsidized Loan(s), and you want to borrow those loans, you must complete:

• Entrance Counseling
  
• Master Promissory Note

Both of these requirements can be completed online at www.studentloans.gov

Click here for more information about this loan program.

Federal Perkins Loans also require a Master Promissory Note. If a Federal Perkins Loan is part of your financial aid award, the BW Perkins Loan Office will contact you in August with instructions!

Movin' on... Step 8 is next!

The Federal Direct PLUS Loan.

Parents of dependent students (who filed a FAFSA) can apply for a Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS) to help finance your financial responsibility.

This loan requires both the FAFSA and a separate PLUS loan application annually. Before your parents apply for this loan, make sure they read the important information here. The link to the online PLUS loan application can also be found on that page.

The PLUS loan is a credit-based loan and parents who have been approved for a PLUS loan must also complete a Master Promissory Note as part of the process for having PLUS loan funds applied to the student's billing account at the beginning of each semester.

(Additional Federal Direct student loan eligibility is available in the case of a parent not being approved for a PLUS loan. Please refer to www.bw.edu/finaid/loans/plus for more information.)

If you need additional financing, check out Step 9! If not, skip toStep 10!

Private education loans are arranged via students and a lender. Students applying for this credit-based loan will need to have a credit-worthy cosigner. The interest rate for a private loan will vary, and is based on the credit record of the cosigner.

Private loans may take 6-8 weeks for processing. For this reason, we recommend completing your application by July 15th in order for loan funds to be received by the Cashier's Office in time for fall semester payment deadlines.

More information about private loans, including links to online applications, can be found here: www.bw.edu/finaid/loans/private

You're ready for Step 10 now!

We look forward to meeting you during one of the New Student Orientation Sessions, or Weekend of Welcome in August!

Have a great summer!