First-Time Application Procedure FAQs

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General Financial Aid Questions

1. Does Northwestern offer merit aid?
2. Who is eligible to receive Northwestern Scholarship assistance?
3. How will outside scholarships affect my financial aid award?
4. Does Northwestern participate in the National Merit Scholarship Program? What is Northwestern's policy regarding National Merit Scholarships?
5. I'm an international student. Can I apply for financial aid?

1. What are the financial aid application deadlines for prospective students?
2. The CSS Profile told me to complete a Noncustodial Parent's Statement and/or a Business/Farm Supplement. When do these forms need to be submitted?
3. The CSS Profile/FAFSA asks for my 2007 tax information but I haven't done my taxes yet. How can I fill out the form? Can I submit it after the February 15 deadline?
4. I have missed the deadline to apply for financial aid. What should I do?
5. When will I receive my financial aid decision?

1. What forms are required to apply for financial aid at Northwestern? Does Northwestern have its own financial aid application?
2. The CSS Profile told me to have my mother/father complete a Noncustodial Parent's Statement but she/he is unwilling to provide the information and/or I have no contact with my noncustodial parent. What should I do?
3. My parents are divorced and my custodial parent has remarried. Whose information should be used on the CSS Profile and FAFSA forms?

1. My financial circumstances have changed since I filed the financial aid applications and I would like to appeal the financial aid decision. What should I do?
2. Should I sign and return the award letter even though I'm appealing the decision?
3. What should I do if I accept the loan portion of my award but want to borrow less than I was offered?
4. What does the cash management question mean?
5. My aid seems fine for my freshman year but what will my aid be like for the next three years?

General Financial Aid Questions

1. Does Northwestern offer merit aid?
Northwestern is an institutional sponsor of National Merit Scholarships. In addition, the School of Music awards a number of talent scholarships to incoming students with outstanding performance in auditions. The remainder of the Northwestern scholarship funds are awarded in accordance with our need-based financial aid policy which allows our uniformly high quality students to attend regardless of their ability to cover the cost.

2. Who is eligible to receive Northwestern Scholarship assistance?
Any undergraduate student enrolled in a degree-seeking program may apply for consideration for Northwestern Scholarship assistance. All NU Scholarships are awarded on the basis of demonstrated financial need and availability of funding at the time the student applies for aid. Approximately one-half of all Northwestern undergraduate students receive NU Scholarship assistance, and recipients come from families with a wide range of income backgrounds.

3. How will outside scholarships affect my financial aid award?
Northwestern meets the full, demonstrated need of its financial aid applicants. You are required to report any outside scholarships that you are or will be receiving, as they are considered to be a part of your financial resources and must be taken into account with any other financial aid received. Earning outside scholarships is an excellent way to reduce your loan indebtedness. Your Northwestern Scholarship will not be reduced unless the total of your outside scholarships is greater than the total self-help portion of your award (need-based student loans and work-study). Outside scholarships do not reduce the expected family contribution. Please forward all scholarship checks directly to the Financial Aid Office, Attn: Scholarship Coordinator, 1801 Hinman Avenue, Evanston, IL 60208.

4. Does Northwestern participate in the National Merit Scholarship Program? What is Northwestern's policy regarding National Merit Scholarships?
Northwestern is an institutional sponsor of the National Merit Scholarship Program. National Merit awards range from a minimum of $500 up to $2,000. To be considered for a National Merit Scholarship you must meet the following criteria:

• You must be a National Merit Finalist.
• You must name Northwestern University as your first choice school (where you plan to attend if admitted) before May 1 of your senior year in high school.

National Merit scholars may also be sponsored directly by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation or other organizations. Questions about these sponsored awards should be directed to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation at (847)866-5100.

5. I'm an international student. Can I apply for financial aid?
Northwestern University will offer need-based financial aid awards to a small group of enrolling international undergraduate students. Citizens of countries outside the United States who apply under Regular Decision for financial aid will be reviewed as a separate group. The usual selective admission criteria, as well as the amount of financial aid needed by an applicant, will be factors in the admission committee's decision. As a result, Northwestern will not offer admission to some candidates who are otherwise well-qualified. For these reasons, the admission rate for international applicants requesting aid is substantially lower than for those not requesting aid. Only those students who apply for and receive financial aid for their freshman year will be eligible to receive financial assistance in subsequent years. There is no financial aid available for international transfer applicants or international students applying under Early Decision. For more information regarding financial aid application procedures for prospective international students, please refer to the section on Financial Aid for International Students on the website for the Office of Undergraduate Admission.

Deadline Questions

1. What are the financial aid application deadlines for prospective students?
If you are applying for admission under Early Decision, you should register for the CSS Profile by November 1 in order to submit it by December 1. You will be required to complete the FAFSA by February 15 and submit both parent and student 2009 tax returns to the College Board iDoc Service by March 5.

If you are applying for admission under Regular Decision, you should register for the CSS Profile by January 1 in order to submit it by February 15. The FAFSA should also be submitted by February 15 and both parent and student 2009 tax returns should be submitted to the College Board iDoc Service by March 5.

2. The CSS Profile told me to complete a Noncustodial Parent's Statement and/or a Business/Farm Supplement. When do these forms need to be submitted?
You should complete these forms through the College Board iDoc Service by February 15.

3. The CSS Profile/FAFSA asks for my 2009 tax information but I haven't done my taxes yet. How can I fill out the form? Can I submit it after the February 15 deadline?
We understand that you probably will not have your tax information prepared in time to complete the Profile/FAFSA by the February 15 deadline. Instead of submitting these forms late, we ask that you fill them out using your best estimates of your 2009 information. Most people can do this by using their prior year taxes and their last paystub for 2009. You should still submit copies of both your parents' and your 2009 actual taxes by March 5.

4. I have missed the deadline to apply for financial aid. What should I do?
It is never too late to apply for Financial Aid; however, if aid funds are limited, priority will be given to families who have applied by our published deadlines. If you are applying after the February 15 deadline, you should also file the FAFSA, CSS Profile and submit your tax returns to the College Board iDoc Service as soon as possible. Although you are still eligible to be considered for financial aid, if you miss the deadlines you should realize that your tuition deposit will still be due on May 1. Tuition deposit deadlines will not be extended.

5. When will I receive my financial aid decision?
If you have submitted all the required documents on time, you should receive your financial aid decision shortly after you receive your admission decision.

Application Materials Questions

1. What forms are required to apply for financial aid at Northwestern? Does Northwestern have its own financial aid application?
Prospective students applying for financial aid are required to complete and submit both the CSS Profile and the FAFSA. In addition, students are required to submit copies of their parents' and their own 2009 federal income taxes and W-2 forms via the College Board iDoc Service.

Depending on the information you report on the CSS Profile, the College Scholarship Service may also ask you to complete a Noncustodial Parent's Statement (pdf) and/or a Business/Farm Supplement (pdf).

As a prospective or incoming student, you should not complete the Northwestern University Aid application. University Aid applications should be completed by returning students only.

2. The CSS Profile told me to have my mother/father complete a Noncustodial Parent's Statement but she/he is unwilling to provide the information and/or I have no contact with my noncustodial parent. What should I do?
Northwestern expects that both parents will contribute to the student's educational expenses to the extent that they are able. If the noncustodial parent is unwilling to fill out the form or provide support to the student, please call our office at (847) 491-8000 to discuss the situation with a counselor.

3. My parents are divorced and my custodial parent has remarried. Whose information should be used on the CSS Profile and FAFSA forms?
Federal regulations require that the forms be completed with information about the custodial parent's household. Therefore, if your custodial parent has remarried, information about his/her spouse should be included on the forms.

Appealing or Accepting Aid Questions

1. My financial circumstances have changed since I filed the financial aid applications and I would like to appeal the financial aid decision. What should I do?
We review financial aid applications with the understanding that we are looking at a family's financial circumstances at a particular time. If something changes subsequent to filing your financial aid application or if there are unusual circumstances that were not clear in your initial application, you may provide the Office of Financial Aid with documentation of your changed or unusual circumstances and request a review of your award.

Typically, families request a review in the event that there is new unemployment or a change in employment, unusual expenses (for example, unreimbursed medical expenses), death, or divorce/separation. In the case of unemployment, we may request a termination letter, documentation of severance or other unemployment benefits, a monthly expense breakdown, or updates on the job search. While we try to be responsive to families when they have financial concerns, we cannot adjust awards based upon anticipated circumstances.

2. Should I sign and return the award letter even though I'm appealing the decision?
We ask that you sign and return each financial aid award letter that you receive even if you are going to appeal the decision. We ask you to do this because we want to keep track of the current level of our committed funds so that we will know what funds are still available. The financial aid award letter is not a contract but a confirmation that you have received and reviewed the information it contains.

3. What should I do if I accept the loan portion of my award but want to borrow less than I was offered?
If you were offered a Stafford or a Perkins loan, please note your adjustment on your award notice by crossing off the amount offered and entering your reduced amount.

If you were offered an NU Loan, accept the award on the aid notification and return it to our office. You may either indicate a reduced amount on the award notice or when completing the loan application.

4. What does the cash management question mean?
By checking "I authorize" on the back of your financial aid award, you are simply authorizing the Office of Student Accounts to apply federal financial aid funds to other fees that might be assessed on your billing account (i.e., library fines, past due phone bill, etc.). The Financial Aid Office is required to ask this question and record your response, but it does not affect your aid in any way.

5. My aid seems fine for my freshman year but what will my aid be like for the next three years?
We require all returning students to complete financial aid applications each year. If your family's financial circumstances stay about the same, you can expect a similar award next year. There are, however, some circumstances that will significantly affect your aid eligibility.

One of the circumstances that will affect your financial aid award is a decrease in the number of students enrolled as undergraduates in your family. The CSS Profile and the FAFSA calculate a total expected family contribution based upon the income and asset information you report. That total is then divided by the number of students enrolled as undergraduates in your family. If, for example, the total expected family contribution was determined to be $12,000 and there were two undergraduate students, you would be expected to contribute $6,000 to each student. If there were only one student enrolled, then the full $12,000 would be expected to go to that student.

A family's expected contribution will also be affected by changed financial circumstances. If your family reports considerably more income or assets than they did the previous year, you can expect to see an increase in the family contribution. If there are financial losses or unusual expenses, the Committee will review the documentation provided and your contribution may be lowered. Keep in mind, however, that the Committee cannot respond to anticipated changes in your family's circumstances.

You should provide as much information as possible about your unique circumstances at the time you submit your financial aid application. The Committee will consider this information when assessing the expected family contribution. For more information on how the expected family contribution is determined, please see Overview of Need-Based Aid.

Still have questions?

You may want to try browsing the other categories of Prospective Student FAQs available on the Office of Financial Aid website.

If you don't find the answer to your question or would like to discuss your concerns with a counselor, please contact us by phone at (847) 491-7400 or e-mail us at ug-finaid@u.northwestern.edu.