Applying for Aid

File your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as soon as possible each year.

We encourage all students and parents who are eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to do so when completing the FAFSA. 

When you complete the FAFSA application, you'll need to indicate that you intend to be enrolled at Dickinson State University. The identification code for Dickinson State is 002989.

You can turn in your FAFSA as early as October 1 for the following academic year. You will use income and tax information from two years behind the year of the FAFSA you are applying for.

You and one parent (if entering parent information) should get a Federal Student Aid ID. The FSA ID allows you (and your parents) to sign the FAFSA electronically, to access, and to correct the processed FAFSA information. Apply for an FSA ID here.

DSU offers merit-based scholarships like the Presidential Scholarship or the TRHLP Scholarship. Incoming students can receive athletic, fine and performing art, and other scholarships. Please visit our scholarships page to see which ones might work for you.

The DSU Heritage Foundation also has many scholarships you can apply for. For these, there’s a general scholarship application that’s open to all incoming and returning students; it’s simple and allows you to apply for a multitude of scholarships across all our fields of study. The Priority Deadline for this application is January 31. You must re-apply every year.

Click here to apply.

You’ll receive an electronic Student Aid Report (SAR) about 3-5 days after you complete your FAFSA online, or you’ll receive a paper copy of the SAR within 7-10 days (if you didn’t provide an email address on your FAFSA). 

The SAR is the summary of the information that you provided on the FAFSA. Be sure to review the SAR information carefully and make any necessary changes by going to the FAFSA website.

If you've applied for admission to DSU and entered our school code on your FAFSA, we will receive your FAFSA information electronically a week after you submitted it. If needed, the Office of Financial Aid will send you a request for more information. 

You may be selected for verification. [NOTE: If you do not provide the required documents, you may not get your financial aid in time and/or you’ll have late fees added to your account. You will not receive your federal aid until verification is complete.]

It is very important not to ignore notifications from the Financial Aid office. If you receive a notice you don’t understand, please call and we’ll help explain what we need and why. You can reach us by phone Monday-Friday 7:45-4:30 p.m. MT at 701-502-4407. 

You’ll be notified when you’ve been awarded various federal, state, and instructional funds.

• Returning students – through your DSU email
• First-Time First Year students – by paper letter

You must electronically accept/decline your award(s) in Campus Connection before payment will be made. Click on the Financial Aid tile. Select the correct Federal Aid Year. Click Accept/Decline.

You must notify the Office of Financial Aid of changes in enrollment status or of additional resources received.

If it’s your first time receiving a Direct Subsidized Loan or a Direct Unsubsidized Loan, you must

• complete entrance counseling, a tool to ensure you understand your obligation to repay the loan; and
• sign a loan contract called a Master Promissory Note, agreeing to the terms of the loan.

You must go through entrance counseling before receiving your loan.

You can learn more about student loan programs online at: www.studentaid.gov.