You must be admitted as a degree-seeking student before your financial aid application can be processed. The application for admission can be completed online or through the BSU Admissions Office. Submit your final high school transcript, as well as official academic transcripts from all other colleges that you have previously attended, to the BSU Admissions Office. Our admission application is free year-round.

Submit your application for admission to Bemidji State!

To apply for Federal and State financial aid, you need to complete the FAFSA. Completing the FAFSA is free, easy to complete and gives you access to the largest sources of financial aid to pay for college.

Be sure to include the Bemidji State University School Code of 002336 so we get your information.

Not sure where to start?  View these helpful videos.

How do I apply?

The online FAFSA can be found here. You will need to log in with your FSA ID (or create a new ID if this is your first time). This can be used to log in to many different Department of Education sites, so make sure to remember this ID and password.

Transfer students: If you have already filed your FAFSA for another school, remember to add BSU’s school code 002336 to your FAFSA and ask the school you are transferring from to cancel any pending financial aid.

When should I submit my FAFSA?

Financial aid funds are limited, so the earlier you can submit your FAFSA, the better!

REMEMBER: the FAFSA must be completed each year in order for you to receive financial aid. The FAFSA is available each year starting on October 1 for the upcoming academic year.

Fall 2024 & Spring 2025 – Complete the 2024-2025 FAFSA

Summer 2025 begins on May 19 and ends August 1. All BSU Summer Session courses combined are considered only one term of financial aid, registration and billing purposes. Books charging at the on-campus bookstore will begin approximately 1 month prior to the start of summer and end on May 23, 2025. Summer financial aid offers will be processed beginning late March and summer disbursement will begin on May 30.

How to Apply for Summer Aid

1. Register for all summer courses prior to submitting the BSU Summer Financial Aid Application.
2. Have submitted a 2024-2025 FAFSA and any other required documents.
3. Complete the Summer 2025 Financial Aid Application (available online March 1).
   
4. Meet Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress after spring semester.

If Your Summer Plans Change

Your Summer financial aid offer is based on the total credits that you are registered for as stated on your summer application. Your financial aid budget will be based on the number of weeks you are enrolled in classes. Your housing, transportation and personal expense budgets will be prorated for the length of time you are enrolled in classes.

Please contact the Financial Aid Office immediately if you do not end up taking the credits you indicated on the Summer FA Application. You may lose or have to repay your financial aid.

This would include dropping classes prior to the start date of the class, withdrawal from any or all classes, canceled classes or any other enrollment change.

Summer Pell Grant

Summer Federal Pell Grant may be available to undergraduate students who have not yet met their program limit. The award will depend on your Summer Semester 2025 enrollment.

Summer Employment

A number of departments hire students to work full-time over the summer. These positions can be rewarding and help build experience along with providing funds for your educational expenses. All students are hired through regular payroll funds during the summer. Students must either be enrolled in at least 6 credits during the Summer or enrolled for the Fall semester to be employed on campus during the summer.

The Financial Aid Office will send an email to your BSU student email account notifying you when your financial aid offer is available to view or print from your e-Services account. It is very important that you activate your student email account and check it regularly. Students have the ability to track the progress of their financial aid application and view their financial aid offer online. To access your financial aid information, log into the e-Services site.

• Log into MyBSU and select e-Services.
• Select Financial Aid from the menu on the left.
• The award year will be displayed. You can change the semester if necessary.

You can view your financial aid status and financial aid offer (award notification), as well as your bill. We encourage you to print them and keep copies for your records.

Understanding Your Financial Aid Offer

Once you have received an email notification to view your financial aid offer, log into your e-Services account. Select Financial Aid from the menu on the left; choose the appropriate semester; then click on Award Notification.

The “BSU Guide to Financial Aid 2024-2025” will give you additional information so you can better understand your awards, types of aid and other general questions.

If your enrollment plans have changed, please contact the Financial Aid Office to reprocess your application.

Cost of Attendance (COA)

The COA is not intended to represent a student’s actual room, board, transportation or other personal expenses. The allowable portion for educational-related expenses is the same for all students to assure that all are treated equally and fairly in the processing and awarding of Federal and State financial aid. Expenses in excess of the standard COA amounts will need to be financed with non-educational funds such as savings, earnings from off-campus employment, or a personal loan from a family member or private lender.

COA:  (Actual 2024-2025 Undergraduate)

*2024-2025 tuition rates are based on actual 2024-2025 costs .

**Housing and food costs reflect the cost of living on or off campus.  Housing is $3464/semester and Food is $2144/semeser.

Grants and scholarships are gift aid and do not need to be repaid. Please see the comprehensive list of grant programs and their descriptions on our website. If your financial aid offer contains grants please be aware that your exact credits determine your eligibility for certain programs.

Please contact our office if you plan to change your enrollment. If you withdraw from one or more of your classes within the first 30 days of the semester, your Pell Grant will be reduced to the new level of enrollment. If your financial aid offer includes work study, you can search for job openings on the student employment webpage. Departments will list a brief description of the job duties and contact information.

For more information on accepting and requesting your federal loan funds, see Loans.

If you are receiving additional private scholarships, third-party agency payments, or waivers, please indicate this information when prompted to “Report Other Aid” in e-Services. An email will be sent to you if revised awards have resulted in a change to your eligibility for federal or state financial aid.

All fully approved funds (excluding Work Study) will first be credited to your BSU student account on approximately the 10th class day of each semester. You will want to set up a direct deposit so

1. we know where to send your aid and
2. you get your aid in a timely manner.

You can set up your direct deposit by

1. Logging into e-Services and selecting “Student Employment” from the menu on the left.
2. Select “Direct Deposit Setup.”
3. Enter your bank information.

Voilà. #Done.

Your money is a huge part of your life. It can determine what you can do and where you can go. Learning how to manage your money the right way is an important step toward taking control of your life. Making wise money management decisions while in school will help prevent the need to live like a college student after graduation. Always remember the difference between “needs” and “wants”. Work and save as much as possible to keep student loans to a minimum. Students who need a credit card should shop for one with no annual fee, a balance limit of $500 or less, use it only for emergencies and pay the entire balance each month.

Budgeting

• Mapping Your Future
• Federal Student Aid Budget Calculator
• Smart About Money

Borrowing

While student loans may be a part of financing your education, consider two things before you borrow:

1. how much you need to cover your educational costs, and
2. how much your monthly loan payments will be after you leave school.

Determine how much you actually need to borrow before you request the loan.

Any loan listed on your award notice is only an indicator of what you are eligible to borrow and not what you are required to borrow. It indicates the maximum allowable amount that you can borrow from federal student loans; you can always borrow less. Remember, you can borrow at any time throughout the school year and request additional loan, if needed, at a later date. Some helpful hints for borrowing money:

• Only borrow what you need.
• Keep a record of all your loans.
• If you are borrowing a loan that accrues interest while in school, make interest payments (if possible).
• Start making payments on your loan as soon as you can; even during school (if possible).
• Notify your loan servicer if any of your contact information changes.
• If you are unable to make your monthly payment, contact your loan servicer immediately for assistance.
• When paying for your education, the main goal should be to keep your debt to a minimum.

You can view your Federal Direct Student Loan records online at studentaid.gov.

Students need to opt in to receive text messages from BSU departments regarding dates and deadlines as it pertains to registration, financial aid and billing.

To begin – Take out your cell phone, go to 2ri.colleensflowercellar.com, log into your e-Services and follow these steps:

1. Click on ‘Account Management.’

2. Click on ‘Turn Text Messaging On or Off.’

3. Click ‘Read & Accept.’

4. Read the Terms and Conditions then click ‘Accept.’

5. Click Bemidji State University, then click ‘Save School Info.’

6. Make any necessary corrections to your cell phone number. Pick your ‘Service Provider’ and click ‘Save Cell Info.’

7. Your cell phone will receive a text message with a PIN.

8. Enter the PIN you received in the PIN box, and then click Save.

9. You are now set up to receive text messages from BSU departments. You can opt-out of receiving text messages by following steps 1 and 2 and turning the text messaging off.

If your cell phone plan covers only a certain number of text messages, your cell phone service provider may charge you for any text messages from BSU if you are beyond your allotment for the month. Receiving text messages from BSU should not cost you anything if you have unlimited texting on your cell phone plan.