How to apply for financial aid

Yes, depending on the type of aid and source.  In general, you must be enrolled at least half-time (six credit hours) to qualify for financial aid. However, the type of aid (scholarship, grant or loan) as well as the amount is directly tied to number of enrolled hours for any given term. For example, federal student loans require half-time enrollment while most grants and scholarships require full-time enrollment. Specific award amounts will vary depending on the number of hours you are enrolled in. Enrollment statuses are as follows: 

• Undergraduate students:
  • 5 or fewer hours is considered less than half-time
  • 6 to 8 hours is considered half-time
  • 9 to 11 hours is considered three-quarter time
  • 12 or more hours is considered full-time
• Graduate students:
  • 4.5-8 hours is considered half-time
  • 9 or more hours is considered full-time

• Undergraduate students: If you’re using Direct Subsidized Loans or Direct Unsubsidized Loans, you must complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) and Loan Entrance Counseling before funds may be disbursed. The MPN is good for 10 years, and loan entrance counseling only needs to be completed once. If you’re a dependent student and your parent is using a Parent PLUS loan, they must submit a new loan application at StudentAid.gov for each loan and complete a PLUS MPN as well as PLUS Credit Counseling if they are initially denied and later approved with an endorser.
• Graduate students: If you’re using Direct Unsubsidized Loans, you must complete a Master Promissory Note (MPN) and Loan Entrance Counseling before funds may be disbursed. The MPN is good for 10 years, and loan entrance counseling only needs to be completed once. If you’re using a Graduate PLUS loan, you must submit a new loan application at StudentAid.gov for each loan and complete a separate PLUS MPN as well as PLUS Credit Counseling if you are initially denied and later approved with an endorser.  

For program-specific scholarships, contact your academic department (not Financial Aid Services). Your department sends a list of scholarship recipients to Financial Aid Services. The Financial Aid Services team does not determine who receives departmental scholarships. If you expect to receive a departmental scholarship that isn't showing up in your financial aid package, you should contact your academic department first. 

For all other questions, please contact the SMU Mane Desk at manedesk@smu.edu or 214-768-5555.

If you received SMU merit-based or need-based financial aid during the previous fall/spring terms, you may be eligible to receive a pro-rated amount of financial assistance based on your enrolled hours. The total amount of aid cannot exceed tuition and fees. For an estimate of the pro-rated amounts, please use our Intersession Tuition & Financial Aid Calculator. Additionally, students will need to submit the Summer Financial Aid Application, available in early April, for summer term aid consideration. Students enrolled for May term and receiving an SMU academic scholarship will automatically be reviewed for a pro-rated amount of their SMU scholarship(s).

While SMU aid has no minimum hour requirement, the SMU Summer Loan and federal aid programs require at least 6 enrolled hours.

Funds will be disbursed to your student account no sooner than 10 days before the first day of class for the term.

An FSA ID is a username and password required to log in, complete, and submit the FAFSA application. To create an FSA ID, visit StudentAid.gov. All FAFSA contributors (student, spouse, parent, etc.) must have an FSA ID to submit a FAFSA online.

Yes. Parents of dependent undergraduate students must create their own FSA ID, separate from the student’s, to complete their portion of the FAFSA.

Parents without a Social Security Number (SSN) are still required to create an FSA ID to complete their section of the FAFSA. Federal Student Aid provides detailed instructions for this process.

No. Previously created FSA IDs are still active. If you have forgotten your username or password, you can recover them through the FSA website.

No. It typically takes 48 hours for a newly created FSA ID to become fully effective. You can create your FSA ID before the FAFSA becomes available. Be sure to store your username and password in a secure location for future reference.

A Contributor is anyone other than the student who provides information for completing the FAFSA. This may include:

• Parent(s)
• Stepparent
• Spouse (for independent students)

While completing the FAFSA, dependent undergraduate students will be prompted to send an email to invite contributor(s) to complete their portion of the application. While their information is required to determine federal aid eligibility, this does not mean they are obligated to provide financial support for the student’s education. Find additional guidance about FAFSA Contributors here. 

The Contributor is the parent who provided the greatest financial support to the student during the previous 12 months.

If both parents provide equal financial support, the Contributor is the parent with greater financial resources (e.g., income, assets).

Yes. For FAFSA to calculate a student’s federal aid eligibility, Contributors must:

1. Provide all requested information.
2. Consent to having their Federal Tax Information (FTI) transferred from the IRS to the FAFSA via the Direct Data Exchange (DDX).

If a Contributor does not provide the required information or consent, the student’s federal aid eligibility cannot be calculated.

• Federal Tax Information (FTI): This is tax return information from the student and/or Contributors, directly retrieved from the IRS.
• Direct Data Exchange (DDX): This new system replaces the Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) and securely transfers tax information from the IRS to the FAFSA application.

Consent is required for both students and Contributors to authorize the transfer of their Federal Tax Information (FTI) from the IRS to the FAFSA application. Consent must be granted each academic year when a new FAFSA is submitted — it does not carry over automatically.

If consent is not granted, the Federal Tax Information (FTI) cannot be transferred, and the Student Aid Index (SAI) cannot be calculated. Without the SAI, the student will not be eligible to receive federal aid.

Yes. But only if consent has been granted, and the FTI cannot be transferred via the DDX. Both the student and Contributors must first attempt the DDX process. If it fails, they can manually enter tax information. Consent is still required; otherwise, federal aid eligibility will not be calculated and the student will not receive federal aid.

Yes. All students and Contributors must provide consent, even if they have no reported income or are considered non-filers for the requested tax year. Without consent, the FAFSA cannot calculate federal aid eligibility, and the student will not receive federal aid.

Yes. Starting with the 2024-2025 FAFSA, amended tax return information will be included in the FTI transfer, provided consent is granted.

Consent is still required, even if the Direct Data Exchange (DDX) cannot retrieve the Federal Tax Information (FTI) from the IRS. In such cases, Contributors must manually enter their financial information on the FAFSA, converting foreign funds into U.S. dollars. Without consent, federal aid eligibility cannot be calculated and the student will not receive federal aid.