Costs | Application Process | Aid Available | Disbursement Dates | Withdrawals | SAP |
Only submit a Summer Aid Application if you are interested in receiving Federal Direct Loans (and you have remaining loan eligibility). You must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 required credit hours to be eligible for a federal loan. All students enrolled in the Summer semester will automatically be reviewed for Pell Grant eligibility.
IMPORTANT – Make sure you have both the 2023-2024 FAFSA and the 2024-2025 FAFSA on file! Your Pell Grant may be awarded using either aid year.
Summer financial aid is available to students if they have not exhausted their aid eligibility for the school year, or if they meet the Year Round Pell Grant provision.
At Buffalo State the Summer term is considered a "trailer" term, meaning it is the last term of the award year. For example, for the 2023-2024 school year this includes the following terms: Fall 2023, J-Term 2024, Spring 2024, and Summer 2024. Students that did not exhaust their loan eligibility during Fall and Spring may have eligibility left to use in the Summer. Pell-eligible students may be eligible to receive a Pell Grant in the Summer in addition to the regular Fall and Spring semesters. Summer has some special financial aid rules, therefore students are strongly encouraged to review the sections on dropping and withdrawing from classes as well as their federal Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) status.
Students are charged per credit hour in the Summer. Unlike the traditional Fall and Spring semesters, students attending more than 12 credits will be charged for each additional credit hour. Use the calculator below to estimate your tuition and fees.
Register for Summer before submitting a Summer Aid Application
Now that you are registered for Summer classes, complete the Summer Aid Application (available in May).
File the FAFSA for 2023-2024 and 2024-2025.
For students applying for PLUS (Parent PLUS or Grad PLUS) or alternative loans, you must complete separate applications.
Please allow at least one (1) week for the Financial Aid Office to review and process your Summer Aid Application.
Students must accept any federal loans in Banner.
Please notify the office at finaid@buffalostate.edu with any updates and changes to your Summer enrollment.
The following chart represents estimated disbursement dates provided the student completed all Summer aid related tasks in a timely fashion.
Type of Aid | Estimated Disbursement Dates |
Federal Pell Grant |
|
Direct Student Loans (subsidized/unsubsidized) |
All Direct Student Loans must be accepted on Banner and the MPN and Entrance Counseling must be on file with the U.S. Department of Education.
|
Direct Parent PLUS Loans | Same as Direct Student Loans above; the parent must have also completed Parent PLUS MPN. |
Direct Graduate PLUS Loans | Same as Direct Student Loans above; Student must have completed Graduate PLUS MPN and Graduate Entrance Counseling if this is their first Graduate PLUS Loan. |
Federal TEACH Grant | Mid-July |
New York State TAP Grant |
|
Private Alternative Loans | Disbursement date will vary by lender and depending on when the student applied. Students should not expect their private loan to disburse until at least 3 weeks after they began the process. |
Special federal rules exist in the Summer because Summer consists of "mini-sessions" that do not span the entire Summer semester. For federal aid purposes, these "mini-sessions" are called modules. The rules that govern programs offered in modules are different than the typical Fall and Spring terms. Therefore, students that wish to change their registration after their aid application has been submitted are strongly encouraged to speak to the Financial Aid Office to determine the impact to their aid eligibility.
The Financial Aid Office is required to re-evaluate a student's eligibility for Summer aid in the following scenarios:
Students that are on Financial Aid Warning effective for the Summer term should be aware of the risks of enrolling in Summer. At the end of the Summer term, students must be in compliance with all federal SAP metrics. Students that are not in compliance will lose eligibility in the next semester that they attend Buffalo State and will remain ineligible until they are meeting the minimum standards. Students on Financial Aid Warning are strongly encouraged to contact the Financial Aid Office to determine if attending Summer is in their best interest.
Students that are on Financial Aid Warning prior to the Summer semester will have their Summer Aid Application on hold pending the outcome of Spring grades.
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