Scholarship & Grant FAQs
General Scholarship Questions
- Are there scholarships or financial assistance based on good grades?
- What is a scholarship? What is a grant?
- If I receive an outside scholarship check in my name, what am I supposed to do with the check?
- How will an outside scholarship affect my aid award?
- I'm filling out a scholarship application form, and it asks for a breakdown of costs for the University. What are the figures for 2008-09?
- What is a No-Loan Pledge Scholarship?
- What is a Debt Cap Scholarship?
Scholarships and the Co-Op Program
- Will my NU scholarship award be reduced if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
- Will my outside scholarship be reduced if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
- What is a Co-op Remission Grant and how will it impact my financial aid?
- Will my overall loan debt increase if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
General Scholarship Questions
1. Are there scholarships or financial assistance based on good grades?
All financial assistance administered by the Office of Financial Aid at Northwestern is offered on the basis of need.
2. What is a scholarship? What is a grant?
Grants and scholarships are both monetary awards that do not need to be repaid. At Northwestern, the Office of Financial Aid considers students for all available federal, state, and University scholarships and grants at the time of application.
3. If I receive an outside scholarship check in my name, what am I supposed to do with the check?
You must forward the check to the financial aid office for proper crediting to your account. 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. Scholarship funds are generally divided and applied equally over your quarters of enrollment.
4. How will an outside scholarship affect my aid award?
Because outside scholarships are a resource that you will be receiving, your financial aid will have to be adjusted accordingly. Northwestern's policy is to reduce self-help first (subsidized loans and Federal Work-Study), and then University Scholarship assistance. Scholarship funds are generally divided and applied equally over your quarters of enrollment.
5. I'm filling out a scholarship application form, and it asks for a breakdown of costs for the University. What are the figures for 2009-10?
The basic budget used when calculating financial aid eligibility for the 2009-10 academic year is as follows: room & board - $11,703; books & supplies - $1,686; personal expenses - $1,734; tuition - $38,088; fees - $373. The transportation allowance is included to help offset travel expenses and will vary, as it is dependent upon the distance of your home to campus. Students also have an allowance for loan origination fees included in their budget, which is $24. Freshmen, sophomores and juniors have a health services fee of $200.
6. What is a No-Loan Pledge Scholarship?
Northwestern University initiated a No-Loan Pledge Scholarship program for incoming students beginning with the 2008-09 academic year. The purpose of the program is to allow qualifying students the opportunity to graduate from Northwestern without having to borrow need-based loans. The University's administration also wanted to permit current students to qualify for the program. Those who qualify will have their loans replaced for the 2008-09 academic year as well as subsequent years of enrollment. Pledge Scholarship recipients will still be required to reapply for financial aid each year in order to establish grant and work eligibility. Some additional information about the Pledge Scholarship and related financial aid issues can be found on the Scholarships and Grants page.
7. What is a Debt Cap Scholarship?
To demonstrate the University's continued dedication to keeping undergraduate student loan debt to a minimum, Northwestern initiated a Debt Cap Scholarship program beginning with the 2008-09 academic year. The University will cap federal need-based borrowing (Federal Perkins loans and Federal Subsidized Stafford loans) at $20,000 for undergraduate students receiving Northwestern Scholarship assistance. Qualifying students will receive a Debt Cap Scholarship to replace approved loans that exceed the cap. Private loans, Parent PLUS, Study Abroad loans (even if used to meet need) and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans are not eligible for the Debt Cap Scholarship. Some additional information about eligibility for the program can be found on the Scholarships and Grants page.
Scholarships and the Co-Op Program
1. Will my NU scholarship award be reduced if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
No. Over the 12 quarters of your enrollment, you will receive the same amount of total NU scholarship aid as you would if you had not chosen to participate in the co-op program, assuming there are no major changes in your family's financial circumstances.
2. Will my outside scholarship be reduced if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
It depends entirely on the agency that awarded you the scholarship. If you have questions about the effect of co-op on your outside scholarship, you should speak directly with the association that administers the scholarship, as they are responsible for determining eligibility. If you are a need-based aid recipient and your outside scholarship funding were to be reduced, we would normally replace it with another form of financial assistance.
3. What is a Co-op Remission Grant and how will it impact my financial aid?
The Co-op Remission Grant is designed to offset the increased tuition charges a co-op student will incur during his/her fourth and fifth years of enrollment at Northwestern. Since students participating in the co-op program are enrolled for 12 quarters spread over a 5-year period and tuition increases each year, some students might choose not to take advantage of co-op because they would pay a higher tuition charge for three of these quarters than the students who choose not to participate and graduate after four years. So in order that the higher tuition not be seen as a deterrent, a Co-op Remission Grant is awarded. The Co-op Office establishes the guidelines for awarding and then sends a recipient list to the Office of Financial Aid. This is typically done at the beginning of each quarter.
The Co-op Remission Grant reduces Northwestern Scholarship assistance dollar for dollar. Some students do not understand why this is the case. It is important to understand that that the Co-op Remission Grant is not intended to be additional assistance. The purpose of the Co-op Remission Grant is to offset the difference between actual tuition charges and what the student would have been charged for the term if he/she had not taken time off to participate in the co-op program. If the student had been charged the lower tuition amount in the first place, then the cost of attendance figure used to determine financial aid eligibility would also be lower, resulting in less need and therefore less scholarship assistance. Unfortunately it is not possible to simply charge the lower tuition, so instead the student is given the Co-op Remission Grant as a sort of rebate for tuition paid. If the student is not a financial aid recipient and the tuition was paid out of pocket, the grant becomes a tangible refund to the family. But if the student is a financial aid recipent and the tuition was paid with financial aid funds, the Co-op Remission Grant is used to pay back the financial aid funds and therefore reduces any Northwestern Scholarship Assistance received.
4. Will my overall loan debt increase if I decide to participate in the co-op program?
While we are unable to guarantee that student loan indebtedness will not increase as a result of the co-op experience, in general there is no significant change in loan amounts. However, if there are any changes in the financial aid award due to unusually high transportation costs or lower than anticipated earnings, the adjustment to the student's award will be in loan aid and not in scholarship.
Still have questions?
You may want to try browsing the other categories of Prospective Student FAQs or Current 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.
