Financial Aid Offer: Next Steps
What is a “financial aid offer”?
Once you have completed the FAFSA form, your information will be sent from the U.S. Department of Education to the school for additional processing and ultimately to create a financial aid offer.
Please note that the transmission of FAFSA information is not immediate. We ask that you allow up to 10 business days for the school to receive your FAFSA.
The financial aid offer details the aid the student has been offered as a result of completing the FAFSA. Several types of aid may appear on the offer.
What information does my financial aid offer provide?
Your financial aid offer provides information about the type of aid you have been offered and the amount of aid offered for each semester in the academic year. You will also find information about the cost of attendance, Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy, Federal Work-Study, and instructions on accepting or declining student loans.
Follow these steps to view your financial aid offer.
Step 1
Log into Blackboard via MyCState portal.
Step 2
Click on Self-Service. If you are viewing on a desktop, this option will be at the top right corner of the page. If you are using a tablet or phone, use the three-bar menu icon in the left corner to see the Self-Service option.
Step 3
Locate the Financial Aid tile.
Step 4
Review the personalized check list for action items and requested documents. If available, click to “Review and Accept Your Financial Aid Award Package.” If available, click to “Review and Sign your Financial Aid Offer Letter.”
Tip 1: Offer letter is based on full-time enrollment
The offer letter is based on full-time enrollment. This means the amounts you see are based on at least 12 credit hours of enrollment per semester.
Tip 2: Summer Semester
You may notice summer does not have aid assigned. Summer financial aid is leftover financial aid from the previous fall and spring semesters. Once the FAFSA form is received and the student registers for the summer semester, the summer financial aid is processed with a week.
Tip 3: Cost Questions
If you have questions about the cost of attendance, or would like more information, click on the links below.
Tip 4: Satisfactory Academic Progress
Students must continually meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to receive financial aid. Please review the policy.
Tip 5: Federal Work-Study Program
Federal Work-Study is a part-time job on campus or a community service job off campus. Students offered Federal Work-Study can review job postings and apply through Human Resources.
Tip 6: Student Loans
Student loans are accepted or declined through Self-Service on the check list item “Review and Accept Your Financial Aid Award.” If this is your first student loan, the Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling must be completed at studentaid.gov.
Tip 7: Purchasing books, parking pass, and more with financial aid
Students who want to use excess financial aid to purchase books, a parking pass, or a meal plan will need to complete the Title IV authorization form. This form is located in the Links section on the right hand side of Financial Aid Self-Service.