Financial Aid

Students will receive a notification of award change after their Certificate of Participation (COP) has been processed. The COP is sent to Financial Aid from the Study Abroad office. Please allow up to two weeks for processing time.

Accepted and eligible financial aid will disburse to student accounts on the first day of the CWU quarter, or 10 days before the start of the program, whichever is later.

Financial aid disbursements will be sent to the CWU student account. The Financial Aid will pay any current student charges. If there are excess funds, a refund will be generated. We strong encourage students to set up direct deposit. If not, a paper check will be mailed to the address on file. If a parent plus loan is part of the refund, the parent must have selected for the refund to go to the student on their application OR will need to set up their own direct deposit.

The Cost of Participation is used to create the budget for the Study Abroad program. Financial aid cannot exceed the budget.

The financial aid office will create a budget to include the costs in the COP. This budget will then be filled with each students’ individual available financial aid. Financial Aid counselors will work with students to determine the best options. For dependent students, the parent plus loan will be increased. Independent students may need to look into an alternative loan if the cost of the program will exceed the available financial aid for the quarter.

Students should meet with the Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office to discuss insurance plans. The financial aid office cannot give guidance on study abroad insurance plans. All insurance related questions should be directed to the Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office.

A faculty led program is a study abroad program led by CWU faculty. Students in this program are usually receiving CWU credit. A remote program is a program abroad that is not led by CWU faculty. Students in a remote program are usually receiving credits that will need to be transferred to CWU.

A Certificate of Participation is a budget form created by the student and Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office. The Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office will certify the charges and costs on the COP. The certificate of participation authorizes the financial aid office to give students financial aid funds to study abroad.

Study Abroad & Exchange Programs is the only office on campus that can help students create and fill out a COP (Certificate of Participation) and is required before making any adjustments to financial aid.

Unfortunately, CWU cannot disburse financial aid before the first day of the CWU quarter. Most study abroad programs will accept delayed disbursements but may ask that students request a financial aid confirmation or deferment form from the financial aid office. For Fall Semester programs especially, this means a student may start in August but have no financial aid disbursed until the end of September. Participants must be aware and prepared to cover their costs until their financial aid refund is processed.

A delayed COP will result in delayed financial aid disbursements. Students are encouraged to plan ahead so that their COP and Study Abroad application are complete before the priority deadline.

To request a financial aid deferment from, please email financialaid@cwu.edu with the subject “Study Abroad letter”. Please allow 2-3 weeks for a response time and include your student ID number.

Most waivers (with the exception of the CWU Financial Need Grant) cannot be used to pay for study abroad programs and fees. Waivers will be canceled for any term the student will not be charged regular CWU tuition. This includes the CWU Dependent Waiver, Merit Awards, WUE, etc.

Yes, if the MPN/Entrance counseling or if the parent plus loan application has been accepted and the MPN completed, then available/accepted federal loans can be used to pay for study abroad. However, loan funds cannot be disbursed before the first day of the CWU quarter.

Students who do not complete a study abroad program may be subject to Return of Funds or R2T4. Please see the R2T4 section of the financial aid home page for more information on this process.

Students must submit transcripts from study abroad the quarter after they have returned. The transcripts hold will be removed once the transcript has been received by CWU. Please note that the transcripts hold will prevent future financial aid disbursements. A delay in transcripts could cause a delay in financial aid disbursement after students have returned from the study abroad program. Students must make arrangements to have transcripts turned in to the Registrar’s office after they return from the study abroad program.

Financial aid will disburse during the first day of each CWU quarter if the COP and Financial Aid Application for Study abroad are completed before the processing deadline.

Yes, however financial aid can only speak to a third party about an account if there is signed CWU release of information on file, authorizing the FAO to do so. Information on CWU accounts including award amount and disbursement status cannot be disclosed by CWU to a third party without a signed CWU release of information. ROI's can be completed by the student on their MyCWU account.

Flight costs can be included in the COP, however financial aid cannot be disbursed until the first day of the CWU quarter. Participants must be aware and prepared to cover their costs until their financial aid refund is processed.

Yearly loan aggregates (max amount a student can borrow under their name) remain the same whether a student is studying in the states or abroad. Studying abroad can sometimes be more expensive than completing a quarter at CWU in the states. For dependent students, the parent plus loan will be increased to meet the budget created with the COP and study abroad application. Independent students may need to look into a private loan to pay for the program.

Federal grants (Pell, SEOG, TEACH) and state funds (WA College Grant & College Bound Scholarship) must be disbursed on the CWU quarter schedule. To avoid reduction, yearly grant funds cannot be disbursed during the same quarter, the grants must be split between the quarters.

COP adjustments can only be made through the Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office. Students are encouraged to contact the Study Abroad & Exchange Programs office if there are any changes that need to be made to the COP. The FAO is not allowed to alter or adjust the COP. A late adjustment to a COP will result in late financial aid disbursements.

Proration is the reduction and allocation of funds in accordance with enrollment. Most grants are offered at fulltime status (12 credits for undergrad students). If a student is not earning at least 12 credits during the quarter, then the grants will be reduced (prorated) to meet enrollment. For example, if a student is halftime then they will most likely be eligible for half of the grant.

Yes, sometimes federal and state aid is not to enough to cover the cost of the study abroad programs. Students can use a private loan to cover the cost if they are approved for a private loan. Please keep in mind that private loan lenders process requests on their own timeline. Students are encouraged to plan ahead and apply for a private loan before the study abroad program start date. Financial Aid Application for Study Abroad and COP must also be turned in before the private loan can pay on the account.