How to Apply for Financial Aid

Step 1

Create an FSA ID, which is your electronic signature when completing financial aid and loan applications.  If you are a dependent student, your parent(s) must create one as well.  The FSA ID can be created (or managed if you already have one) at https://fsaid.ed.gov .

Step 2

Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at https://fafsa.gov .  The application is available October 1st prior to the school year for which you wish to receive Federal and State Aid.

Provide your and/or your parents' income for the requested  tax year (2018 for the 2020-2021 FAFSA) and current asset information.  If you or your parents filed a Federal Tax Return, you may be able to transfer IRS data onto your application by using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool on FAFSA on the Web.

In order for the Kean University Office of Financial Aid to receive your FAFSA information and determine your aid eligibility, add Kean (Federal School Code 002622) in the “School Selection” section.  Kean’s priority FAFSA filing deadline is March 1st.

After completing the FAFSA, New Jersey undergraduate students must report additional information to the State at https://njfams.hesaa.org , in order for them to determine your eligibility for Tuition Aid Grant and other State Aid.  **Beginning with the 2020-2021 award year, students will no longer be required to report this information to the State.

Step 3

Within two weeks after you have filed the FAFSA, view your Student Aid Report (SAR) at fafsa.gov .  This document is a summary of the information you reported on the FAFSA.  Keep a copy of the SAR for your records.

Step 4

The Office of Financial Aid may request verification and other documents from you.  Log in to the Financial Aid Self Service link through KeanWISE to check your financial aid award and/or document requirements.  Submit all missing documents in a timely manner, in order for us to finalize your aid package.

Repeat Steps 2-4 for each year that you wish to receive financial assistance.