Washington & Jefferson College

Financial Aid

 

How To Apply for Financial Aid

 

It's Free!

  • Simply complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for need-based financial aid.  W&J recommends that you complete the FAFSA between January 1st and February 15th.

It's Simple!

  • No scholarship application.  Accepted students are automatically considered for merit awards.
  • With a little pre-planning it should take just 20 minutes to complete the FAFSA.
  • All Pennsylvania residents automatically apply for the PA state grant by filing the FAFSA- state deadline is May 1.

It's Fast!

  • Merit award recipients are notified of their award within a week of being accepted to W&J. 
  • Financial Aid packages are mailed on a weekly basis beginning in early March.

Applying for Need-based assistance: Checklist & Helpful Hints

  1. Get a PIN(s):  Before beginning the FAFSA, you should visit www.pin.ed.gov to apply for your U.S.  Department of Education personal identification number (PIN).  If you are providing parent/guardian information (most students must), a parent will need to apply for a PIN as well.
  2. File Taxes Early: If it's not possible to file early, complete your FAFSA with estimated income,  then submit the confirmed figures as soon as possible. Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool if it's available to you.
  3. Gather Information:  The following is a list of information needed to submit the FAFSA.  You will need this information for both the student and parent.
  • W&J's Federal (Title IV) School Code is 003389
  • Social Security Number (and your parent/guardians, if you are providing parent information on the FAFSA)
  • Driver's License Number
  • Federal Tax and W-2 Information (for theyear prior ot the academic year for which you are applying)
  • Records of untaxed income, savings, investments, business and farm assets for both the student and parent.
  • Alien Registration Number, if the student is not a U.S. Citizen.         
4.  Submit the FAFSA:  The quickest and easiest way to file the FAFSA is www.fafsa.gov. Incoming freshman are
     encouraged to submit the FAFSA by February 15th.  Returning students are encouraged to submit the FAFSA by
     March 15.  Please make sure you answer all required questions and sign your FAFSA with your PIN (and your 
     parent's pin).      
 
5.  Follow-Up:  Once your FAFSA is processed, you will receive an e-mail (to the e-mail address you provided on your
     FAFSA) containing the link to your Student Aid Report (SAR).  Review your SAR and make any corrections or
     updates if necessary.  If you do not receive your SAR within three weeks, go to www.fafsa.gov and select
     Check the Status of a Submitted FAFSA.
 
Helpful FAFSA resources:  Our Office of Financial Aid would like to share some helpful resources to make applying for financial aid as easy as possible.  The FAFSA on the Web tutorial is a big help to many.  You may also want to review our tips for applying for financial aid, and/or the handy FAFSA on the Web Worksheet prior to beginning the FAFSA.
                                                                                                                                                      
We also understand that some federal student aid applicants may have unique situations that may raise questions regarding how questions are answered and/or how information is reported on the FAFSA.  The FAFSA Tip Sheet is designed to help single parents, Temporary Assistance for Needy Family (TANF) recipients, wards of the court, foster youth, and more.

 

 

Announcements

All Announcements