Financial Aid Procedures

Applying for Financial Aid

Step 1: Research financial aid options

• • Review Types of financial aid for an overview of the aid available to graduate students. 
  • Notify Messiah University of any additional funding you may receive from employer reimbursement, private scholarships, Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, or veterans benefits.   
  • Review our FAQs for common questions.

Step 2: File the FAFSA

File the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.gov if you are planning to use federal unsubsidized Direct Loans, Graduate PLUS loans, and/or the TEACH grant.  Students will need to create an FSA ID in order to submit the FAFSA.  Messiah University's Title IV code is 003298.

Step 3: Register for courses

Graduate students must be registered for classes BEFORE financial aid can be awarded.  Federal loan eligibility is based on registration (not financial need).  For unsubsidized Direct loans, students registered half-time (3-5 credits) will generally be awarded $5,125 per  semester, and students registered full-time (6 or more credits) will generally be awarded $10,250 per semester.  Additional financial aid such as veterans’ benefits, Messiah employee benefits, Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, and graduate discounts are also based on registration.

Step 4: Wait for acknowledgement and submit outstanding requirements

Acknowledgements
After you file the FAFSA, you will receive an acknowledgement email and a Student Aid Report (SAR). The SAR is a summary of your application data. Review this carefully for any messages about things you need to do and for information about your eligibility. Messiah will also receive this report, and we will use it to award your financial aid.

Step 5: Accept Financial Aid Award

• Financial aid is awarded per semester.  Your award notification is sent to your Messiah University email account.  It will include instructions on how to access the award online through  FALCON Link.  Enter “Financial Aid Award” in the search box and follow the link.  Select the correct award year from the dropdown box.  Work through the 6 tabs from left to right. 
  • General Information Tab - Review
  • Award Overview Tab - Review 
  • Resources/Additional Information Tab - Answer all 3 questions.  Answering yes provides the most flexibility.
  • Terms and Conditions Tab –Review and click ACCEPT button at the bottom.
  • Accept Award Offer Tab - Discounts, Veterans' Benefits, Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Messiah Employee Benefits, and Grad PLUS Loans are already in accepted status.  Unsubsidized Direct Loans are in offered status, and a decision must be entered (accept full award, accept a partial amount, or decline). Accept what is needed for the current semester.
  • Special Message - Review
• The loan amount offered may be considerably more than what is needed.  We recommend accepting only what is needed to cover your educational expenses to keep your debt low.  Interest will begin accruing after the loan disburses onto your student account.  Our graduate student financial counselors can assist you in determining what loan amount will cover charges and any estimated additional educational expenses.  The federal government charges a loan origination fee that comes off the top of unsubsidized Direct Loans and Graduate PLUS loans.  Each loan will disburse slightly less than the amount that is accepted.
• This helpful Loan Payment Calculator  computes an estimate of the size of your monthly loan payments and the annual salary required to manage them.  Additional information about federal student loans is available at https://studentaid.gov/.

Step 6: Additional steps for federal loans and TEACH Grant

When accepting an unsubsidized Direct Loan, loan entrance counseling and a Loan Agreement (MPN) Master Promissory Note must be completed.  Both last for 10 years, so if you have had a recent Direct Loan, you do not need to complete these again if they are still active.

• Log in to https://studentaid.gov/.  Select the In School tab.  Select Complete Loan Entrance Counseling.
• From the same website, https://studentaid.gov/, In School tab select Complete Loan Agreement (Master Promissory Note).
• You will need to log in with your FSA ID to complete all federal requirements.
• You can review all your federal student loans at https://studentaid.gov/. Log in to review.

To apply for a Graduate PLUS Loan, if needed as a supplemental loan, an additional application and Master Promissory Note are required.  

• Log in to https://studentaid.gov/; select the In School tab then Apply for a PLUS Loan for Graduate School.
• Complete the Loan Agreement for a PLUS Loan (MPN).  

Prior to receiving a TEACH Grant, 2 items must be completed.

• Log in to https://studentaid.gov/. Select the In School tab and then Complete TEACH Grant Counseling and Agreement to Serve.  You will need to log-in with your FSA ID to complete these requirements.

Step 7: Financial Aid disbursement schedule

Graduate financial aid typically disburses into the account 3 days after the student’s first course begins each semester.  This includes unsubsidized Direct Loans, Graduate PLUS Loans, graduate discounts, and Messiah employee benefits.  Disbursement may be delayed due to Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) review.  Federal regulations require Messiah University to review student grades to confirm SAP is achieved before disbursing any additional federal aid.  Messiah University does this after each semester.

Please note that Veteran’s benefits, scholarship checks, and Office of Vocational Rehabilitation benefits will be applied when the actual payment arrives at Messiah, but not before the disbursement date.

Complete a Refund Request

• Refunds can be requested by graduate students who have a credit balance on their student account. Refunds will be processed after financial aid has disbursed onto student accounts.
• To request a refund, go to FALCONLink>Request Student Refund.  Complete the form, submit, review, then submit request.  You will get an automated email response when your request has been received.  Refunds take about 2 weeks to process after the account has a credit.
• Students may reduce their loan by emailing Student Financial Services Graduate Counselors at gradfinancialserv@messiah.edu.