Michigan State University - Click here on any page to go to the MSU homepage.

Disbursement of Aid

How you will receive your aid funds

Financial aid awarded prior to a semester's initial (registration) billing reduces the amount due on the bill and is applied as listed below for each aid type. Financial aid awarded after the initial billing is first applied to your MSU student receivables account, then to your short term loan account.

  • Grants and Scholarships appear as a credit on your registration bill.
  • National Merit Scholarship appears as a temporary credit on your registration bill until we receive actual funds from National Merit at the beginning of the semester.
  • Federal Stafford Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loan, Perkins Loan, Loan for Disadvantaged Students, and Health Professions/Primary Care Loan all require a Master Promissory Note, and the Stafford and Perkins Loans also require that the student accept the loan offer in StuInfo/eFinaid. By law these loans cannot disburse to the student's account until 10 days prior to the start of classes each semester.

    A temporary credit (pending aid) is included on the bill for Stafford loans if the loan has been accepted. For the other loans above, pending aid also requires completion of the Master Promissory Note.
  • Parent PLUS Loan and Grad Plus Loan require completion of a Master Promissory Note and MSU Loan Application Form (LAF), and a credit approval. If these requirements are met, a temporary credit (pending aid) will appear on the billing statement and actual funds will disburse 10 days before the start of classes.
  • Alternative loans are applied as pending aid if the loan has been approved. Funds are released 10 days prior to the start of classes. If funds are released to the Office of Financial Aid (OFA) instead of to you, we will notify you of the necessary steps to have the loan disbursed.
  • Work and Work-Study do NOT appear on the bill and do not reduce the amount owed. Students are responsible for finding their own jobs and using their pay for school-related expenses.

Temporary financial aid expires approximately five weeks after the beginning of the semester. It is very important that you take any necessary action before the expiration of the temporary credit. Your billing statement will provide additional information regarding temporary transactions.

Refunds of excess financial aid

When your disbursed financial aid and other payments (not including temporary aid) exceed your MSU charges, you are entitled to a refund of the excess amount.

Changes in enrollment

You may be billed for a portion or all of your financial aid if you drop credit hours or are not at the minimum credit level required for aid eligibility. If you'll be attending as a part-time student or if you're considering dropping a class, it is important to discuss it with an OFA staff member first.

Adjustments to aid

If changes must be made to your financial aid package, it is sometimes necessary to bill you back for aid already disbursed.

All financial aid and educational resources must fit within your budget. If we become aware of additional financial aid or other resources, this overaward must be eliminated by reducing or cancelling other aid.

Cancellation of loans

You have the right to cancel all or a portion of your PLUS, Stafford or Perkins loans, even after the loan funds have been disbursed to you. If you wish to cancel an already disbursed loan, you must notify OFA within 14 calendar days of the billing statement notifying you that the funds have been applied to your account.

The parent borrower has the right to cancel all or a portion of the PLUS, even after the loan funds have been disbursed to your MSU student account. If the parent wishes to cancel an already disbursed PLUS, the borrower must notify OFA within 14 calendar days of the billing statement notifying you that the funds have been applied to your student account.

Withdrawal from MSU

You may be billed for a portion or all of your financial aid if you withdraw from the university. The bill calculated as a result of withdrawal will depend on the effective date of withdrawal, the percentage and amount of institutional refund, and/or the last date of class attendance. See Financial Aid (Title IV) Refund Policy for more information about the effects of withdrawing from MSU.

 

*Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to read PDF documents.