Federal Aid for Graduate Students

Applying for Federal Aid

• Begin by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) every year after January first. The FAFSA collects information regarding your income, number of family members and number of family members in college to determine your level of financial need. Columbia uses this information to determine how much need based aid you may be eligible to receive.
• When completing your FAFSA please make sure you have your previous year's income tax information, Columbia 's school code (001665), and your PIN number. You can obtain a PIN number at www.pin.ed.gov. When you have this information ready go to www.fafsa.ed.gov and begin the process. When your process is complete Columbia will receive an electronic copy of your completed application from the federal government. Columbia will then send you an Award Letter outlining your financial aid options within 7-10 business days.

Loan Eligibility and Amounts

• Graduate students must be enrolled for at least six credit hours to be eligible for federal loans or be registered with approved thesis hour(s). The loan maxims will not exceed $18,500 for the academic year in a combination of subsidized and unsubsidized loans. No more than $8,500 of the loans could be subsidized (need based loans) but the entire loan amount could be unsubsidized depending on your need.

Accepting or making changes to your Loans

• In order to accept your loans you must have a completed Entrance Counseling session and a complete Master Promissory Note on file. To check if you are missing these from your file go to your OASIS account and check under Missing Documents. SFS will also notify you if and when you need to complete these steps.
• If you would like to reduce or cancel your loans go to the Award Change Request form and complete your change.