{"id":1263,"date":"2026-04-02T07:00:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/?p=1263"},"modified":"2026-04-02T07:01:50","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:01:50","slug":"financial-aid-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/financial-aid-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"7 financial aid tips to help you apply"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2524\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joshua-Chan-Burgos-800x450-1.jpg?resize=744%2C419&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"A student sits at a table while working on his laptop, a typical online learning environment\" width=\"744\" height=\"419\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joshua-Chan-Burgos-800x450-1.jpg?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joshua-Chan-Burgos-800x450-1.jpg?resize=320%2C180&amp;ssl=1 320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 744px) 100vw, 744px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Oregon State financial aid experts share advice for online students<\/h2>\n<p>Let\u2019s be honest: Receiving financial aid can be the difference between earning your college degree and not being able to go back to school at all.<\/p>\n<p>That makes applying for financial aid a hugely important process, and we at Oregon State want to help you navigate it like a pro. And here&#8217;s more good news: Nearly all students who apply for federal financial aid \u2014 and meet the enrollment requirements \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/education\/best-colleges\/paying-for-college\/articles\/completing-the-fafsa#:~:text=Nearly%20all%20students%20who%20apply,the%20FAFSA%2C%22%20Barnett%20says.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">qualify for some form of assistance<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Straight from the experts in Oregon State\u2019s Office of Financial Aid, here are seven financial aid tips for prospective online learners. <strong>Please note:<\/strong> Applying for these aid opportunities means you are applying to receive funding for the 2027-28 academic year.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Apply for aid opportunities early<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Oct. 1, 2026:<\/strong>\u00a0Free Application for Federal Student Aid (<a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.gov\/h\/apply-for-aid\/fafsa\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FAFSA<\/a>) opens<\/li>\n<li><strong>Nov. 1, 2026:<\/strong> OSU\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/scholarships.oregonstate.edu\/scholardollars\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ScholarDollars<\/a> application opens<\/li>\n<li><strong>Nov. 1, 2026:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/oregonstudentaid.gov\/scholarships\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">OSAC Scholarship Application<\/a> opens for Oregon residents<\/li>\n<li><strong>Feb. 1, 2027:<\/strong> OSU ScholarDollars priority deadline<\/li>\n<li><strong>Feb. 15, 2027:<\/strong> OSU ScholarDollars main deadline<\/li>\n<li><strong>Feb. 18, 2027:<\/strong> OSAC scholarship early bird application deadline<\/li>\n<li><strong>Feb. 28, 2027:<\/strong> Oregon State\u2019s FAFSA priority filing deadline<\/li>\n<li><strong>March 3, 2027:<\/strong> OSAC scholarship\u00a0application deadline for Oregon residents<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>2. Estimate your costs<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Use the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/forms\/tuition-calculator.htm\">OSU Ecampus tuition and fees calculator<\/a> to compare costs to the amount of financial aid you\u2019ll receive each term.<\/li>\n<li>Create a plan to pay any remaining amount owed. OSU&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Office of Financial Aid<\/a> can help you develop a clear plan.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>3.\u00a0Be aware of limits and guidelines<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Federal Direct Loans, Federal Pell Grants and other forms of aid typically have yearly and aggregate limits on the amounts you can receive. Learn more about these limits for <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/aid-limits-undergraduates\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">undergraduate students<\/a> and for <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/graduate-aid-basics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">graduate students<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Meet the federal\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/satisfactory-academic-progress\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">satisfactory academic progress<\/a> to maintain your aid eligibility.<\/li>\n<li>Submit an\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/forms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">enrollment revision request<\/a> form after you receive your financial aid offer if you plan to be enrolled less than full time.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>4. Select Oregon State as your institution<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>To receive financial aid from Oregon State, you must cancel any aid you\u2019re receiving at any other schools.<\/li>\n<li>Update your FAFSA to add OSU as a recipient school (code 003210).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>5.\u00a0Once admitted, check your OSU email<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>You\u2019ll be notified by email when your financial aid offer is ready or if more info is needed.<\/li>\n<li>You can also find notifications in Beaver Hub in the &#8220;Paying for College&#8221; tab.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>6. Explore the Ecampus need-based grant<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Oregon State&#8217;s financial aid office awards a <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/institutional-aid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">need-based grant<\/a> to eligible, degree-seeking OSU Ecampus students. Funds are limited and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>7.\u00a0Have questions? Just ask.<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Explore the <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/ecampus-student-faqs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ecampus student FAQ<\/a>\u00a0for more financial aid tips.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/financial-aid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ask Finn<\/a>, the financial aid chatbot on OSU\u2019s financial aid website.<\/li>\n<li>Send a question to staff in OSU\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/financialaid.oregonstate.edu\/contact-us\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">financial aid office<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\"><\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 2<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute read<\/span><\/span>Let\u2019s be honest: Receiving financial aid can be the difference between earning your college degree and not being able to go back to school at all. That makes applying for financial aid a hugely important process, and we at Oregon State want to help you navigate it like a pro.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[672,683,657],"tags":[494],"class_list":["post-1263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-learning-experience","category-paying-for-school","category-resources","tag-financial-aid"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joshua-Chan-Burgos-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7BNSE-kn","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1553,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/financial-aid-tips-past\/","url_meta":{"origin":1263,"position":0},"title":"7 tips on how to apply for financial aid","author":"Tyler Hansen","date":"October 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Let\u2019s be honest: Receiving financial aid can be the difference between earning your college degree and not being able to go back to school at all. That makes applying for financial aid a hugely important process, and we at Oregon State want to help you navigate it like a pro.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Archives&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Archives","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/archives\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A student types on the keyboard of a slim silver laptop. 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