Financial Aid FAQ

You must be accepted into an eligible program and submit a FAFSA application.

• How to Apply for Financial Aid
• How it Works

You must be enrolled at least half-time (5 credits for pharmacy students, 6 credits for all other students) for the summer and and half-time for the fall semesters (unless you are graduating in the summer or will not be enrolled for the fall for other reasons). You must submit a Summer Aid Application form in addition to your FAFSA.

Learn More About Summer Aid

Some students are selected for a review process called verification. The U.S. Department of Education selects students for verification using certain criteria. Schools are required to collect specific information and/or documents. The school must then review the documents to verify the accuracy of your FAFSA. This process must be completed before aid can be confirmed and released.

Learn More About Verification

Helpful information is available online, but if you have questions, please contact our office.

You may be eligible for a book advance (for the fall and spring semesters only) if you don’t owe the university any money from a prior semester and have more than enough financial aid to cover the costs for the current semester.

Please review our Book Advance Policy.

You should contact your financial aid counselor to see if there are any other options available to you.

Review the information in the scholarships and grants sections of our website. Contact our office if you have questions.

If federal work study is not listed among your awards, you may not have qualified for it or funds may not have been available at the time of awarding. Please contact our office if you would like to be placed on the waiting list.

The Business Office mails refund checks to students within two weeks after a credit balance is created on the student’s account (from the disbursement of financial aid funds).

Your financial aid will disburse only after you have established half-time enrollment (5 credits for pharmacy students, 6 credits for all other students).

Example: If one 3 credit class begins early in the semester, but your second 3 credit class does not begin until later, the funds will not be released until the second class has begun. Then it takes about two weeks for a refund check to be mailed.

You may find the answer on the frequently asked billing questions page or you may contact the Business Office at 410-532-5440.

We are required by law to enforce FERPA requirements which state that we can only disclose information to the student unless written consent has been provided by the student to share information with someone else. The Authorization to Release Information (FERPA) form is available online.

The government pays the interest on subsidized loans while the student is enrolled at least half-time and during periods of deferment. The student is responsible for all interest that accumulates on unsubsidized loans.

Complete and submit a Loan Cancellation or Decrease Request form.

The school will automatically report your enrollment to the National Clearinghouse which provides information to all loan servicers. You should monitor the status of your loans with your loan servicer. If necessary, the Registrar’s Office can complete an enrollment verification form for you.

Graduating students are required to complete online Exit Counseling. 

You will be notified by your loan servicer of upcoming payments. For Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans, there is a 6 month grace period after you cease half-time enrollment before repayment begins. For Perkins loans, the grace period is 9 months. There are various repayment plans available which your servicer can assist you with. Review the debt management information.

You can access your own loan history at NSLDS. Choose the “Financial Aid Review” option. You will need to sign in using the same FSA ID that is used for the FAFSA.

Federal and state financial aid is not available to international students. However, limited institutional scholarships are available as well as external scholarships and private/alternative student loans.

The FAFSA collects tax information from the prior year.If your family has experienced a significant change in income, we encourage you to speak your financial aid counselor. If the counselor finds that the revision to your family's income could change the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) resulting in additional financial aid eligibility, then you will be advised to complete a Professional Judgment Appeal form. 

Your financial aid could be reduced or cancelled if you drop classes prior to the census date. To ensure aid eligibility is not lost, students should initiate participation and remain enrolled in their classes. Any time your enrollment changes, we will reevaluate your financial aid which could result in a bill.

For more details, please review our Dropping Courses and Withdrawals Policy. We also recommend that you speak to your financial aid counselor before you decide to drop a class.

This question only pertains to Women's College and School of Pharmacy students. 

Your cost of attendance includes a housing allowance based on your status as a resident or commuter. When your status changes, your cost of attendance is updated and your aid is adjusted accordingly. To see how your aid would be affected, check with your financial aid counselor.

Please review the information about loans for detailed instructions.

Please review the PLUS loan denial options.

The FAFSA can be completed with estimated tax information in order to meet Notre Dame's priority deadline of February 15. After your taxes are completed, you should use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) within the FAFSA to update your tax information. If you are ineligible to use the IRS DRT, you must update the information manually on the FAFSA after your taxes are submitted.