Understanding Aid
Financial aid is federal, state, or additional funds that help you pay for your college expenses. Some financial aid is based on need, while some is available to students regardless of family income.
Almost every student qualifies for some financial aid. What aid you qualify for and how much will depend on multiple factors including information on your FAFSA or WASFA, your grade level, and more.
Types of Financial Aid
Grants do not need to be repaid. Funds can come from WSU, the State of Washington, or the federal government.
Waivers are discounts applied directly to your tuition. Your total amount of waivers and tuition-specific aid cannot exceed the amount you have been charged for tuition.
Scholarships are awarded based on a wide variety of criteria. Good grades will always help, but you can also receive scholarships based on financial need, academic interests, talents, community service, leadership, and career goals.
Loans are financial aid which must be paid back. Nearly every student who applies is eligible to receive federal student loans. You do not have to accept the entirety of your offered loans.
Types of available loans include:
- Unsubsidized Student Loans
- Subsidized Student Loans
- Parent Plus Loans
- Graduate & Professional Loans
Work Study is an option for students with remaining need after grants and scholarships have been applied. Work Study student pay comes from a partnership of WSU employer funds and either federal or state funds, and provides students the opportunity to earn, often while working in their area of study.
WSU offers further accommodations and financial resources based on your situation and need as well as emergency funding and resources for immediate support.
Look into all available accommodations to see if you qualify for an increased financial aid budget.
State Aid
Financial aid that comes from the Washington state government. Only Washington residents are eligible for state aid. State aid is awarded through both the FAFSA and the WASFA.
Federal Aid
Financial aid from the U.S. federal government. You must complete a FAFSA to receive federal aid.
Institutional Aid
Institutional grants and waivers are awarded by WSU, using university funds. Most grants and tuition waivers awarded to WSU students are based on financial need. You must complete a FAFSA or WASFA to be considered for institutional aid.
External Aid
External aid refers to any scholarships or grants funded by donors unaffiliated with the government or WSU. External scholarships can be found on our website through the scholarship search engine. You can apply for WSU-funded scholarships using the WSU General Scholarship Application.
Sometimes students receive money, reimbursements, or prizes from WSU departments or programs. In many cases, these resources count as Other Financial Assistance (OFA) and may need to be accounted for in your financial aid offer.
Rights and Responsibilities
All students who receive financial aid have certain rights and responsibilities. There are further rights and responsibilities if you take out any loans. Be sure you have fully read and understand this important information before you apply for or accept aid.
Understanding Your Financial Aid Offer
You can view your financial aid offer by logging into your myWSU account and accessing your “Financial Aid” tile where you will see categories for Awards and Financial Aid Summary. Additional categories may show up if you are involved in certain programs like Invest in Cougs.
Let’s take a look at the different sections and information available from an example of a 2024-25 estimated financial aid offer.
1. Awards
In your awards tab, you will see three categories: Summary, Accept/Decline Loans, and Disbursements. Be sure you have selected the proper aid year in the upper left corner.
“Summary”
Your current financial aid offer is based on your residency status, which dictates whether you are charged in- or out-of-state tuition. If you need to make changes to your residence status, please contact the Registrar’s Office.
In your summary, you will find your actual financial aid split into three categories:
- Grants and Scholarships
- Student Loans
- Optional Loans
You may not have all three of these sections, depending on the aid you have been offered. The optional loan, if shown, is PLUS loan (graduate or parent) and is not guaranteed.
From the bottom of this section you may select the “print” or “share” options to either print a physical copy of your aid offer or share an electronic version.
“Accept/Decline”
This section is where you can accept, reduce or decline your loans. If you wish to take out previously declined loans, you may fill out a loan action request.
“Disbursements”
Here you can see your awards broken down by term. For example, a $10,000 loan will show as a $5,000 disbursement in the fall and another $5,000 in the spring.
2. Financial Aid Summary
This category covers the following: Need Summary, Cost of Attendance, Student Aid Index (SAI), and Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).
“Need Summary”
This page shows the calculation of your remaining financial need based on your Cost of Attendance, current aid offer and any additional educational resources. Your remaining financial need is relevant to some additional forms of aid, such as work study.
“Cost of Attendance”
This section contains useful information on how your financial need was determined. Remember that your Cost of Attendance is not a bill; it is an estimation of total costs for the year including miscellaneous expenses.
“Student Aid Index”
Student and parent contributions are logged here and come directly from your FAFSA or WASFA. Parent contributions will only apply for dependent students. Your SAI is used in calculating all need-based aid.
“Satisfactory Academic Progress”
Here you can check your SAP standing for both federal and state aid. If you are disqualified for either state or federal SAP, you will have an item in your “To-Do” tile for filing a SAP appeal.
Check your aid offer regularly
Return to your aid offer periodically. Initial aid offers may change depending on enrollment level or the addition of outside scholarships or funds. Some disbursements may be delayed by missing materials, such as:
- Signed master promissory notes
- Completed loan entrance counseling
- Verification items
- SAP appeals
If you notice that expected aid has not disbursed, check for outstanding “To-Do List” items and reach out to our office with any questions.
How is Financial Aid Delivered?
Financial aid is automatically applied to your tuition and mandatory fees. If you would like your financial aid to apply to additional charges on your account, you will need to authorize this within myWSU. From your student homepage, select “Account Services &1098-T” → “View Student Permissions” → “Grant Permissions”
If your aid exceeds the charges on your account, you will receive a refund, which will either post directly to your bank account (if you have direct deposit enabled) or arrive in the mail as a paper check.
Financial Aid Offer FAQ
There may be cases when your financial aid offer is adjusted or recalculated to keep your aid within your established Cost of Attendance and financial need eligibility. This can happen for a variety of reasons. Most commonly:
1. Cost of Attendance
Cost of attendance is the average cost to attend WSU for one academic year. COA includes the following:
- Tuition and Fees
- Books and Supplies
- Room and Board
- Transportation
- Personal Expenses
- Loan Fees
If your Cost of Attendance changes, you will often see your aid offer change along with it. COA changes that may warrant a change to your financial aid include:
- Change of WSU Campus
- Cost of Attendance varies across WSU campuses.
- Course Load Change
- Dropping or adding credits can change your aid eligibility. Your initial offer assumes a full-time schedule of 12-18 credits for the fall and spring semesters, and 6 credits for summer session.
- Residency Change
- Residency is determined at the time of formal admission to WSU on the basis of information included in the university application for admission. Residency policies are set by the State of Washington (RCW 28B.15) and applied uniformly throughout Washington’s public colleges and universities. Please contact the WSU Office of the Registrar for additional additional residency information.
- Tuition or Fee Changes
2. Student Aid Index (SAI) or Median Family Income (MFI) Changes
The amount and type of aid you’re eligible for is based on your SAI, which is calculated on your FAFSA or WASFA. (Some forms of state aid additionally use the MFI, which is calculated on the WASFA only.) If your SAI or MFI number changes after your initial offer letter, you may see your aid offer adjusted. Your SAI/MFI may change if:
- You make changes to your financial aid application.
- The university makes changes to your financial aid application (usually after receiving situational or financial information).
If you are planning to make changes to your FAFSA or WASFA, we recommend you reach out to us first to get an idea of how it might affect your aid.
3. Change in Academic Level
Your academic year is based on credits, not calendar time. Sometimes this means that your official academic level may change after your initial aid offer letter is sent.
Higher academic levels have higher loan limits, so if this happens, you may see an increased loan offer on your account.
4. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Federal and state financial aid regulations require that recipients of aid make satisfactory academic progress toward the completion of their degree. If you are currently in a SAP disqualification, or are waiting on a decision regarding a submitted SAP appeal, the system will cancel out your federal aid, your state aid, or both, depending on your status. Once your SAP status changes, our team will re-offer your aid accordingly.
5. Funding Source or Award Level changes
If a funding source has changed or been eliminated since you received your offer, that award will have to be removed or modified. (Example: The 2025-26 Washington State final budget eliminated Washington Bridge Grant and updated Washington College Grant award levels, and any students packaged with Washington state aid prior to the budget passing were repackaged.)
6. Outside Financial Assistance
If our office is notified of additional outside funding or scholarships after your initial aid offer, we may have to adjust grant funding to keep your award within your calculated financial need and Cost of Attendance.
You can determine an estimate of your out-of-pocket cost with the estimated financial aid offer. Cost of Attendance minus scholarships and grants and student loans will give you and estimated out-of-pocket cost. You will also see what the estimated direct and indirect costs are, which might help determine if you have enough financial aid.
Maybe.
Your financial aid offer depends on multiple variables including your financial situation, the availability of funding and how much aid you have received in the past. You must fill out a financial aid application each year (FAFSA or WASFA) to be considered for state and federal aid.
Common reasons why your aid offer may look different than previous years’ include:
- Change in household size
- Change in income
- Lifetime Pell Grant or federal loan limits
- SAP disqualification
- Enrollment levels
If you have outside funding like external grants or scholarships, be sure to check the terms and conditions to see if you are eligible to renew those awards for future years.