Processing your Aid

If you are a first time freshmen, you will be mailed a financial aid offer letter to your permanent address only for your freshmen year. After your freshmen year, financial aid offer letters will be emailed to your Texas A&M University email, if you have agreed to receive emails from Scholarships & Financial Aid. All other first time students will receive financial aid offer letters through their Texas A&M University email. You can also access your financial aid offer through your Financial Aid Portal on Howdy.

Please note: state aid and university programs are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis and funding is limited.
 
Once you have received your financial aid offer, follow these steps to begin accepting your awards for the year.
  1. Carefully read the financial aid offer before accepting or rejecting any awards.
  2. Review the estimated Cost of Attendance to help you plan how much aid you will need.
  3. Review Types of Aid and Maintaining Eligibility to understand other factors that may affect your financial aid.
  4. To process your aid go to Howdy and login using your Texas A&M Net ID. Access the Financial Aid Portal on the My Finances tab. Select "Awards" and click on "Begin Processing" to accept, reduce, or decline each award.

Refunds

All financial aid funds (except work study funds) are paid directly to your student bill. If your financial aid is more than your bill, the extra money will be sent as a refund by Student Business Services (SBS). You will receive this refund in your bank account by setting up direct deposit with Heartland ECSI. If the refund is from a Parent PLUS Loan, your parent can choose to have the money sent to them as a paper check or direct deposited into your bank account.
 
Financial aid applies to your student bill 10 days before the first day of class, then it takes 3-5 days for you to see the refund in your bank account. Refunds can be used to pay for costs related to going to school, such as books, school supplies, personal expenses, housing, and meals.

Disbursement Dates

Financial aid applies to your student bill 10 days before the first day of class, as long as you have no holds or missing requirements listed on your financial aid portal. If your aid has not disbursed:
  1. Log into howdy.tamu.edu.
  2. Click on the My Finances tab.
  3. Enter the Financial Aid Portal.
  4. Select the current school year from the drop-down list.
  5. Check your Status page for any missing requirements.

Undergraduates - College Station, Galveston, Nursing, and Public Health

Fall 2020 - Spring 2021

Scroll Table Left and Right
All Year (8/19/2020 - 5/11/2021)
1st Disbursement 8/9/2020
2nd Disbursement 1/9/2021
Scroll Table Left and Right
Fall Only (8/19/2020 - 12/9/2020)
Disbursement 8/9/2020
Scroll Table Left and Right
Spring Only (1/19/2021 - 5/11/2021)
Disbursement 1/9/2021

Summer 2021

Scroll Table Left and Right
All Summer  (6/1/2021 - 8/9/2021)
Disbursement 5/22/2021
Summer I Only  (6/1/2021 - 7/5/2021)
Disbursement 5/22/2021
Summer II Only (7/6/2021 - 8/9/2021)
Disbursement 6/26/2021

Reminder: Always check your billing statement to see if your financial aid has applied to your student bill.
Please be aware that you must have a final high school transcript on file by the end of your entering semester in order for financial aid funds to be released to you the following semester. You may send your official final high school transcript to:

Office of Admissions
Texas A&M University
P.O. Box 40003
College Station, TX 77842-4003.

Official transcripts must have:
  • an original signature of a school official or an original school seal,
  • graduation date
  • graduation plan (if applicable) and
  • grades/credits for all high school courses completed
Texas A&M University’s Office of Admissions will accept transcripts sent electronically through TREx only. Faxed high school transcripts are considered unofficial.
A student loan is money that you borrow from the federal government, state government or private lenders. These loans must be repaid. If you are receiving a Federal Direct Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loan for the first time at Texas A&M University, you must also complete Loan Entrance Counseling.

Master Promissory Note

For every loan that you accept, you will have to sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN). Once signed, the MPN is a binding, legal document where you agree to the loan repayment terms. The MPN should be read carefully and a copy kept for your records. Direct Loan MPNs must be completed on the Federal Student Aid website.

Entrance Counseling

To complete Entrance Counseling for your Direct Loans, visit your Howdy Portal. Then click the My Finances tab and enter the Financial Aid Portal. Select the current academic year. Once you have accepted a Direct Loan, there will be a link for Loan Entrance Counseling on the Status page. Follow the instructions to complete Loan Entrance Counseling on the Federal Student Aid website.

Exit Counseling

Once you graduate, fall below half-time, or leave Texas A&M, you will be sent information about Loan Exit Counseling if you received a Direct Loan, Graduate PLUS Loan, or Perkins Loan.
 
If you received the Federal TEACH Grant, you will be sent Exit Counseling information if you withdraw, graduate, or change into an ineligible TEACH Grant major. 

Online exit counseling for Federal Loans and the TEACH Grant can be completed on the Federal Student Aid website. Student Business Services will send exit counseling information and instructions for the Perkins Loan.

What is the Annual Student Loan Acknowledgement (ASLA)?

The ASLA was created by the U.S. Department of Education to help federal student and parent loan borrowers understand how loans affect their financial future. 

Who must complete the ASLA?

Starting with the 2022-2023 award year, borrowers of Federal Direct Loans (Subsidized, Unsubsidized, Parent PLUS, and Grad PLUS Loans) will be required to submit the ASLA each award year before any new loans may be disbursed. 

What will I gain from the ASLA?

  • A review of total federal student loan debt
  • An estimate of your monthly repayment amount
  • An explanation of student loan limits

After submitting the ASLA, you will be able to:

  • Explore repayment plans
  • Learn loan terms
  • View estimated earnings after graduation based on the College Scorecard

Where do I go to complete the ASLA?

The ASLA is available on the Federal Student Aid website ASLA page.  The ASLA takes about 10 minutes to complete, and you will need your FSA ID to log in and get started.