Student Financial Aid Office
Attending college is a great investment in your future, and many families need assistance to help offset the cost of education. The purpose of financial aid is to assist students to pursue their college education by helping them and their families meet educational expenses.
Never assume that you will not qualify for financial assistance. There are many types of financial aid available to help manage the cost of your education, such as grants, loans, work-study opportunities, and scholarships.
2011/12 Deadline Approaching
The deadline for an initial request of a Fall 2011/Spring 2012 or Spring 2012-only Federal Stafford Loan, Parent PLUS or Graduate PLUS Loan is 11:59 AM, May 9, 2012.
Requests to increase Stafford Loans which have already been accepted can be submitted beyond this date. However, PLUS loans cannot be requested or increased after May 9.
If you will be enrolled for the Summer 2012 semester, loan eligibility not used during the Fall 2011 or Spring 2012 semesters may still be available to you. Please contact the Student Financial Aid Office for more information.
Prospective Student Saturdays - March 24th, April 28th, May 19th
Our phone lines will be open and there will be advisors available to meet with students from 9 am - 1 pm on these dates.
FAFSA Fridays - Fridays starting February 17th until May 4th 9 am - 11 am
MAP Grant Update!
Alert for Illinois Residents
The Illinois MAP Grant submission deadline has been extended to Friday, March 25, 2011.
Your 2011–2012 FAFSA must be submitted by 10:59 pm on March 25 to be considered for an Illinois MAP Grant.
· We urge you to submit your FAFSA, if you have not already done so, at www.fafsa.gov. NIU’s School Code is 001737.
· The requested tax information may be estimated on the FAFSA and updated to actual amounts at a later date.
Reminder: Check the status of your financial aid application often at MyNIU and your NIU student e-mail account. The Student Financial Aid Office will continue to monitor announcements from the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) and will keep you apprised of updates accordingly.