Applying for Aid

Eligibility

You must be accepted into a degree program and enrolled at least half-time to be eligible to borrow the Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. At Clark, half-time student status is at least 1.5 units per semester. All changes to your enrollment status after you have received your award letter should be reported to the Office of Financial Assistance as this may affect your eligibility.

The Office of Financial Assistance does not offer financial assistance directly to international students. International students may apply for a credit-based education loan. However, a U.S. citizen is required to co-sign the loan.  Please refer to detailed information in the Financing Options section.

Application Process

PRIORITY FILING DEADLINES FOR APPLYING FOR FINANCIAL AID

May 1 – Summer
June 1 – Fall
December 1 – Spring

*Applications will continue to be accepted after the priority filing deadline.

Students may apply for financial assistance at any point before or during the academic year. Do not wait until classes begin to apply, because the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) may take several weeks to process the results to Clark University. Once all required forms are received, you will be emailed an award notification notifying you of your eligibility for financial aid. Please note that if you wait until after the priority deadlines, it is unlikely that you will have a loan approved in time for the beginning of classes.

• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
• Complete Clark Application for Graduate Students
• Complete Any Additional Forms (upon request from Clark)
• Receive Your Financial Aid Award online via your personal CUWEB portal

Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

This form is required of all graduate students applying for the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan and/or the Direct PLUS (GradPLUS) Loan. The FAFSA is available online after October 1. Clark University’s federal school code is 002139; be sure to include this number on the FAFSA to ensure that we receive the results.

When you are completing the FAFSA online you will need an FSA ID username and password sign the FAFSA electronically; if you have never applied for aid before or if you do not have an FSA ID username and password you will be prompted to create one when you begin the FAFSA.

Complete Clark Application for Financial Aid

This form is required for all graduate students applying for financial assistance. The Clark Application for Financial Aid is available online.

Additional Forms

The Office of Financial Assistance may need verification of you and your spouse’s income as filed with the IRS.  You may use the IRS Data Retrieval available on the FAFSA to upload your financial information from the IRS to the FAFSA.  If you are unable to utilize that tool, we may request and official IRS tax return transcript Your CUWEB portal will have the requests for information we need. Please only submit information upon request.