Financial Aid

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Our Financial Aid staff can

• Help you fill out your FAFSA forms
• Offer guidance in paying for college
• Give you advice on how to manage your money
• Tell you about grants, loans, and other funding you can use
• Help you with other financial questions

Notification of Financial Aid
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. 

Entrance and Exit Loan Counseling
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 must complete exit counseling when you graduate, drop below half-time enrollment, or leave Dickinson State. You'll receive confirmation after you complete the session, and the Office of Financial Aid will be notified that you've completed the loan counseling.

Find Q&As on subsidized and unsubsidized loans here.

Disbursement of Funds
Unless otherwise noted in your financial award package, financial aid is paid out in two installments: one half for fall semester and one half for spring semester. (Summer semester financial aid is paid in one installment). 

About 2-3 weeks after each semester begins, your financial aid funds will be applied toward your DSU charges (including tuition, fees, books, and room and board).

If you owe more than you’re receiving in financial aid, you’ll be responsible for paying the balance due by the fee payment deadline.

If your financial aid total is greater than the balance you owe DSU, the extra funds may be direct deposited into your personal bank account. If you haven’t signed up for direct deposit, you'll have an excess financial aid check available at the Business Affairs office in May Hall, room 212.

The fastest, easiest way to get your extra funds is by direct deposit. Set it up on Campus Connection:

• Click the Financial Account tile
• Click the Direct Deposit tab

If you have questions about your direct deposit information, please contact the Business Affairs office at 701-483-2328.

Verification is a requirement under the federal financial aid program regulations (34 CFR, Part 668). In this process, DSU will confirm, through documentation, that the information provided on your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is correct. The verification process ensures that eligible students receive all the financial aid to which they are entitled and prevents ineligible students from receiving financial aid to which they are not entitled. Financial aid funds cannot be disbursed until verification has been completed.

Dickinson State University Verification Policy

If you’re currently enrolled and have no outstanding charges, you can buy books and supplies at the University Store and charge them to your DSU account. You don’t have to buy your books and supplies at the University Store, but if you choose to buy them somewhere else, you must pay for them another way or wait until your financial aid is distributed and you have leftover funds available.

Remedial classes count toward financial aid. If you’re admitted into an eligible program and take remedial classes within that program, you can be considered a regular student. The remedial courses must be at least at the high school level.

If you fail a course, you can retake it indefinitely and have it count toward enrollment status for financial aid purposes. Once you pass the course, you can only retake it ONE time and have it count toward enrollment status for financial aid purposes. Subsequent repeats are not eligible to be included in enrollment status for financial aid purposes.

If you decide to withdraw from DSU, you must complete a Cancel/Withdrawal Form. You can also pick up this form at the Financial Aid office.

Withdrawing could have a negative impact on your Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) and could possibly disqualify you from federal financial aid. You will need to meet SAP requirements or get an approved appeal to have your aid reinstated.

Refund and Return Title IV (Federal Financial Aid) Funds
If you withdraw from school, you might need to pay back federal aid funds you’ve received.

Federal regulations require all institutions to develop a policy which determines the amount of Title IV grant or loan assistance that a student has earned as of the student’s withdrawal date. A refund of institutional charges or the percentage of Title IV aid earned for a student, who withdraws from Dickinson State University is calculated through the 60% point in an enrollment period. Unearned funds must be returned in the order specified by law. View our refund schedule. 

DSU Policy 830.2.001 Withdrawals, Refunds and the Return of Title IV Funds Policy

• If you want to add or drop a class, you must complete the Collaborative Student Request Form by logging in to Campus Connection and completing these steps
• If you want to fully withdraw from DSU, you must complete the Cancellation/Withdrawal form on Campus Connection by completing these steps

Consortium agreements between eligible institutions apply to all the financial aid programs. Under a written agreement, you may take courses at a school outside the NDUS and have those courses count toward your DSU degree or certificate. Contact the Office of Financial Aid for more information.