Paying For College

ITEMS TO COMPLETE AFTER REGISTERING & BEFORE THE PAYMENT/PAPERWORK DEADLINE:

• Complete a FAFSA form at studentaid.gov
• Complete any missing items (i.e. verification, missing signatures, unusual enrollment history, etc)
• Accept or Decline all awards on the student portal at my.rochesteru.edu
• If accepting loans, students must complete:
  • Entrance Counseling (EC)
  • Master Promissory Note (MPN)
  • Parent PLUS Loan MPN (if applicable)
  • Private/Alternative Loan secured (if applicable)
• If payment is due:
  • If paying in full, payment is due the Monday before the first day of the semester.
  • If doing a payment plan, the first payment is due the Monday before the first day of the semester.

OTHER INFORMATION:

• Students will receive an “Unofficial” email two times per month in June and July, notifying them of any outstanding items. One time per week during the first two weeks of August and then daily the week leading up to the deadline. Please do not ignore these emails.
• IMPORTANT: Students who do not complete all of the required steps will be administratively dropped from all of their courses on Tuesday following the payment deadline. 
• You will receive notification to your RCU email that you have been administratively dropped from your courses.
• If you are administratively dropped from your courses and complete your paperwork/payment after the fact, then you can re-register for courses. You may not be able to get back into the same courses as before. Graduate and Accelerated Learning students must re-register by Friday 4pm before the first day of the semester.
• Exceptions will be limited, but must be approved by Student Financial Services.

Please contact Student Financial Services at sfs@rochesteru.edu or 248-218-2127 for any questions.

Students should apply for aid every year, even if they think they won’t qualify. Completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form is free, and it’s easy to apply. There are many factors affecting eligibility for financial aid, including income and family size. To apply for most financial aid — including federal and state student grants, work-study and loans – you will need to complete the FAFSA using one of the following formats:

• online at studentaid.gov
• using a paper FAFSA – note: PDF FAFSAs must be mailed for processing.

The FAFSA form is available as early as October 1 for the following school year. It’s important to fill it out as soon as possible to meet school and state financial aid deadlines. For the 2024-2025 award year, FAFSA applications will be available beginning Dec. 31, 2023. RCU will receive student FAFSA information starting in March 2024. 

IMPORTANT:  The State of Michigan has a priority deadline of  July 1 (date received) for State of Michigan student aid programs!

1. Create a Federal Student Aid ID (FSA ID) number. Go to studentaid.gov and click on “Create Account.” Both students and parent(s) are required to use an FSA ID to access sensitive financial aid information and electronically sign Federal Student Aid documents. Each person will create a username and password and enter their personal email address. The FSA ID process requires your name, date of birth, social security number and contact information, along with challenge questions and answers. You will be able to use your new FSA ID number only after confirming your email address using a secure code sent to you when creating your FSA ID. It is important to remember that a mobile phone number or email address can be associated with only one FSA ID.
2. Federal Tax Information (FTI) from two years prior to the academic year for which they are applying. This is commonly referred to as Prior-Prior Year FAFSA.
3. File your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as soon after October 1 as possible each year. The 2024-2025 FAFSA will be available beginning December 2023.
   
   1. The 2024-2025 FAFSA is for students attending or planning to attend Fall 2024, Spring 2025 and/or Summer 2025.
   2. *TIP: If you are given the option to complete a “renewal” FAFSA form, choose that option. When you choose to renew your FAFSA form, your demographic information from the previous year will roll over into your new application. Go to studentaid.gov to start your financial aid application and indicate that you are the student. Certain information may be automatically loaded into your application to prevent common errors.
   3. Do not start the FAFSA form by supplying the parent’s FSA ID!
4. Parent Invitations to Complete FAFSA: Students will complete their section of the FAFSA first, then indicate which parent(s) should be invited via email to complete their parts of the FAFSA:
   1. One parent (if single parent) or if parents are married and filed joint 2022 tax returns.
   2. Two parents (if parents married, filed separately in 2022).
   3. For other parent situations not listed above, refer to the FAFSA for instructions
5. Be sure to include Rochester Christian University’s federal school code (002288) in the number 1 spot in step titled “Enter the schools that should receive the student’s FAFSA information” on your application to ensure that you receive the maximum amount of aid.
6. Contributors Must Provide Consent and Sign FAFSA: All students and parent(s) contributing to the FAFSA must provide consent on the 2024-25 FAFSA to have their 2022 tax information released from the IRS to the Department of Education.
   1. Contributors must use their FSA ID to access the FAFSA form, answer questions, provide consent, and sign the form electronically.
   2. The FAFSA will not be submitted for processing until ALL contributors provide consent and sign.
   3. Consent to releasing tax information cannot be revoked and is mandatory for the Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation to be completed and for the student to be eligible for federal aid.
   4. Students or parents who are non-tax filers must still provide consent and enter income data manually.
7. You will receive a FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) upon completion of the FAFSA. The FSS is a summary of the FAFSA data you submitted. Review your FSS and correct any mistakes online by logging into your student aid account.
8. Student Financial Services at RCU will receive a copy of your FAFSA application 3-5 business days after submission and review to determine your eligibility for financial aid. For the 2024-2025 award year, RCU will begin to receive FAFSA information in March 2024. If additional information is required, you will receive an email from SFS@rochesteru.edu outlining what information or update(s) is required. When your FAFSA is approved, you will receive a financial aid offer outlining cost information and detailing your financial aid award package.