GRADUATE STUDENT REQUIREMENTS
Graduate students must complete a FAFSA or FAFSA Renewal form each academic year.
In addition, Graduate Students must submit a copy of their acceptance letter to the Graduate Program, which comes from the Graduate Studies Office. An acceptance letter, which contains conditional provisions (i.e. acceptance upon completion of undergraduate degree) or is for an undeclared degree can not be accepted for the purpose of financial aid.
DEPENDENCY OVERRIDE
Federal Financial Aid regulations assume that the family has the primary responsibility in meeting the educational costs of students. Occasionally, due to unusual circumstances, students should not be considered as dependent. If you feel that you have an unusual circumstance that may qualify you to become independent of your parents for financial aid purposes, please contact our office at the bottom of this web page.
Students may be asked to complete an Appeal for Independent Status and to submit documentation supporting their claim of unusual circumstance. This documentation will include, but may not be limited to:
1. A letter from the student describing his/her circumstance in detail along with a FAFSA form completed with student information only
2. Letters from two responsible adults who are aware of the student's situation (i.e., pastor, teacher, counselor). Copies of appropriate court documentation are acceptable to support your petition.
Questions concerning these letters or the Dependency Override procedure should be directed to Cathy Alewine in the Department of Student Financial Assistance. (Please note: income is not an unusual circumstance and parent(s') inability or unwillingness to pay is not a reason to apply for a dependency override, as stated in DCL GEN-93-11, May 1993). The request for dependency override falls under regulations dealing with professional judgement (Higher Education Act, sec. 479A(a)) and therefore the decision is final and can not be appealed.
You must reapply for a Dependency Override each year if your request is approved.
GRADUATE STUDENT REQUIREMENTS
Graduate students must complete a FAFSA or FAFSA Renewal form each academic year.
In addition, Graduate Students must submit a copy of their acceptance letter to the Graduate Program, which comes from the Graduate Studies Office. An acceptance letter, which contains conditional provisions (i.e. acceptance upon completion of undergraduate degree) or is for an undeclared degree can not be accepted for the purpose of financial aid.
DEPENDENCY OVERRIDE
Federal Financial Aid regulations assume that the family has the primary responsibility in meeting the educational costs of students. Occasionally, due to unusual circumstances, students should not be considered as dependent. If you feel that you have an unusual circumstance that may qualify you to become independent of your parents for financial aid purposes, please contact our office at the bottom of this web page.
Students may be asked to complete an Appeal for Independent Status and to submit documentation supporting their claim of unusual circumstance. This documentation will include, but may not be limited to:
1. A letter from the student describing his/her circumstance in detail along with a FAFSA form completed with student information only
2. Letters from two responsible adults who are aware of the student's situation (i.e., pastor, teacher, counselor). Copies of appropriate court documentation are acceptable to support your petition.
Questions concerning these letters or the Dependency Override procedure should be directed to Cathy Alewine in the Department of Student Financial Assistance. (Please note: income is not an unusual circumstance and parent(s') inability or unwillingness to pay is not a reason to apply for a dependency override, as stated in DCL GEN-93-11, May 1993). The request for dependency override falls under regulations dealing with professional judgement (Higher Education Act, sec. 479A(a)) and therefore the decision is final and can not be appealed.
You must reapply for a Dependency Override each year if your request is approved.
GRADUATE STUDENT REQUIREMENTS
Graduate students must complete a FAFSA or FAFSA Renewal form each academic year.
In addition, Graduate Students must submit a copy of their acceptance letter to the Graduate Program, which comes from the Graduate Studies Office. An acceptance letter, which contains conditional provisions (i.e. acceptance upon completion of undergraduate degree) or is for an undeclared degree can not be accepted for the purpose of financial aid.
DEPENDENCY OVERRIDE
Federal Financial Aid regulations assume that the family has the primary responsibility in meeting the educational costs of students. Occasionally, due to unusual circumstances, students should not be considered as dependent. If you feel that you have an unusual circumstance that may qualify you to become independent of your parents for financial aid purposes, please contact our office at the bottom of this web page.
Students may be asked to complete an Appeal for Independent Status and to submit documentation supporting their claim of unusual circumstance. This documentation will include, but may not be limited to:
1. A letter from the student describing his/her circumstance in detail along with a FAFSA form completed with student information only
2. Letters from two responsible adults who are aware of the student's situation (i.e., pastor, teacher, counselor). Copies of appropriate court documentation are acceptable to support your petition.
Questions concerning these letters or the Dependency Override procedure should be directed to Cathy Alewine in the Department of Student Financial Assistance. (Please note: income is not an unusual circumstance and parent(s') inability or unwillingness to pay is not a reason to apply for a dependency override, as stated in DCL GEN-93-11, May 1993). The request for dependency override falls under regulations dealing with professional judgement (Higher Education Act, sec. 479A(a)) and therefore the decision is final and can not be appealed.
You must reapply for a Dependency Override each year if your request is approved.
SPRING ONLY APPLICANTS
Students who begin their academic studies during the spring semester or who transfer to Western Kentucky University from another school for the spring semester may apply for financial aid. The same types of financial aid are available to students for spring only attendance as during both the fall and spring attendance periods, but financial aid will be awarded for only the spring semester as opposed to a full academic year.
In order to receive financial aid for a spring only semester, students must:
1. Have a current FAFSA, listing WKU as one of the schools you wish to attend, on file. If you have not yet filed a FAFSA you may do so online at www.fafsa.ed.gov . If you have already submitted a FAFSA and only need to add WKU you may do so by calling the Federal Processing Center at 1-800-433-3243. You will need your DRN# (found on the upper right hand corner of your SAR). You may also add WKU on the web by going to www.fafsa.ed.gov and choosing "Make Corrections to a Processed FAFSA". You must have your PIN in order to access your record. The PIN also serves as your signature.
2. Complete and submit the in-house online Spring Only Application.
3. Be in compliance with the standards of WKU's Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.
4. Be enrolled in a minimum of 6 hours in order to receive a Federal student loan and/or CAP Grant.
TYPES OF AID PROGRAMS
Students who meet eligibility requirements may apply for and may receive federal grants and loans. Please visit Financial Aid Programs for more information on these programs.
Student Financial Assistance
317 Potter Hall
Western Kentucky University
1906 College Heights Blvd. #11018
Bowling Green, KY 42101-1018
Phone: 270-745-2755
Fax: 270-745-6586
Email: fa.questions@wku.edu