Student Financial Aid
Student working on his computer, at Western Heights.

Student Financial Aid
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5337 USA
(269) 387-6000

After Your Offer Letter

Your part in the financial aid process doesn't end when you receive your offer letter. Depending on your situation, you may have to complete additional steps. Our financial aid checklist below will help you finish the process. To find out what final steps you need to complete, visit goWMU. You can check the status of your financial aid anytime.

Financial aid adjustment form

Federal Subsidized Loans and/or Federal Unsubsidized Loans in a ‘Offered” status require that you either accept or decline the loan and then submit your decision. If you wish to accept either loan for an amount less than the offered amount or to modify a Federal Subsidized Loan and/or Federal Unsubsidized Loan that you have already accepted or declined, please complete the Online Student Financial Aid Adjustment Form. All other aid that is not already “Accepted” will be updated to “Accepted” upon your enrollment in classes for the aid year.

Parents can reduce or cancel PLUS loans by utilizing the Parent PLUS Adjustment form located on our Forms page. 

If graduating at the end of summer or fall, rather than the end of spring, we will recalculate your aid based upon that enrollment period. If you are going to be a graduate student at WMU, you must notify us in order to receive financial aid at the graduate level.

Scholarship resource form

You must notify our office of scholarships, assistantships, tuition benefits and other resources received from sources outside the state and WMU. To do this, complete the scholarship resource form and return it to Student Financial Aid. Private donor scholarships will be indicated as estimated offers until the check from the donor is received by our office.

  1. Request an FSA ID. Be sure to get one for you and, if needed a separate one for your contributors.
  2. File the Free Application for Federals Student Aid (FAFSA) for the upcoming academic year. Most students qualify for some type of financial aid so be sure to get your FAFSA in early. WMU's school code is 002330.
  3. Make sure you are admitted into a degree-seeking program and submit all required transcripts.
  4. Check your WMU email daily through goWMU. This is where we will communicate with you about the status of your financial aid and what we need from you to continue.
  5. Check your estimated cost of attendance.
  6. View your first initial interactive offer letter through your personal email. Updates or changes to your offer will then be available through your WMU email. Submit any required documents as instructed. Requirements should be completed 30 days prior to the start of the semester.
  7. Report your private scholarships and additional resources for the year using the Scholarship Resource form.
  8. Accept or decline any of your student aid through goWMU or reduce any undesired student aid using the financial aid adjustment form available on Student Forms.
  9. Complete a Master Promissory Note and Student Entrance Loan Counseling if you are a new federal student loan borrower at studentaid.gov. Parents may apply for a Federal Direct Parent PLUS Loan for additional assistance.
  10. Stay enrolled and complete all courses with a passing grade. Most aid requires full-time enrollment. Dropping and/or withdrawing from classes could result in the loss or reduction of your aid and may affect future eligibility. 

Electronic Master Promissory Note

The Electronic Master Promissory Note (E-MPN) can be used to receive multiple federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans. By signing the E-MPN, you are receiving a line of credit for the maximum amount of loans for which you are eligible, not to exceed the maximum allowable under the Higher Education Act. If you are a first-time borrower, you must complete an E-MPN. If notification of the completion of the E-MPN is not received within 30 days of your acceptance of the loan or at least 30 days prior to your last date of enrollment, your loans may be canceled.

 

Loan entrance counseling

If you are a first-time borrower of a federal Direct Loan at WMU, you must complete entrance counseling. We will be notified electronically that you have successfully completed entrance counseling. Your loans will not pay toward your tuition and fees or other WMU charges until entrance counseling has been completed. If you are enrolled and have not completed entrance counseling within at least 30 days after your loans have been offered, your loans may be canceled.

 

Adding authorized and proxy users

At WMU, we respect the privacy of our students and their families. In an effort to ensure that personal information is not provided to any unauthorized user as required by federal law, students may choose to set a parent or third party up as an authorized or proxy user. Federal laws and regulations require students to authorize individuals whom they wish to have access to their information with the following options:

  • Authorized Users have access to billing information. These are managed by Accounts Receivable at (269) 387-4141.
  • Proxy Users have access to financial aid and academic information. These are managed by the Registrar's Office at (269) 387-4300.

Visit goWMU to provide proxy and authorized user access.

 

Additional funds

Financial aid doesn't always cover your entire cost. If you need additional help, you might need to consider private alternative loans.