Applying for and Receiving Financial Aid

Step 1
Apply and be accepted to SCAD. Apply online.

Step 2
Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online. Please include SCAD as one of your school choices. The SCAD code is 015022. Be sure to include accurate income and tax information, accessible through the IRS data retrieval tool.

Step 3
If you receive a request for additional information from the SCAD student financial services, please respond promptly.

Step 4
Within two weeks of filing your FAFSA, you should receive a Student Aid Report (SAR). Please review it for accuracy and submit any necessary corrections.

Step 5
An official financial aid award letter will arrive from SCAD via email and mail soon thereafter. This letter lists all of your financial assistance including scholarships, grants and loans. This is information is current at the time and is subject to change. The award notification is also posted on MySCAD for students who have paid the enrollment fee and have been assigned a personal identification number.

Step 6
If your financial assistance package includes Federal Direct Loans and/or Direct PLUS loans you wish to accept, carefully follow the instructions to complete the requirements and receive your loan.

Complete all required promissory notes.
If you are a first-time student Direct Loan borrower, you must complete a Direct Loan Stafford Master Promissory Note. The easiest way to fulfill this requirement is online. After you successfully complete the Direct Loan Stafford MPN online, it remains on record with the loan servicer and links with all student loans submitted. If you are unable to complete a Direct Loan Stafford MPN online, you may request a paper version from SCAD.

Some parent or graduate-level student borrowers of Direct Loan PLUS loans may need to complete a Direct Loan PLUS MPN as well. They are:

• All first-time Direct Loan PLUS borrowers
• Borrowers who had a loan in a prior year but have not yet completed a Direct Loan PLUS MPN
• Prior-year borrowers who completed a Direct Loan PLUS MPN but required an endorser. Loans with endorsers require a promissory note for each loan.
  

The Direct Loan PLUS MPN is available online. However, parent and graduate-level student borrowers should wait until they receive notification from the loan servicer of a positive credit decision before completing this requirement. The Direct Loan PLUS MPN links only to loans with a positive credit decision. The parent borrower who completed the application for the PLUS loan must also be the one to complete the Direct Loan PLUS MPN. If the parent borrower is unable to complete the Direct Loan PLUS MPN online, he or she may request a paper version from SCAD.

Completing a Direct Loan E-MPN

• 1. Sign on to the Web site of the Direct Loan E-MPN.
• 2. Select the appropriate note to complete--Stafford MPN for students, Graduate PLUS MPN for graduate students or Parent PLUS MPN for parents.
• 3. Read carefully through all the information, because it discloses guidelines about borrowing money.
• 4. Complete all sections of the E-MPN and put in the confirmation number as instructed.
• 5. Print a copy of the completed E-MPN for your personal records.
• 6. Click the submit button to send the E-MPN to the Department of Education electronically. (Neither the Department of Education nor SCAD accept paper copies of the E-MPN.)
• 7. SCAD is notified that the borrower has a Direct Loan E-MPN on file electronically.

Entrance loan counseling for all first-time student loan borrowers
This requirement should be fulfilled online well in advance of the first anticipated disbursement of your student loan funds.

To fulfill the entrance loan counseling requirement online:

• 1. Sign onto the Direct Loan Servicing web site and proceed to the entrance loan counseling area.
• 2. Read carefully through all the information presented, remembering that the questions in the online quiz will thoroughly test your understanding of the subject matter.
• 3. Take the online quiz, scoring appropriately to receive credit.
• 4. Print out a copy of the Rights and Responsibilities Summary Checklist for your records.
• 5. SCAD is notified electronically of your successful completion of entrance loan counseling.

If you are unable to complete this requirement online or you want additional information on this subject, you may attend a session offered at the beginning of every term or visit the SCAD financial aid office after you have begun attending classes. It is important to the Department of Education, as well as SCAD, that students understand the terms of student loans to which they obligate themselves. Th entrance loan counseling requirement should be fulfilled online well in advance of the first anticipated disbursement of your student loan funds.  

Direct Loan Borrowers
Complete requirements to receive your loan.
If you are a first-time student Direct Loan borrower, you must complete a Direct Loan Master Promissory Note. The easiest way to fulfill this requirement is online [hyper link www.studentloans.gov]. After you successfully complete the Direct Loan MPN online [hyper link www.studentloans.gov], it remains on record with the loan servicer and links with all student loans submitted. If you are unable to complete a Direct Loan MPN online, you may request a paper version from SCAD.

First-time loan borrowers
Entrance loan counseling for all first-time student loan borrowers
This requirement should be fulfilled online well in advance of the first anticipated disbursement of your student loan funds.

To fulfill the entrance loan counseling requirement online:

• Sign onto the website: http://studentloans.gov (you will be asked for your Social Security number, first two characters of last name, DOB, and PIN #).
• Select the appropriate link to 'Complete Entrance Counseling.'
• You will be directed to simple instructions and prompted to click on the link 'Complete Entrance Counseling.'
• Select the type of Entrance Loan Counseling-undergraduate or graduate.
• Read all of the information carefully; the questions on the online quiz will thoroughly test your understanding of the subject matter.
• Before completing Entrance Loan Counseling, you will be required to review your Borrower Rights and Responsibilities. Print a copy for your records and return to your Entrance Loan Counseling session.  
• Select Submit and you have completed Entrance Loan Counseling. You may print a completed Counseling Verification Page for your records.
• SCAD is notified electronically of your successful competition of Entrance Loan Counseling.

If you are unable to complete this requirement online or you would like additional information on this subject, you may visit the student financial services department and meet with your adviser. It is important to the Department of Education, as well as SCAD, that students understand the terms of student loans to which they obligate themselves. The entrance loan counseling requirement should be fulfilled well in advance of the first anticipated disbursement of your student loan funds.

Direct PLUS Loan Borrowers
The first step for parents* or graduate-level students interested in Direct PLUS Loans is to complete the online PLUS Request Process at www.studentloans.gov. Once you receive your positive credit decision you may need to complete a Direct PLUS Loan MPN as well. A Direct PLUS Loan MPN is required for:

• All first-time Direct PLUS Loan borrowers
• Prior-year borrowers who completed a Direct PLUS Loan MPN but required an endorser. Loans with endorsers require a promissory note for each loan.

 

Graduate-level students must also complete Direct PLUS Loan entrance counseling.
 
The Direct PLUS Loan MPN is available online, and links only to loans with a positive credit decision. The parent borrower who completed the application for the PLUS loan must also be the one to complete the Direct PLUS Loan MPN. If the parent borrower is unable to complete the Direct PLUS Loan MPN online, he or she may request a paper version from SCAD.

Completing a Direct Loan or Direct PLUS E-MPN

• Sign onto the website: http://studentloans.gov (you will be asked for your Social Security number, first two characters of last name, DOB, and PIN #).
• Select the appropriate link to 'Complete Master Promissory Note.'
• Select the type of loan you would like to receive - Stafford MPN for students, Grad PLUS MPN for students, or PLUS MPN for parents.
• Read all of the information carefully; this information discloses guidelines about borrowing money.
• Complete all sections of the E-MPN: Personal Information, Personal References (two), Terms and Conditions, and Review and Sign (The time and date of your signature will be recorded and made part of your completed MPN).
• After signing the E-MPN, you may review your Master Promissory Note by clicking the Review Master Promissory Note link.  Once you have reviewed your MPN, close the document.  Then Click the 'Submit' button to send the E-MPN to the Department of Education. (Neither the DOE nor SCAD accepts paper copies of the E-MPN).  
• You will receive a message and an email that your MPN has successfully been submitted.  You may print a copy for your records at this time, or you may retrieve a copy at another time by clicking on the link for Completed MPNs.
• SCAD is notified that the borrower has the Direct Loan E-MPN on file electronically.

 

*Eligible parent borrowers include biological/adoptive and stepparents (must be listed on the FAFSA).

Parent PLUS borrowers can elect to have any excess funds refunded to the student through the E-MPN. (The paper authorization form has precedent over the E-MPN.)

 

How do I qualify for a SCAD scholarship?
Applicants are automatically considered for academic honors scholarships. Preference is given to students with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 and SAT/ACT scores at or above the national average, based on the critical reading and math components of the test. Additionally, students are reviewed for artistic honors scholarships upon presentation of a portfolio, audition, writing submission or riding video. Scholarships are awarded based on academic merit and/or artistic merit. Other scholarships may be available to students based on financial need or other qualifiers.

 

View full listing of our scholarship opportunities or for detailed information about portfolio submissions.

When should I apply?
The following timeline is recommended for students who intend to enroll fall quarter:
Jan. 1: FAFSA available on the web for upcoming school year. Complete FAFSA as soon as possible after filing taxes to receive consideration for maximum funding. Funding is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Use the IRS Data Retrieval tool to upload tax information on your FAFSA.
Feb. 15: Materials due for all first-time freshman students for admission and scholarship consideration.
March 15: Materials due for all transfer and graduate students for admission and scholarship consideration.
March 15: Financial aid award letters sent based upon completion of FAFSA.
May 1: Enrollment fee due for all accepted students.

What is verification?
Each year, 30 percent of all FAFSAs are randomly selected for verification by the federal government. If your application is selected, you will be notified by the government on the front page of your Student Aid Report. Verification requires schools to document the accuracy of the information supplied on the FAFSA. This documentation includes, but is not limited to, a verification worksheet and tax transcript (for the student and/or parent(s) or spouse, as applicable).

What are my direct costs to SCAD?
Tuition is a direct cost for all students. Room and board fees are direct costs for students living in residence halls.