Spring 2024 Financial Aid FAQs - Funding Your Future
Students have a lot on their plate, especially at the beginning of each semester. Understanding your financial aid can make life a lot less stressful and give you confidence that you’re starting out on the right foot. Here are some of our top FAQs to keep you informed and on top of your financial game.
Q. How do I check my financial aid status or disbursement?
A. To review your financial aid:
- Log in to Student Self-Service
- Click on the Financial Aid tab
- Choose "Financial Aid Notification"
To check your disbursement status:
- Log in to Student Self-Service
- Click on the Account Billing Information tab
- Choose "UI-Pay"
Q. How can I make sure I’m eligible to receive my financial aid?
A. Several factors contribute to eligibility:
- Ensure that you have a 2023-2024 FAFSA submitted to UIS.
- Generally, financial aid is offered for the academic year based on full-time enrollment status. If you enroll less than full-time, your aid will be adjusted. Aid will be recalculated beginning January 30, 2024 for the spring semester.
- To be eligible for a financial aid disbursement, you must meet all eligibility and disbursement requirements. See Terms & Conditions for further details.
- You must establish the minimum enrollment requirement for each type of aid.
Minimum Enrollment Requirement for Spring Loan Eligibility
| Undergraduate Student | Graduate Student | |
| Full-Time | 12+ credit hours | 9+ credit hours |
| Three-quarter Time | 9-11 credit hours | N/A |
| Half-Time | 6-8 credit hours | 5 credit hours |
| Less than Half-Time | Less than 6 credit hours | Less than 5 credit hours |
* Graduate Students in the accelerated programs will be half-time at 3 credit hours.
Q. Why hasn't my financial aid been offered for 2023-24?
A. If you have not received an aid offer, it could be because:
- You are not enrolled at least half-time to be eligible for Federal Student Loans (6 hours for undergraduate students and 5 hours for graduate students).
- You may not have a FAFSA on file. The 2023-24 FAFSA must be submitted to UIS and is located at StudentAid.gov.
Q. Why hasn't my financial aid been disbursed?
A. The first financial aid disbursement is January 8. There could be several reasons why you haven’t seen a disbursement:
- Missing financial aid "Student Requirements" items in Self-Service.
- Aid has not been Accepted by you in Self-Service. Loans and some scholarships must be accepted before disbursing.
- Failure to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).
- Enrollment conflicts; enrollment not meeting minimum requirements.
Q. Why hasn't my loan disbursed?
A. Check the following:
- Have you completed Direct Loan Entrance Counseling (first time borrower)?
- Is a valid Master Promissory Note (MPN) on file?
- Do you meet the minimum enrollment requirement (half-time)?
- Parent PLUS loan: Did your parent complete the Parent PLUS Application for Parents and Master Promissory Note (MPN)?
- Graduate PLUS loan: Did the graduate student complete the PLUS Application for Graduate Students, entrance counseling, and Master Promissory Note (MPN)?
- Loan applications, MPNs and counseling may be completed at StudentAid.gov.
Q. What is the financial aid recalculation date? How does it impact me?
A. The financial aid recalculation date is on or after January 30. Aid is adjusted based on students' enrollment status at this time.
The financial recalculation date is after the last day you may submit a partial withdrawal of a course and receive a 100% refund. Complete withdrawals with no financial obligation must be completed by Dec 17 for winter intersession, Jan 15 for full term and First-Half, and March 17 for Last-Half.
- At recalculation, your cost of attendance and Federal Pell Grant will be prorated based on your actual enrollment.
- Loans will be canceled if your enrollment falls below half-time.
- Financial Aid may be adjusted to keep your total financial aid offered within the cost of attendance and demonstrated financial need.
- Financial Aid adjustments may result in students owing money back to the university based on the early disbursement and refund schedule.
Q. What happens if my account is overpaid?
A. If your financial aid overpays the student account balance, the overpayment will be refunded beginning on or after January 9. Student account refunds are processed via direct deposit (ACH) or paper check. Direct deposit is recommended and provides a secure, efficient method to receive your refund. Once the refund is posted:
- Direct Deposit: Receive your refund in 3 - 5 business days.
- Paper Check: Mailed to the address on file in 12 - 15 business days.
Q. How do waitlisted courses affect my financial aid eligibility?
A. Waitlisted courses are not considered enrolled. Your enrollment as of the financial aid recalculation date is what determines your final financial aid eligibility. If you have courses in waitlist status at the financial aid recalculation date, they cannot be considered towards financial aid eligibility.
Q. I am taking a Winter Intersession course. How does that impact financial aid?
A. Intersession courses are combined with Spring courses for purposes of billing and financial aid. Aid eligibility for the Spring semester will be determined based on all courses registered for intersession, spring full-term and spring part of term courses.
Contact Us
We know financial aid can be complicated, and we’re available to help. Please include your UIN in all correspondence with our office.
University Hall Building, 1015
Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
finaid@uis.edu | 217-206-6724
Resources
Student Guide to Financial Aid