Financial Aid Tips for Transfer Students

  1. Cal State Fullerton offers three types of financial aid to qualified students:
    • Grants & Scholarships (free funds)
    • Loans (funds to be repaid)
    • Employment (funds to be earned)
  2. To be eligible for financial aid, you must complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). The application and information about financial aid processes is available at www.fafsa.ed.gov.
    CSUF?s Title IV School Code for FAFSA is 001137.
  3. February is the best time to apply for financial aid. Because financial aid is based on the previous calendar year?s income and federal tax return information, it is best to apply using actual versus estimated income information when completing your FAFSA. Applications which are not based on actual tax returns may be subjected to financial aid verification processes and may delay receipt of financial aid funds for 6-8 weeks.
  4. March 2 is the annual deadline to be considered for California state aid (e.g., State University grants and Cal Grant) and the priority date for any other programs (including the EOP Grant and Federal Work Study). If you miss the March 2 deadline, you can still apply for financial aid and you may still be eligible for the Pell Grant and Federal Student Loan Programs.
  5. PAIS: The CSU Preliminary Aid Information System will enable you to estimate your eligibility for grants and loans and to see what your family?s expected contribution (or EFC) will be toward the cost of your education. The PAIS Website is www.csumentor.edu/FinAid/PAIS
  6. CAL GRANTS: A GPA Verification Form is required for Cal Grant eligibility and must be postmarked by March 2 for the following academic year. The GPA Verification Form is available at most community college and university financial aid departments and should be submitted to your community college?s financial aid office at least three weeks before the March 2 deadline to ensure sufficient time for processing.
  7. TITAN ONLINE: You can check to see if your FAFSA has been received by CSUF?s Office of Financial Aid, as well as your award status through the student portal at www.fullerton.edu. If your FAFSA is selected for verification, information about what documents will be required and links to download them will be available through TITAN Online.
  8. MID-YEAR TRANSFER: If you transfer to Cal State Fullerton in the Spring Semester, please make sure to do the following:
    • List Cal State Fullerton on your FAFSA (If CSUF is not listed, you can add the University to your application at www.fafsa.ed.gov)
    • Notify the California Student Aid Commission that you are changing colleges (Their website is www.csac.ca.gov and their phone number is (888) 224-7268
    • Contact your previous college to cancel your Spring financial aid at that institution
  9. PROCESSING: After you apply for financial aid, a Student Information Report (ISIR) will be sent to you through e-mail to review to see if your information is correct and to provide your EFC (Expected Family Contribution). The University will receive your FAFSA approximately two weeks later and will use this information to determine if you are eligible to receive financial aid.
  10. REGISTRATION: If you have been awarded enough estimated financial aid award to cover the cost of your University registration fees, your fees will be automatically deducted from your financial aid award and you will not be required to pre-pay for your fees. You are responsible for your full payment of your registration fees so if for ANY reason your financial aid does not cover the cost of your fees, you must pay the balance immediately. For more information, you may contact the University?s Office of Financial Aid at (657) 278-3125.
  11. SCHOLARSHIPS: Cal State Fullerton awards almost $2 million in Scholarships and awards each year. More details are available at www.fullerton.edu/financialaid. Fastweb (www.fastweb.com) and other websites that enable students to search for scholarships that are sponsored by private organizations, clubs, professional associations and other agencies are also available on the University?s Financial Aid website.
  12. LOANS: The University offers both subsidized and unsubsidized student loan programs (as well as parental loans). If you are offered a loan by CSUF?s Office of Financial Aid, you must complete additional forms and attend a loan counseling seminar. If the Loan Request Form is not returned to the University?s Financial Aid Office within 20-30 days, your loan offer will be cancelled. ( If your loan offer is cancelled, you may contact the Office of Financial Aid to request a reinstatement of your loan offer.)
  13. SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES:
    • DEPENDENCY OVERRIDE APPEAL: If you are under 24 years old and can document that an ?adverse home situation? prevents you from obtaining and/or using financial information from your parents, you may submit a petition to obtain a dependency override. Additional information is available at www.fullerton.edu/financialaid
    • INCOME AND/OR BUDGET APPEAL: If your financial circumstances have changed since the last calendar year (e.g., loss of a job or divorce), you may file an appeal to be considered for financial aid based on your current and expected income. For more information, you may call the University?s Office of Financial Aid at (657) 278-3125.
    • FINANCIAL AID UNIT CAP: Federal regulations require students to complete their academic programs within 150% of their standard timeframe for their degrees. At CSUF, 186 units is the unit cap for 120-124 unit degree programs (including all attempted coursework, even if it is not transferable to the university). Once you reach the 186 unit limit, you are no longer eligible to receive financial aid. However, if you are making satisfactory progress towards completing your bachelor?s degree, you may file an appeal with the Office of Financial Aid to continue to receive financial aid.