FAQ

First complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.gov. The FAFSA is used to determine how much a student and their family is expected to contribute for the student’s education. The difference between the total cost of attendance and the family contribution is your financial need. You must file a FAFSA each academic year you want federal financial aid.

No, you do not have to accept the amount offered. If you are requesting a different amount, email the Office of Financial Aid at [email protected].

When the financial aid office authorize your aid to your account, you will normally see a negative balance (credit). The negative (credit) balance will change to a refund status and will be disbursed to you within 14 days.

No. To actually receive funds, however, you must be admitted and enrolled at the University.

Students must be enrolled at least half-time (6 credit hours) to maintain eligibility for Direct Loans. Students who drop below half-time during the semester may have their Direct Loan(s) revoked and funds returned to the Department of Education. If you drop below half-time, please consult with a financial aid adviser.

Yes. After your first year you will have an option to complete “Renewal Application” which contains preprinted information from the previous year’s FAFSA. Note that your eligibility for financial can change year to year. Renewal of your financial aid package also depends on satisfactory academic progress towards a degree.

The loan awarded may not have posted because:

• As a first-time Federal Direct Stafford Loan borrower, you must complete an electronic Master Promissory Note
• (MPN) and complete online Entrance Loan Counseling before your funds will post to your account.
• Your enrollment status is below half-time (6 credit hours).
• Your FAFSA was updated to reflect a change in status reflecting default or verification documents.
• Registration may be incomplete.

Financial aid awards are our best estimate of what you are eligible to receive at the time you are awarded and
full time enrollment. Your award may be increased, reduced, or even canceled, if:

• Your FAFSA contains incorrect or incomplete data
• You receive any outside resources, such as privately awarded scholarships, which were not listed on
• your award letter.
• You do not maintain satisfactory academic progress
• You do not enroll for the required number of hours to receive aid through the programs awarded you.
• Your student status changes in any way (Residency, career, hours enrolled, class level, or expected
• graduation date, etc.)

The Department of Education select students for the verification process upon receipt of the FAFSA. Verification selection can be random or because a FAFSA was incomplete, estimated, or inconsistent. Alcorn State University may also select students for the verification process if conflicting information is found.

Scholarship(s) can be reduced for several reasons:

• You campus housing changed.
• You are no longer living on campus and the room/board portion of your scholarship was removed.
• You received several institutional scholarships that surpassed tuition/room/board.
• Full institutional scholarship reduced by the amount of Pell grant as stated per institutional rules.
• Lack of performance for service scholarships such as band, music, ROTC, etc…

• Additional information about what SAP is, its requirements, and the appeal process can be found here: https://www.alcorn.edu/admissions/financial-aid/satisfactory-academic-progress-standards.

SAP Appeal Deadlines

• Self-Pay: SAP Suspension does not prevent students from registering for classes. However, payment is the responsibility of students and must be made as required by university policy.
• Private or Alternative Student Loans: Students who do not qualify for Federal Financial Aid (because of financial aid suspension/ineligibility (reached max limit for federal financial aid) can apply for private or alternative student loans. These loans are non-federal loans, made by a lender such as a bank, credit union, or state agency. Eligibility for private/alternative loans depends on the student’s creditworthiness. These loans are offered by private lenders and the amount you may borrow varies and depends on the lender of your choosing. The Office of Financial Aid will process any private/alternative loan of your choice upon notification. ASU does not have a preferred lender list, but you can search private or alternative student loans and compare terms and conditions of the loans before you decide on a particular lender.

The ASU Payment Plan is designed to help students defer payments for a given semester and broken down in two equal installments. A contract fee of $50 is required at the time of enrollment and is nonrefundable. Generally there are two plans offered (Partial Financial Aid and Non-Financial Aid). The payment plan is available for the Fall and Spring terms. Failure to pay the deferred balance by the due dates will result in a late fee of 5%, collection activity, holds placed on the student account and may prevent future eligibility of the payment plan.

Direct all questions concerning your Student Account and the Payment Plan to the Bursar’s office. (1)
Email: [email protected], (2) Campus Location: Room 203 2nd floor Walter Washington Administration Building and (3) Telephone: 601.877.6388.

Frequently Asked Questions are located under the Residence Life tab at https://www.alcorn.edu/students/residence-life/faqs or select the How May Housing Assist you tab at https://www.alcorn.edu/students/residence-life/how-may-we-assist-you.

A student is considered independent if the student:

• is married
• 24 years of age
• has children for whom one-half of support is provided
• is a veteran
• is an orphan or ward of the court
• is a graduate student

Freshman students are eligible for up to $5,500 in loan money per year, sophomore students are eligible for up to $6,500 per year, junior and senior students are eligible for up to $7,500 per year, and graduate students are eligible for up to $20,500 per year, respectively. Independent students may be eligible to borrow more.