Fall 2025 Financial Aid FAQs

Publish Date

2025-07-29

Fall 2025 Financial Aid FAQs

College life gets busy fast—especially at the start of a new semester. Between classes, schedules, and everything else, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But getting a handle on your financial aid early can take a lot of stress off your plate and help you feel more in control.

To help you stay ahead, we’ve put together answers to some of the most common financial aid questions students ask. Let’s make sure you’re set up for success from day one.

Q. How do I check my financial aid status or disbursement?

A. To review your financial aid:

Log in to Student Self-Service
Choose “Financial Aid Notification” on the Financial Aid card to see your aid offer.
Choose the “Home” screen to view missing required documents or forms.

To check your disbursement status:

Log in to Student Self-Service
Choose “UI-Pay” on the University Bursar card to view and pay your bill. Fall charges will begin to show on your account in early August and official billing will take place in September.

*Please note: No financial aid disbursements can be made before 10 days prior to the start of the semester.

Q. How can I make sure I’m eligible to receive my financial aid?

A. Several factors contribute to eligibility:

Ensure that you have a 2025-26 FAFSA or Illinois Alternative Application submitted to UIS.
Generally, financial aid is offered for the academic year based on full-time enrollment status. If you enroll less than full-time, your aid will be adjusted. Aid will be recalculated after the end of the add/drop period, which ends September 5, 2025 for the fall semester.
To be eligible for a financial aid disbursement, you must meet all eligibility and disbursement requirements. See Terms & Conditions for further details.
You must establish the minimum enrollment requirement for each type of aid.
Aid cannot disburse until 10 days before the start of the semester. UIS donor-funded scholarships will not disburse until after the first two weeks of the semester in order for final eligibility to be determined.

Q. Why hasn't my financial aid been offered for Fall 2025?

A. If you have not received an aid offer, it could be because:

You are missing important required forms or documents. Visit Student Self-Service to view any missing information.
You may not have an application on file. The 2025-26 FAFSA, or Illinois Alternative Application, must be submitted to UIS (school code #009333). This must be submitted annually.
You may not meet minimum eligibility requirements including meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress.

Q. Why hasn't my financial aid been disbursed?

A. The first financial aid disbursement is on or after August 13, 2025. After that date, if you haven’t seen your aid pay to your student account, there may be several reasons why you haven’t seen a disbursement:

Missing financial aid "Student Requirements" items in Student Self-Service.
Offered loans have not been accepted by you in Self-Service (students must be enrolled at least half-time to be eligible for federal student loan disbursements).
Failure to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). View the SAP Policy on our Policies page.
Other conflicts such as enrollment not meeting minimum requirements.

Q. I expect to receive a refund to help me with books, supplies and/or off-campus living expenses. When should I expect a refund?

A. Refunds are processed by University Bursar according to their schedule. The first refunds for fall semester will begin on or about August 15, 2025. Direct deposit is recommended and provides a secure, efficient method to receive your refund. Once the refund is posted:

Direct Deposit: Receive your refund in 3 - 5 business days.
Paper Check: Mailed to the address on file in 12 - 15 business days.

Students may sign up for direct deposit through University Bursar’s website at paymybill.uillinois.edu.

Q. Why hasn't my loan been disbursed?

A. Check the following:

Have you completed Direct Loan Entrance Counseling (first time borrower)?
Is a valid Master Promissory Note (MPN) on file?
Do you meet the minimum enrollment requirement (half-time)?
Parent PLUS loan: Did your parent complete the Parent PLUS Application for Parents and a Master Promissory Note (MPN)?
Graduate PLUS loan: Did the graduate student complete the PLUS Application for Graduate Students, entrance counseling, and Master Promissory Note (MPN)?
Loan applications, MPNs and counseling may be completed at StudentAid.gov.

Q. What is the financial aid recalculation date? How does it impact me?

A. The financial aid recalculation date is on or after September 6, after the add/drop date for the semester has concluded. Aid is adjusted based on students' enrollment status at this time.

The financial aid recalculation date is after the last day you may submit a partial withdrawal of a course and receive a 100% refund, which is September 5 for a full-term course. Complete withdrawals with no financial obligation must be completed by August 21 for a full refund for first-half and full-term classes, and October 19 for last-half classes. See the Fall 2025 Drop-Withdrawal policy for full details.

At recalculation, your cost of attendance, Federal Pell Grant and other aid may be adjusted based on your actual enrollment.
Most scholarships will be canceled if your enrollment falls below full-time.
Loans will be canceled if your enrollment falls below half-time.
Financial Aid may be adjusted to keep your total financial aid offered within the estimated cost of attendance and demonstrated financial need.
Financial Aid adjustments may result in students owing money back to the university based on the early disbursement and refund schedule.

Q. How do waitlisted courses affect my financial aid eligibility?

A. Waitlisted courses are not considered enrolled. Your enrollment as of the financial aid recalculation date on or after September 6 is what determines your final financial aid eligibility. If you have courses in waitlist status at the financial aid recalculation date, they cannot be considered towards financial aid eligibility.