Applying for Graduate Student Financial Aid
*TEPPER & HEINZ GRADUATE STUDENTS - If you are a Tepper graduate student, please see the Tepper School financial aid website. If you are a Heinz graduate student, please see the Heinz College financial aid website.
2013-2014 Academic Year
All incoming and returning graduate students, who wish to apply for Federal Direct Loans: The preferred date to complete the following steps is April 15, 2013; however, students may still apply after this date.
*If you borrowed as a CMU graduate student last academic year, you are not required to complete an MPN & Entrance Counseling.
| STEP | INSTRUCTIONS | HELPFUL NOTES |
| FAFSA | Complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid at www.fafsa.gov. |
1. Carnegie Mellon's federal code is 003242. 2. Be sure to sign the FAFSA electronically with a PIN number provided by the Department of Education. More information on PIN numbers can be found at www.pin.ed.gov. |
| Verification Selection ONLY | If selected for verification, complete the required Federal Verification Form for Independent Students and fax the signed form, along with your 2012 Federal Tax Return Transcript to 412-268-8084. View instructions for ordering an IRS Tax Return Transcript. We recommend that you request a transcript online. |
1. Once you receive your FAFSA results, please review your Student Aid Report (SAR) closely to determine if you have been selected for verification. 2. If you have been selected, you will see this message: "171=YOUR FAFSA/APP HAS BEEN SELECTED FOR VERIFICATION, YOUR SCHOOL HAS AUTHORITY TO REQUEST COPIES OF CERTAIN FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS FROM YOU." |
| Loan Form | Complete, sign, date and fax the CMU Graduate Student Loan Form to 412-268-8084. | |
| MPN & Entrance Counseling | First-time borrowers: To apply for a Federal Direct Student Loan, go to www.studentloans.gov and complete the Master Promissory Note and required Entrance Counseling Session. View detailed Federal Direct Student Loan instructions. |
1. If you borrowed as a CMU graduate student last academic year, you are not required to complete this step. 2. You will need your PIN from your FAFSA to log onto this site. |
| Grad PLUS Loan | If you plan on borrowing a Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan, this is a two-part process and both parts must be completed in order for your Grad PLUS Loan to be originated. This can be completed at www.studentloans.gov. View detailed Grad PLUS Loan instructions. | If you borrowed a Grad PLUS Loan last academic year, you are only required to complete the application portion of the process. This cannot be completed before June 1, 2013. |
| Attestations |
In order to finalize the application process, students will need to complete the attestations on Student Information Online (SIO):
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Financial Aid Instructions for 2012-2013
View 2012-2013 graduate student financial aid application instructions.