Graduate Financial Aid
Accessing Your Federal Direct Loan Eligibility
Step 1: File a FAFSA
Graduate students must file a FAFSA to receive federal loans. You must complete a FAFSA annually at www.fafsa.gov before requesting your unsubsidized loan.Step 2: Receive your Federal Unsubsidized Loan
Complete these steps:
- Complete your Graduate Entrance Counseling at studentaid.gov/entrance-counseling (this only needs to be completed once while attending IWU as a graduate student).
- Complete your Master Promissory Note at studentaid.gov/mpn (this only needs to be completed once while attending IWU as a graduate student).
- Request your Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan on your self service via the portal myiwu.indwes.edu.
Step 3: Changes to Enrollment
You must be enrolled at least half-time to receive a Graduate Unsubsidized Loan. This is 5 credit hours for IWU graduate purposes. If you do not enroll at least half-time, you will not be eligible for your Unsubsidized Loan.
Step 4: Review and Accept your Loan
- Sign in to selfservice.indwes.edu
- Select the "Home" icon, then choose "Financial Aid Home"
- Click on the hyperlink to "Review and sign your Financial Aid Award Letter"
- Review and accept your loan offer
- To reduce your loan amount, click on the offered amount any type in the amount you would like to borrow
- Check the box to the left and "Accept"
Additional Helpful Information
All funds that have been accepted will disburse to your student account 5-10 business days before the beginning of the term.
Student refunds are processed by Student Account Services at IWU. To receive a refund, email studentrefunds@indwes.edu and include your student ID number and your request for your refund. If you would like to sign up for direct deposit, please follow the instructions under "Sign Up for Direct Deposit." Please sign up for direct deposit at least two weeks in advance to avoid a delay in your deposit.
- Log in to the IWU Portal
- Access "Data Connect" on the far left hand column
- Select "Residential Students" then "Financial Information", then "Bank Info-ACCTS Pay Only."
- Enter your bank information. Read the "Terms and Conditions" information, then select "I Agree" and click submit.
- You should receive a confirmation email immediately. Please verify the information you entered is correct.
- Bank information will be verified by IWU before it is active. This may take 2-3 weeks. Please sign up early to avoid a delay in your refund. It is possible that you will see a zero dollar amount listed on your bank account from IWU as part of the verification process. This is normal and is part of the verification of your bank account.
If you have borrowed more money than you need and do not want to receive a refund, please email our office (using the contact information on this page) and provide us with the exact amount of loan funds you wish to return.
Your financial aid is processed in the IWU-Marion Financial Aid Office. If you have any questions on your Financial Aid Award, please email finaid@indwes.edu or call 765-677-2116.
If you need additional loan funds, you may qualify for a Graduate PLUS Loan or a Private Educational Loan. Please contact our office at finaid@indwes.edu for additional information.
Federal Direct Loan Request Process
To complete the entire Federal Direct Loan Process, you will need to:
- Complete your Loan Entrance Counseling (LEC)
- Sign your Master Promissory Note (MPN)
- Accept your Direct Loan offer
To complete your Loan Entrance Counseling/Master Promissory Note:
- Log in to studentaid.gov using your FSA user ID and password
- Select "Complete Loan Counseling" or "Complete a Loan Agreement"
- Choose the option for Direct Loans, and then select "Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans"
- Be sure to list IWU's school code (001822) so we will be notified when this is completed
To accept your Direct Loan offer:
- Sign in to selfservice.indwes.edu
- Select the "Home" icon, then choose "Financial Aid Home"
- Click on the hyperlink to "Review and sign your Financial Aid Award Letter"
- Review and accept your loan offer
- To reduce your loan amount, click on the offered amount any type in the amount you would like to borrow
- Check the box to the left and "Accept"
You must be enrolled in at least 5 required credit hours per term to receive Direct Loans
