Types of Financial Aid
Various types of aid are offered through Georgia State University. Please feel free
to contact the office with any questions you may have concerning your particular
award. For further information regarding financial aid, refer to the financial aid
Web site at www.gsu.edu/financialaid.
The following types of aid are available:
Federal Pell Grants
These awards are available until you earn your first undergraduate degree
Eligibility is determined by the federal government based on family income
and resources. Actual awards will be calculated upon registration and based
upon actual hours attempted.
SEOG/IMG
All recipients must be in a degree-seeking program working toward a first
baccalaureate degree. Priority is given to Federal Pell Grant recipients. Funds
for Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG) and Institutional
Matching Grants (IMG) do not have to be repaid.
National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent (SMART) Grant
This particular grant provides up to $4,000 for each of the third and fourth
years of undergraduate study. The National SMART Grant award is in addition
to the student’s Pell Grant award.
Academic Competitiveness Grant
This academic grant provides up to $750 for the first year of undergraduate
study and up to $1,300 for the second year of undergraduate study. The
program became available for the first time for the 2006-07 school year for
first-year students who graduated from high school after Jan. 1, 2006, and for
second-year students who graduated from high school after Jan. 1, 2005. The
Academic Competitiveness Grant award is in addition to a student’s Pell Grant award.
HOPE
For Georgia residents, the HOPE award covers tuition and some fees not paid by other sources. HOPE-BOOK is a stipend for books and supplies, and disbursement is calculated based on hours attempted. However, this stipend may be applied to any outstanding fees for the term in which the stipend was awarded.
Scholarships
A scholarship is a form of non-repayable financial assistance awarded to
students based on academic excellence, civic achievements, course of study,
or other specific criteria developed by the sponsor.
As financial aid is applied to a student’s account, it pays billed charges in
specific ways. Some types of financial aid pay down charges in the order
applied. Other aid has strict requirements. State law requires that the Hope
Scholarship only pay required fees like matriculation and mandatory fees.
How outside agency or scholarship donor checks are treated depends on
a variety of factors. If the check does not require the student’s endorsement,
the funds will be posted to the student’s account; if fees are paid in full,
a residual check will be mailed to the student. A co-payable check will be
released by mail to the student if fees are paid in full, and if fees are unpaid,
the student will be notified to endorse the check.
Direct loans
Federal Direct Student Loans are a way for students to borrow money from
the federal government to pay for an education after high school. Under this
program, the U.S. Department of Education makes loans directly to students
through their schools. Direct loans simplify the loan process and eliminate the
need for an outside lender such as a bank. Direct loans make loan repayment
much easier, as payments go directly to the federal government.
The kinds of loans available under the direct loan program are Federal
Direct Stafford loans, Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans, Federal
Direct PLUS loans and the Federal Direct GRAD PLUS loan. The Office of
Student Accounts applies all loans awarded directly to any outstanding
student fees and then issues the remainder directly to the student. Refer to
the Student Accounts Web site at www.gsu.edu/es/tuition_and_fees.html for
specific information regarding disbursement dates.
Students who borrow Federal Direct Student Loans are required to
complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) online at http://dlenote.ed.gov. In
order to complete an MPN you will need your Personal Identification Number
(PIN) that you used to electronically sign your FAFSA and two references with
two different U.S. addresses. If you do not have your PIN, you will need to
request one at www.pin.ed.gov.
Loan counseling
All Federal Direct loan recipients are required to have entrance counseling
before receiving their first disbursement at Georgia State. Loan funds will
not be released or credited to a student’s account until entrance counseling
is completed. A student may receive loan counseling online at www.ed.gov/
DirectLoan.
Disbursement/Refunds
The Office of Student Financial Aid applies aid to each student’s account. The
Office of Student Accounts disburses any remaining funds to the student in
the form of a check, or funds are directly deposited into the student’s account
unless there is an administrative hold on the record. Funds exceeding student
institutional costs (tuition, fees, housing, etc.) will be mailed or directly
deposited into the student’s bank account during the second week of classes,
after drop/add registration.
For direct deposit, students must enter their bank account information
on PAWS at http://paws.gsu.edu, and then click onto the Student
Accounts Menu.
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