In our August webinar, we explored key steps to navigating the financial aid process, including various forms of aid, applications, and expert tips on funding your education. Below, we provide additional resources and links discussed during the webinar to help guide you through this important process.
Understanding the Process of Funding a Degree
The U.S. Department of Education and other organizations provide tools to help you chart a clear path to graduation. One such tool is Your Financial Path to Graduation, developed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
Family Conversations on College Costs
Discussing college funding with family members is a crucial step in planning for higher education. To learn about how families across the U.S. approach paying for college, check out the 2024 report How America Pays for College by Sallie Mae.
Top 5 Tips for Financial Aid
University of Illinois Springfield provides an excellent resource on the basics of financial aid. You can find more information in their Financial Aid 101 guide.
Understanding Independent Student Status
Your dependency status can significantly impact the amount of financial aid you receive. Learn more about determining your dependency status and how it affects financial aid.
Accepting or Declining Financial Aid
Once you've received your financial aid offers from schools, it's important to understand the acceptance process. For students in the University of Illinois system, check out the guidelines for accepting or declining aid at each of the universities in the System below:
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Maintaining satisfactory academic progress is essential to keep receiving financial aid. SAP policies for the University of Illinois universities are available online:
Federal and State Grants
Grants like the Federal Pell Grant, FSEOG, and the Illinois Monetary Award Program (MAP) help eligible students cover their educational expenses.
TEACH Grant & HEAL Program Loan
TEACH grants can turn into loans if you don't complete all of the requirements.
It's also important to know who to contact if you have questions about your HEAL Program loan.
Military-Connected & Veteran Aid
You can learn more about financial aid for military veterans and their families through VA Education and Training Benefits for federal benefits and Military Service Education Benefits (ISAC) for state of Illinois benefits.
Support for veterans at each University includes:
Institutional Scholarships (Examples)
Each university has multiple scholarship opportunities available for students, so we just focused on a few examples for each institution:
Urbana Scholarships
Chicago Scholarships
Springfield Scholarships
Fellowships
Education Tax Credits
Employment
Federal Work-Study
Taxability of Graduate Level Tuition & Service Fee Waivers
Student Employment Opportunities
Student Loans
Making Cents of Money Podcast episodes:
Financial Aid Disbursement
Direct Deposit for U of I Students’ Financial Aid Refunds
Ways to Save
- How to Save Money on Food Webinar Recording
- Campus & Community Resources (e.g., SNAP, LIHEAP)
- Summer, R., McCoy, M., Trujillo, I., & Rodriguez, E. (2023). Support for working students: understanding the impacts of employment on students’ lives. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, https://doi.org/10.1177/15210251221149209.
How Compound Interest Works
Reduce Costs: Try to Limit Time to Degree
US News National average net cost of in-state tuition: $11,560
Post Secondary Employment Outcomes (Census Bureau)