We're happy you're planning for your upcoming semester! Make sure to view a recording of our Bear Down & Wise Up sessions for Arizona residents or non-residents for Your orientation session presentation  contains important information about receiving your financial aid and scholarships this fall. 

If you've already filed your FAFSA, here's what we recommend doing next:

1. Estimate your financial aid offer using our Net Price calculator. Due to changes with the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), we anticipate financial aid offers for new Wildcats will begin to release in late-spring.
2. Make a plan. Use the information provided on your Net Price Calculator estimate or financial aid offer to calculate what your out-of-pocket costs will be and make decisions about how you cover them. 
3. Complete UAccess To-Do Items. Log in to your UAccess Student Center to complete any To-Do Items and resolve any holds. These items can prevent you from receiving your aid so it’s important to complete them as far in advance as possible.
4. Monitor Your Catmail. Catmail is your University of Arizona student email and the address where you'll receive official university updates. Sometimes we'll ask you for additional information— check your account regularly for next steps that may be required to process your financial aid.
5. Enroll full time, especially if you've been offered scholarships or grants. Most University of Arizona scholarships and grants require you to be enrolled in at least 12 University of Arizona units. Additionally, merit scholarships have yearly unit requirements, which are outlined in your scholarship terms and conditions. When you attend orientation, you will be provided with your schedule and will learn how to add and drop classes. Remember to swap, not drop your classes! 
6. Submit your final, official high school transcripts with graduation date to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. 
7. Accept Your Loans (if you plan to). Student and parent loans will open in mid- to late-July. You and/or your parent(s) will need to complete a few steps to ensure you understand and agree to the terms of your loan. We'll take you through the process step-by-step. If you choose not to accept your loan(s), no further action is necessary. You can also accept your loan(s) later in the semester, if you'd like.
8. Contact our team if you still have questions.

Your accepted financial aid will be released to your Bursar student account 4-10 days prior to your first day of school (August 26) as long as you are enrolled in the minimum number of units and all To Do Items and holds are resolved. Be sure to log in to UAccess Student Center to complete any To Do Items and resolve any holds. Some items can take several weeks to process, so take action early!

When you apply to the University of Arizona, you are automatically evaluated for merit scholarships based on the terms and conditions for the year you are admitted. Although this offer is non-negotiable, we encourage you to apply for additional scholarship opportunities on Scholarship Universe throughout your time as a Wildcat. You can find a series of videos with tips on perfecting your scholarship search on our website. For questions regarding your scholarship amount and how it was calculated, contact the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. 

Because the FAFSA uses 2022 Federal Tax Information, we understand that families’ financial circumstances may have changed. We will work with students and families to review their individual circumstances and recommend the appropriate next steps. If your current financial situation has changed since you filed your 2024-20254 FAFSA, we encourage you to contact our office and review our FAFSA Data Appeal information. We anticipate appeals will open by mid-June 2024.

You still have time to complete your FAFSA. This is how millions of students across the U.S. receive federal aid to help fund their college education. There is no cost to complete your FAFSA – all you need are a few financial documents. We understand this year many students and contributors have faced challenges in filing their FAFSAs. To allow families extra time to make any needed corrections, we are pleased to have extended our priority FAFSA filing date to May 1. Make sure to apply for admission and submit your FAFSA by May 1, to be considered for the maximum amount of funding opportunities. Next year, your FAFSA priority filing date will be March 1.

VIDEO RECORDING- FILING THE FAFSA

Image	1. Create Your FSA ID Students and all contributors must register for an FSA ID to complete and sign the online 2024-2025 FAFSA. To better protect your information, your FSA ID now requires a two-step verification process. To create one, you’ll need your name, social security number, and either an email address or phone number. Note: You will need your FSA ID to submit your FAFSA, but it could take up to five days to create your FSA ID.  The ability to create an FSA ID has historically been limited only to parents who can be verified with a Social Security Number (SSN). However, now all parent and spouse contributors without a SSN can create one using the Department of Education's newly developed system to validate identity. Check out these step by step instructions on how to contributors without a SSN can obtain a FSA ID.  All contributors are encouraged to create the FSA ID as soon as they are able to. Set up your FSA ID on studentaid.gov to make sure your FSA ID is ready to sign the 2024-2025 FAFSA.
Image	2. Complete Your 2024-2025 FAFSA In order to be eligible for federal student aid, students and contributors must provide consent to have their federal tax information (FTI) transferred directly into the FAFSA from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Providing consent even applies to contributors who don't have a Social Security Number, didn't file 2022 taxes, or who filed taxes outside the US. Tax data will be automatically transferred directly from the IRS into your application, streamlining the process and reducing the number of questions you’ll be required to answer. Please be aware that you, and your FAFSA contributors, will not have the ability to see or modify the FTI when completing the FAFSA online.  The student and all contributors must provide this consent and approval on the FAFSA in order to be eligible for federal student aid.
Image	3. Review Your Financial Aid Offer If you have submitted your FAFSA and have been admitted to the university, you can expect to receive your financial aid offer via text and/or email in late-Spring. Your offer will contain information about your estimated cost of attendance and the financial aid that has been offered to you. In the meantime, you can use the Net Price Calculator to estimate the financial aid and scholarships you might be offered.

Yes, you will need to file a FAFSA every year if you'd like to receive financial aid. The FAFSA typically opens in October and the priority submission date for current Wildcats is usually March 1.

Because the FAFSA uses 2022 Federal Tax Information, we understand that families’ financial circumstances may have changed. We will work with students and families to review their individual circumstances and recommend the appropriate next steps. If your current financial situation has changed since you filed your 2024-2025 FAFSA, we encourage you to contact our office and review our FAFSA Data Appeal information.

If you have no contact with your parents and don’t know where they live, or you’ve left home due to an abusive situation, please select “Yes” to the FAFSA question “Do unusual circumstances prevent the student from contacting their parents or would contacting their parents pose a risk to the student?”. 

You will then be allowed to complete the FAFSA and submit it without any parental information. Once we receive your FAFSA, we will contact you with more information about additional documentation that may be required to complete the process. 

The Dependency Override Appeal is available for students who have unusual circumstances that may qualify them for independent status which could have an impact on a student’s financial aid eligibility. We may be able to update your dependency status if you have qualifying special circumstances and documentation to support it. Examples of situations which might qualify can be found on this page.   

If you are experiencing homelessness, please complete the Unaccompanied or Homeless Youth Verification form, found on our forms page.

Please meet with a counselor or get in touch with our team if you have questions or need any help. 

To ensure you receive your offer, make sure to also review the following information:

• Ensure you have completed your application for admission to the university and have been admitted. 
• Make sure you filed the correct year (2024-25) FAFSA and add the University of Arizona school code, 001083. 
• Check that your birthday, social security number, and name on your admissions application match your FAFSA exactly. Our office can help you with this over the phone if you're not sure! 
• Not including the social security number on the admissions application can also delay this process. You can add your social security number to your University of Arizona records by submitting the Change of Personal Information form to the Office of the Registrar.

The Bursar's Office will mail your bill for the fall semester in late-July. This invoice will also be available to view in your UAccess Student Center. 

Your bill will not include pending financial aid or scholarships. Your fall portion of your accepted financial aid and scholarships will be applied towards your Bursar account as early as 4-10 days before the start of classes. Your bill is due on the first day of classes (August 26). If you have enough accepted aid to cover your balance, you will automatically receive a financial aid notice preventing you from being assessed the first late fee. 

Visit the Bursar's Office website to learn more about due dates, charges, and payment plans. 

Each student is assigned a cost of attendance. The cost of attendance is not a bill, but includes all the costs you are estimated to have as a college student. This helps you prepare and budget for all the expenses you might have as a student here. 

You will receive your bill in late-July. This will include charges for tuition, fees, and other expenses like your dorm rent and meal plan. For now, it's a good idea to start calculating your direct costs (expenses that will be billed to your account) as well as indirect costs (other expenses you might incur as a student) to start planning.

1. You can start by estimating your tuition and fees using the Bursar's Office tuition calculator. 
2. Add in other costs that might be billed to your Bursar student account, like your meal plan or on-campus housing rent charges. 
3. Think about how much you might need for books, supplies, personal expenses or travel. You can use our estimated cost of attendance to get an idea of how much other Wildcats spend each year.
4. Once it's available, view your financial aid offer in UAccess Student Center. Keep in mind that grants, scholarships and loans are for the academic year, so you will receive half in the fall and half in the spring.
5. Add up all your expenses and subtract the amount of grants and scholarships you've been offered (if applicable). 
6. The amount that is left is what will need to be covered through other means, such as student or parent loans, wages from a part-time job, or personal savings. 

Scholarship Universe is a powerful scholarship-matching tool that connects Wildcats to millions of dollars in funding each year. You can find a series of videos with tips on perfecting your scholarship search on our website. 

When you apply to the University of Arizona, you are automatically evaluated for merit scholarships based on the terms and conditions for the year you are admitted. Although this offer is non-negotiable, we encourage you to apply for additional scholarship opportunities on Scholarship Universe throughout your time as a Wildcat. You can find a series of videos with tips on perfecting your scholarship search on our website. For questions regarding your scholarship amount and how it was calculated, contact the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. 

Because the FAFSA uses 2022 Federal Tax Information, we understand that families’ financial circumstances may have changed. We will work with students and families to review their individual circumstances and recommend the appropriate next steps. If your current financial situation has changed since you filed your 2024-2025 FAFSA, we encourage you to contact our office and review our FAFSA Data Appeal information. We anticipate appeals will open by mid-June 2024.

A Federal Direct Subsidized Loan is a federal student loan for which a borrower isn’t generally responsible for paying the interest while enrolled at least half time (6 units). This means if you borrow a $1,000 subsidized loan at the beginning of college, you will owe $1,000 when you graduate, at which point it will start accruing interest. If you have the option, it's recommended to borrow the subsidized loan first. To be offered this loan, you must show enough financial need on your FAFSA.

Interest begins accruing for Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans as soon as the loan is credited. This means if you borrow a $1,000 subsidized loan at the beginning of college, you will owe $1,000 plus interest when you graduate. Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans are available to students pursuing an undergraduate, graduate, or professional degree enrolled at least half-time. Financial need is not required to qualify.

Both of these types of loans are for students, in the student's name, and not transferrable to another borrower. You can learn more about Federal Direct loans on the Federal Student Aid website.

Student and parent loans will open for acceptance in July. You will receive an email to your Catmail account ones they are ready for acceptance.

You can accept your loans in UAccess Student Center. You will also need to complete Loan Entrance Counseling and the Master Promissory Note. You can find the instructions for how to do this here.

Your parent may apply for the Parent PLUS Loan in the UAccess Guest Center. You can find instructions for completing the Parent PLUS Loan process here. 

You can find current interest rates and loan fee information on Federal Student Aid.

You are not required to accept your loans or to accept the full amount. If you do not plan to borrow your loans, no action is needed. You can leave your loans open in case you change your mind in the future. 

Yes. For purposes of qualifying for a Direct PLUS Loan, you’re considered to have an adverse credit history if

• you have one or more debts with a total combined outstanding balance greater than $2,085 that are 90 or more days delinquent as of the date of the credit report, or that have been placed in collection or charged off (written off) during the two years preceding the date of the credit report; or
•  during the five years preceding the date of the credit report, you have been subject to a default determination,
• discharge of debts in bankruptcy,
• foreclosure,
• repossession,
• tax lien,
• wage garnishment, or
• write-off of a federal student aid debt

See Department of Education website for more information.

The U.S. Department of Education makes Direct PLUS Loans to eligible borrowers through schools participating in the Direct Loan Program. 

PLUS loans are federal loans that parents of dependent undergraduate students can use to help pay for college or career school. PLUS loans can help pay for education expenses not covered by other financial aid.

In general, to receive a Direct Parent PLUS Loan, you must: 

• be the parent (biological, adoptive, or in some cases, stepparent) of a dependent undergraduate student enrolled at least half-time at an eligible school;
• not have an adverse credit history; and
• meet the general eligibility requirements for federal student aid, your child must also meet these requirements. 

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) will notify you if you are denied the Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan. The school will provide the loan reference/ ID number for a denied loan through an email to the Student’s Arizona email account.

If you are denied the Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan, there are three options available:

1. Appeal the adverse credit decision with the Direct Loan Applicant Service Center at 1.800.557.7394.

2. Obtain a credit worthy endorser. Be aware that if your loan request is denied, it will most likely continue to be denied in the future. You should be prepared to secure an endorser who can also assist you in future years. The steps the endorser must complete are listed below:

• Obtain a Federal FSA ID.
• Sign in with the FSA ID at https://studentloans.gov.
• Use the Loan Reference Number (same as the loan identification number, also called an "Endorser Code" or "Award Identification Number") that OSFA will provide to you via email. 

The endorsement is only valid for one loan. You must complete a new Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note and endorsement each time you request a Federal Direct Parent PLUS loan.

3. Your student may request an additional Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan. If this option is selected, the Direct Parent PLUS Loan will be canceled and an additional Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan will be offered to your student. The amount of the loans vary depending on the student's grade level in school:

• First-Years and Sophomores - up to $4,000 for the academic year 
• Juniors and Seniors - up to $5,000 for the academic year

OSFA will not continue to process the loan until you communicate via email as to which of the three options you prefer.

Parent borrowers will generally be expected to start making payments on Direct Parent PLUS Loans once the loan is fully disbursed (paid out). However, you may request a deferment while your student is enrolled at least half-time and for an additional six months after your student graduates, leaves school, or drops below half-time enrollment. 

During any period when you're not required to make payments, interest will accrue on your loan. You may choose to pay the accrued interest or allow the interest to be capitalized (added to your loan principal balance) when you have to start making payments. 

There are several repayment options available that are designed to meet the individual needs of borrowers.

Learn about your repayment options.

• If you were offered FWS for the academic year, OSFA will send you an email with your FWS Authorization Form and information on how to activate your offer in July.
• When you are hired, give your FWS Authorization Form to your employer. They must complete the Employer Information section and send the original form back to the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid.
• Complete all personnel and payroll related paperwork. Make sure to provide the appropriate documents that are required to establish employment eligibility.
• If you were offered FWS for the academic year, you may start working on the first day of the Fall semester. If you were offered FWS for Spring only, you may start working on the first day of the Spring semester.
• Keep track of your earnings using the FWS balance sheet so you are aware of when you run out of eligibility.
• To maintain eligibility for your FWS offer, a 2.0 cumulative GPA as an undergraduate or a 3.0 cumulative GPA as a graduate student is required.

Once you attend orientation, visit Handshake to find Federal Work Study and non-Federal Work Study opportunities. 

Students who meet the requirements to be offered FWS will receive it on their financial aid offer. Contact the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid if you were not offered Federal Work Study, but would like to be. To be considered for work study, you must: 

• Submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
• Demonstrate financial need
• Complete the verification process