Enrollment Requirements
Financial aid is packaged based on full-time enrollment (Undergraduate - 12 credits, Graduate - 9 credits) and will be adjusted according to actual enrollment at the end of the add/drop period during the Fall and Spring semesters. All Summer financial aid is based on half-time enrollment (minimum of 6 undergraduate credits, 3 graduate credits, 5 credits for law students).
Initial amounts for grants are based on full-time enrollment. If you are not enrolled full-time, the grant will be reduced or canceled based on your actual enrollment after the drop/add period. For more detailed enrollment information requirements, see Grants in Types of Aid.
Information Disclosure
The Privacy Act exists to protect your right to confidentiality and limits our ability to release information about your financial aid application. Any documentation submitted by you and/or your parents and details of your financial aid package are considered confidential and will not be released to anyone without your written consent. Information released over the telephone will be of a general nature. Specific details must be discussed in person. Your Panther ID is required for all inquiries at OneStop.
Correspondence
FIU does most of its business electronically, including informing you of your Financial Aid Notice. Initial financial aid correspondences may be mailed to your local address. Thereafter, communications are sent electronically to your FIU Panther Mail. To set up your FIU Panther Mail go to MyFIU student center. You are responsible for keeping your email address up-to-date and active. Edit the Profile tile on MyFIU to update your local information. To update other addresses (e.g. permanent), you must visit the OneStop. If you do not have an FIU email address upon admission to FIU, you will need to activate and use your assigned email address at: panthermail.fiu.edu.
Financial Aid Offer Notices
Students are encouraged to complete the FAFSA each year as soon as possible after October 1. Newly admitted students who complete the FAFSA prior to December 1 can expect to receive an award notification as early as January. Returning students who complete the FAFSA by the priority deadline of March 1, can expect a financial aid offer notification by June.*
For 2024-2025 Financial Aid Offers Timeline, please refer to: FAFSA Simplification Changes for 2024-2025.
A financial aid package may consist of a combination of gift-aid (grants) and self-help aid (loans and/or work-study), if requested on the FAFSA application.
* The Financial Aid Office reviews Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) at the end of each Spring Semester. Students must meet SAP requirements to receive an award notification for the next year.
Financial Aid Adjustments
Financial Aid Offers are Subject to Change
The financial aid offers are based on anticipated full-time enrollment (12 credits for undergraduates /9 credits for graduates) for each academic year. If you are not enrolled as a full-time student for each semester, your financial aid may be reduced or canceled. For enrollment requirements, please refer to the Types of Aid section on our website for additional information. All Summer financial aid is based on half-time enrollment (minimum of 6 undergraduate credits, 3 graduate credits, 5 credits for law students).
Financial Aid Adjustments
The most common reasons for a financial aid adjustment include changes to: enrollment which reduce the cost of attendance, residency status, housing arrangements, Satisfactory Academic Progress status, or additional aid from other sources after all other aid has been disbursed (including tuition waivers, assistantships, and fellowships). Financial aid may also be adjusted due to changes or inaccuracies in the information on which your award is based. If your financial aid has been disbursed, you may be responsible for the repayment of financial aid funds, regardless of the reason for the adjustment.
Revised Financial Aid
Each semester, after the drop/add (census date) period, financial aid will be adjusted to reflect your actual enrollment; change of enrollment may cause a reduction of cost of attendance and financial aid.
Federal Work Study (FWS): Students who accept the FWS, and have not earned at least one dollar ($1.00) by the last day of the Drop/Add (census date) period for each semester will have the item canceled. The FWS will be canceled for the entire academic year (Fall & Spring semesters) and the item will not be reinstated.
Renewal of Aid
Financial aid is not automatically renewed. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is available for the new academic year on October 1 of each year. FIU's priority deadline date for submission of FAFSA is March 1. Students who have completed the FAFSA in the prior year will receive an email reminder form from Federal Student Aid during the months of September and October.
Students who complete the FAFSA after the March 1 priority deadline will be processed in order of completion date. Depending on the time of your application, and/or date of admission decision, you may not receive a financial aid offer by the start of the new academic year.