Students wishing to apply for financial aid for California State University campuses for the 2015-16 academic year have less than a week remaining to submit their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The priority deadline for submitting a FAFSA is Monday, March 2.  Students are strongly encouraged to apply before the priority deadline as financial aid awards may be limited for applications received after March 2.

The CSU’s broad package of financial aid programs – including federal or state grants, scholarships, CSU system or campus grants, work-study and federal loans – continues to provide students with access to a high-quality,  affordable college education.

“Through a robust financial aid program, the CSU is able to provide students the opportunity to pursue a high-quality degree at a CSU campus,” said Ephraim P. Smith, CSU executive vice chancellor and chief academic officer.

In general, CSU undergraduate students who qualify for financial aid will not have to pay the university’s systemwide tuition fees if their family’s total gross income is less than $70,000. Furthermore, more than three-fourths of the students who attend the CSU receive financial aid. The majority of undergraduate students have their tuition fees completely covered by grants or waivers. In 2013-14, about 77 percent of CSU undergraduate financial aid recipients had their tuition fees fully covered.

Nearly 336,000 students received financial aid in 2013-14—an increase of over 16,000 students from the previous year. The 2013-14 academic year also marks the highest level of student financial support in the university’s 50-year history, with CSU students receiving $3.9 billion in financial aid. Much of this came in the form of State University Grants (SUGs) that delivered millions of dollars to 115,383 undergrads and 15,362 graduate and credential students.

The SUG program was established in 1982-83 to provide need-based grants to eligible California residents who enroll at CSU campuses in undergraduate, post-baccalaureate and graduate programs. In 1993, the CSU Board of Trustees approved a new financial aid policy and the CSU currently invests one-third of annual incremental tuition fee revenues to augment the SUG program.

In addition to the SUG program, the CSU students utilize the Pell Grant, Cal Grant programs and the Middle Class Scholarship to offset the state tuition fee for low and middle-income students. As of February 2015, more than 64,000 CSU students have been awarded a Middle Class Scholarship for the 2014-15 academic year.

For more information about the financial aid options available to CSU students, please visit http://www.csumentor.edu/finaid/steps.

Students wishing to complete the free online version of the FAFSA, can visit http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.

About the California State University

The California State University is the largest system of senior higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, more than 460,000 students and 47,000 faculty and staff. Created in 1961, the CSU awards more than 100,000 exceptional degrees annually and this spring will be celebrating the milestone of reaching 3 Million alumni.