All students are encouraged to apply for financial assistance at the beginning of their academic year regardless of their current plans to cover the costs of their program. Having a finalized financial aid package can make accessing the aid much easier should your plans change later in the year. Please note that once you are awarded aid, you have the option to decline or cancel all/part of your award.*

*Students applying for Federal Financial Aid should provide their Social Security number on the application as this is required to process Federal aid. Students who do not provide it at the point of admission will have to update their record after the fact so that their aid can be processed.

Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the appropriate academic year you wish to enroll. Make sure to list Northeastern University using school code 002199.

If you plan to enroll in:	Complete the:
Summer 2022 (graduate), Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023, or Summer 2023 (undergraduate)	2022-2023 FAFSA

• Applicants must be citizens or eligible non-citizens of the United States,
• Applicants must have a high school diploma or G.E.D.,
• Applicants must be registered with Selective Service if required,
• Applicants must not be convicted of a drug-related crime in the last year,
• Applicants must not be in default from previous student loans,
• Applicants must be enrolled in at least 6 credit hours per term for federal loans,
• Applicants must be matriculated in a degree-granting program,
• Special Student status makes a student ineligible for financial aid; there are some supplemental loan options available. More information is available here.
• For Certificate Programs, students may borrow private student loans only.

In general, new students will receive their award notifications around registration for their term of entry. The schedule is as follows:

TERM OF ENTRY	FINANCIAL AID AWARD NOTIFICATION
Fall Term	July
Winter Term	November
Spring Term	November (bachelor’s completion) February (graduates)

Students who complete their files, or are admitted, after we begin sending award notifications for your term of entry should expect to receive their award 7-10 days after acceptance or date the file is complete (whichever is later).

Bachelor’s Completion students are considered for:

• Federal/State Grants – Pell Grant, SEOG, MA Grant
• Federal Loans
  • Freshman: up to $5,500 Dependent; up to $9,500 Independent
  • Sophomore: up to $6,500 Dependent; up to $10,500 Independent
  • Junior/Senior: up to $7,500 Dependent; up to $12,500 Independent
• All based upon financial eligibility determined by FAFSA

Graduate Students

As a graduate student your aid will consist mostly of student loans. Most students will be eligible to borrow up to $20,500 in the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan program. The amount of loans that you will be offered will depend on your yearly Cost of Attendance (COA). The COA is based on tuition, fees, and cost of living.

CPS Scholarships

The College of Professional Studies is privileged to be able to provide scholarship opportunities for new, incoming bachelor’s completion students. These merit and need-based alumni and faculty-supported scholarships are awarded several times a year. Selections for scholarships are made based on a variety of factors, which may include: financial need, academic merit, and personal circumstances. Scholarship criteria and applications can be found on the CPS Scholarship webpage. 

The college also provides limited graduate scholarships. Eligibility requirements can be found on the CPS Scholarship webpage.

All financial aid awards will be delivered electronically. An email notification will be sent when the award has been created. New students will be sent an email to the email address provided on the Admissions application. All subsequent communications from Student Financial Services (SFS) will be sent to your @northeastern.edu email address.

Beyond the overall eligibility requirements for financial aid, there are several other enrollment requirements to be eligible to keep any financial assistance that has been offered. These requirements include:

• Maintain satisfactory academic progress
• Maintain enrollment in at least 6 credit hours per quarter
• Earn at least one A through D letter grade each quarter
• Keep loans out of default status

Failure to maintain any of the requirements listed above could result in a cancellation of federal assistance or a recalculation of eligibility.

No. We will not process refund requests for the current academic term until the first day of classes. Furthermore, requests cannot be approved until students have completed “I Am Here” (if required). Also, there is a 7-10 business day processing time associated with student refund requests at the start of any term.

Student Financial Services offers book vouchers to qualified students. To determine if you are eligible, please reach out to your financial aid counselor. Counselor assignments are available by clicking here.

For general questions, you can contact our office Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. at 617-373-2897. For more specific questions related to your application, please contact your assigned counselor. Counselor assignments are available by clicking here.