Using Financial Aid and Other Funding Sources
Grants, Loans, and KU Merit Scholarships
Students can apply their existing federal financial aid—including Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG), federal direct student loans, and federal PLUS loans—toward their study abroad program cost if they are awarded and accept aid for the term they plan to study abroad. Any student who wishes to use their existing financial aid to study abroad is encouraged to make an appointment with their financial aid counselor to discuss financial aid options.
Students can also use aid that they receive from the state of Kansas, such as the Kansas Comprehensive Grant (KCG) and other scholarships from the Kansas Board of Regents, to study abroad if they have been awarded that aid for the term they intend to be abroad. (Please note that the Kansas Hero's Scholarship can only be used on tuition for faculty-led programs.)
Loans
Federal Loans
If students have not already borrowed the maximum amount of federal direct loans for which they qualify, they can receive additional federal direct loans for the term during which they want to study abroad. If a student has already accepted the maximum amount of direct federal loans for a term, they can explore Parent PLUS loans, which are loans that parents borrow in their name on behalf of a student. For more information about receiving or requesting additional federal loans for a study abroad term, students are encouraged to meet with their financial aid counselor in Financial Aid & Scholarships.
KU Endowment Loans
KU Endowment (KUEA) offers low-interest loans (5 percent interest rate) to degree-seeking students who meet GPA requirements, which can be a good option for students who need funds to cover the upfront costs of study abroad, such as securing a passport or student visa or purchasing airfare. KUEA requires cosigners for students whose annual income is less than $25,000. These loans are typically disbursed 2 weeks after the application is submitted.
Freshman domestic students can request up to $3,500 per year in KUEA loans; all other domestic undergraduate students can request up to $5,000 per year. Domestic graduate students can request loans of up to $6,000 per year. For international students, the annual maximum is $1,300 for undergraduates and $1,500 for graduates. KUEA allows students who are studying abroad to request the annual maximum amount for a single term, including a summer term, if they indicate it is for study abroad in their application.
Private or Alternative Loans
Private or alternative loans are also an option for students who are not awarded enough financial aid to cover the entire study abroad program cost and have exhausted or do not qualify for other sources of aid.
KU Merit Scholarships
Students can apply their KU Freshman Merit Scholarships and KU Transfer Scholarships, which are awarded upon admission to KU, toward study abroad costs if they are eligible for the award for the term they intend to study abroad. (Note that these scholarships are available during the Fall and Spring semesters but not during the Summer term.)
When is Financial Aid Disbursed?
Federal grants and loans and many awards from KU—including KU Freshman Merit Scholarships, KU Transfer Scholarships, and SAGE scholarships—are disbursed no earlier than 10 calendar days before the first day of on-campus classes for a term, regardless of the study abroad program dates. Students who need to pay costs before aid is disbursed will need to make a plan to ensure adequate funds are available to cover expenses until their financial aid is disbursed or request that the financial aid and scholarships advisor in SAGE fill out a financial aid confirmation or deferral form, if their program provider has one.
Steps for Using Financial Aid for Study Abroad
If you have not done so already, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which is available online, to receive federal financial aid for the term you want to study abroad as well as to qualify for need-based state and institutional grants and need-based study abroad scholarships. You must also complete an online study abroad program application through Study Abroad and Global Engagement (SAGE) by the program deadline. If you want to be considered for scholarships offered through SAGE, you must also complete the scholarship application(s) by their deadline(s).
After the Financial Aid and Scholarships office (FAS) receives the budget for your study abroad program from SAGE, you must contact their office and complete any materials needed to request additional financial aid. You are not guaranteed to be eligible for enough federal financial aid to pay all costs associated with your study abroad program, so it is important to look into alternate funding sources, such as KU Endowment loans or private/alternative loans. NOTE: DO NOT commit to a study abroad program until you have secured enough financial aid and know that you can cover all costs associated with the program.
When you’ve secured enough aid to cover all costs of the program, you can commit to your study abroad program by signing the financial contract with SAGE. After committing to your KU study abroad program, fees will be posted to your KU Enroll & Pay account according to the billing cycle. (See "Billing" for more information.) In order for your aid to be available for your study abroad term, you must also enroll in the designated course(s) for your study abroad program on Enroll & Pay. Once your aid is posted on your KU Enroll & Pay account, accept it and complete any promissory notes for loans.
We highly recommend setting up direct deposit for refund so that excess financial aid is disbursed directly into your bank account. NOTE: If you will be using Parent PLUS Loans for your study abroad program, we recommend also making sure that your parents set up direct deposit for refund for those loans.
Student-Initiated Programs
Students who are participating in student-initiated programs (SIPs) will often pay the majority of their study abroad costs to their study abroad institution or program provider (API, CEA CAPA, CIEE, CIMBA, DIS Study Abroad, John Cabot University, Lorenzo de’Medici, SAI, Semester at Sea, WorldStrides, etc.), with only the fee for the KU study abroad placeholder course (FRSP) and the KU Required Fee charged to their Enroll & Pay accounts.
Every SIP institution or program provider sets its own payment deadlines. These deadlines frequently occur before students’ financial aid will be disbursed by KU. Financial aid and scholarships that are released by KU — including federal financial aid, such as Pell Grants, federal direct student loans, and Parent PLUS Loans; institutional aid, such as KU Freshman Merit Scholarships and the Jayhawk Access Grant; and study abroad-specific scholarships from KU — are typically not available until the first day of on-campus classes at KU and cannot be released earlier.
Steps for Using Financial Aid for Student-Initiated Programs
Study abroad program providers often allow students to defer payment to the provider until students’ financial aid has been disbursed. Every provider has a different process for deferring payment. Students should reach out to their counselor or contact with their study abroad program provider as soon as possible to confirm their provider’s payment deferral process. NOTE: When students sign up for financial aid payment deferral with their study abroad institution or program provider, this does not mean that KU will “transfer” a student’s financial aid directly to the provider after the aid is released. KU does not send students’ financial aid to other institutions or study abroad program providers. What it does mean is that students will be able to delay payment until they have been refunded their financial aid by KU.
Financial aid will be released by KU near the start of on-campus classes at KU for the term when the student will be abroad. Students’ financial aid will pay whatever costs have been charged to the students’ Enroll & Pay account for their study abroad program.
A few days after financial aid is released by KU and pays charges on Enroll & Pay, any excess will be deposited into the bank accounts of students who have set up direct deposit for refund with Student Accounts & Receivables at KU. It is highly recommended that students set up direct deposit for refund if they have not already done so. NOTE: For students who do not have direct deposit for refund set up with Student Accounts & Receivables, a physical check will be cut for any excess financial aid 4-5 days after financial aid is initially released by KU. The check will be mailed to the “Jayhawk/Current Address” that the student has listed on Enroll & Pay.
Once the student has received their excess financial aid either via direct deposit or a paper check, it is the student’s responsibility to use that money to pay their study abroad institution or program provider. Students should ask their counselor or contact with their study abroad program provider how to make payment if they are not sure how to do so.