Steps to Receive Financial Aid

Initial Receipt of Aid

Step 1: Receive Award

Once your financial aid application file is complete, you will receive an award notification via your myLSU account under Financial Services > Financial Aid and Scholarships or your admissions portal. The following awards require active acceptance on your myLSU account.  

  • Direct Plus and Direct Stafford Loans. Please see note there are additional steps to be completed after accepting these awards.
  • Federal Work Study

Step 2: Complete Entrance Counseling and Promissory Note

If your award includes loans, you will need to complete and submit the applicable promissory note(s) and entrance counseling. Your aid will not disburse until this is completed.

Step 3: Complete Plus Loan Application

The Plus Loan requires a credit check be approved in order to receive the funds.  The borrower will need to complete the loan application, and submit to the Financial Aid Office for processing.

  • Direct Graduate Plus Loans. Please note there is an additional counseling requirement. 

Step 4: Complete Registration on myLSU

You will complete registration by paying all necessary fees and submitting all needed documentation in order to enroll for an upcoming term. If you have a fee balance of $0, you still need to complete registration by clicking the “Complete Registration” button. Fee bills can be accessed on myLSU account under Registration Services > Fee Bill.

Step 5: Receive Disbursement

If you submitted all applicable documents, your funds are ready for disbursement to your student account. If your term funds are in excess of your term charges, you may receive the excess in the form of a refund check. Depending on preference, a check will be mailed or you may create a student direct deposit bank account via your myLSU account.

Maintaining Receipt of Aid

Step 1: Complete the FAFSA each year

To continue receiving aid, you will need to complete the FAFSA each year after October 1. The suggested deadline to complete the FAFSA by is March 1.

Step 2: Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress and Know all Financial Aid Policies

You will need to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress in order to continue receiving aid. Details of this policy can be found at www.lsu.edu/sap. There are additional financial aid policies in place that could prevent you from maintaining the receipt of financial aid. These policies can be found in the main navigation under Financial Aid > Financial Aid Policies.

Step 3: Enroll for the Minimum Required Hours each term

Certain aid programs have a required minimum number of hours you must be enrolled in to receive the award. You must enroll at least half time to receive student loans. Half time status for financial aid is not necessarily half time status for the university. To confirm the enrollment status for a particular term, visit the Enrollment Status page.

Step 4: Complete Registration on myLSU each term

You will complete registration by paying all necessary fees and submitting all needed documentation in order to enroll for an upcoming term. If you have a fee balance of $0, you still need to complete registration by clicking the “Complete Registration” button. Fee bills can be accessed on myLSU account under Registration Services > Fee Bill.