Financial Aid
Start here to help plan for college.
A college education is an investment in your future. We are committed to helping you find ways to make that investment affordable.
St. Kate’s offers competitive scholarships and need-based grants, along with ֱ employment and low interest loan financing.
Here is where you’ll find information about St. ֱ University financial aid types, policies, forms, resources, and application instructions.
Apply for Aid
We assist ֱs in applying for aid from federal and state governments, St. ֱ grants or scholarships, and educational loans.
Step 1: Submit FAFSA Application
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
The 2025-2026 FAFSA is available now.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) is the application that determines your eligibility for grants, loans, and work-study opportunities to make your college experience more affordable. The FAFSA underwent some major changes beginning in 2024
How Did the FAFSA Change in 2024?
On Dec. 27, 2020, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act which included the "FAFSA Simplification Act," a sweeping redesign of the processes and systems used to award federal ֱ aid. The new law:
- Expanded eligibility and reduced barriers for certain ֱ populations (e.g., homeless and unaccompanied youth, incarcerated ֱs, English language learners, and ֱs from low-income backgrounds).
- Made it easier for ֱs and families to complete and submit the FAFSA form and expanded access to federal ֱ aid.
- Reduced the number of questions on the FAFSA from 108 to 46 and led to the creation of a new dynamic form that tailored the questions to a ֱ's unique situation.
- Allowed many more ֱs and parents to transfer their financial information directly from the IRS to the FAFSA.
What other changes were made to the FAFSA?
The term "Expected Family Contribution (EFC)" has been replaced by "Student Aid Index (SAI)." This new term more accurately describes the number used to determine aid eligibility. Unlike the EFC, the SAI may be a negative number (down to -1500).
In the past, users had the option to enter their tax information manually or use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. Now, anyone who fills out a FAFSA must consent to the Department of Education's retrieval of their tax information - or confirmation of their non-filing status - directly from the IRS. There are very limited exceptions.
A contributor anyone required to provide information on a ֱ's form (such as a parent/step-parent or spouse). A ֱ's or parent's answers on the FAFSA determine which contributors (if any) will be required to provide information.
Contributors will receive an email informing them that they've been identified as such, and will need to log in using their own FSA ID to provide the required information on the ֱ's FAFSA.
Being a contributor does not mean they are financially responsible for the ֱ's education costs, but it does mean the contributor must provide information on the FAFSA or the application will be incomplete and the ֱ will not be eligible for federal ֱ aid.
In the past, the FAFSA factored the number of household members attending college into the EFC, but this changed for the 2024-2025 aid year. The number in college does not affect SAI.
When prompted, families must now report the value of their small business or family farm on the FAFSA. If the family farm is also the principal place of residence, applicants should report the net value of all farm assets minus the net value of the principal residence.
Students whose families earn less than 175% of the federal poverty level (225% for single parents) will automatically receive the maximum Federal Pell Grant award. Minimum Pell Grants will be guaranteed to ֱs from households below 275%, 325%, 350%, or 400% of the poverty level, depending on household structure. Pell awards between the maximum and minimum amounts will be determined by SAI.
In the past, dependent ֱs whose parents were divorced or separated had to report financial information for the parent with whom the ֱ had lived the most in the previous 12 months. Now, the ֱ must report financial information for the parent who provided the most financial support.
Students can now access the FAFSA in one of the 11 languages most commonly spoken by applicants and their families.
In years past, the FAFSA allowed applicants to designate up to 10 schools to receive their application data. It now allows them to list up to 20.
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A notable terminology update within the new FAFSA is the replacement of the term Expected Family Contribution (EFC) with the Student Aid Index (SAI). This name more accurately describes the number used to determine federal and institutional need-based aid eligibility. Unlike the EFC, the SAI may be a negative number down to -1500 and the number in college is not part of the SAI calculation.
Important: Student aid eligibility is based on the following formula: Cost of Attendance (COA) – Student Aid Index (SAI) – Other Financial Assistance (OFA) = Need
*The Student Aid Index (SAI) is replacing Expected Family Contribution (EFC).
Due to the ongoing updates and revisions by the Department of Education, we recommend new 1st time ֱs in the College for Women use our Net Price Calculator to assist you in calculating your Financial Aid.
All other ֱs should use the . Please note at this time the Department of Education's tool doesn’t reflect the changes—accounting for inflation—to the SAI calculation approved in early 2024. For most ֱs, this tool will provide a close estimate of their federal ֱ aid. The SAI estimate will be updated with the new calculation in spring 2024.
A ֱ and their contributor(s) would each need to create their own FSA ID/account. This is required for everyone submitting a FAFSA.
To create an FSA ID/account visit .
Providing consent and approval on the 2024–25 FAFSA is a requirement for federal ֱ aid eligibility. When ֱs and contributors provide consent and approval on the FAFSA form, they agree to:
- Share their personally identifiable information provided on the form with the IRS
- Have their federal tax information transferred directly into the form
- Allow the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) to use the information to determine their eligibility for federal ֱ aid
- Allow DOE to share their federal tax information with schools and state higher education agencies
If you make a mistake when submitting your FAFSA form—for instance, if you submit your form without the required contributor information or without your signature—don't worry. You’ll be able to correct the error as soon as your form is processed in the first half of March.
Parents of dependent ֱs should report as parental assets only the value of college savings plans designated for the dependent ֱ (not those designated for other children), regardless of whether the account holder is the parent or the dependent ֱ.
Independent ֱs should report education savings accounts as their own assets.
Yes, an incomplete FAFSA will be deleted after 45 days of inactivity. Students and contributors should complete and sign the application within that time frame.
You will receive an email informing you that your FAFSA form has been fully processed and your FAFSA information has been sent to the schools you listed on your form.
You can check the status of your 2024–25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by
- logging in to the site and
- finding your application status in the “Status Center” under “My Activity”
The status of your 2024-2025 FAFSA will be one of the following:
- Draft: Your section of the FAFSA is incomplete.
- In Progress: You provided your consent, approval, and signature to your section of the FAFSA, but the form has not been submitted yet.
- In Review: Your FAFSA was submitted but hasn’t been processed yet.
- Action Required: You are missing your consent and approval or signature or the FAFSA was processed, but a correction is required.
- Processed: Your application was processed successfully. No further action is needed.
- Closed: Your FAFSA was never submitted and can no longer be submitted because the federal FAFSA deadline passed.
Note: If you submitted a paper 2024–25 FAFSA, you can check the status of your form once we process it (after online forms are processed in the first half of March).
KatePay is the online payment system used by St. ֱ University for managing ֱ accounts, including tuition payments, deposits, and refunds. Students can access their accounts to view bills, set up electronic refunds, and monitor their financial aid status.
Additional FAFSA Resources:
Disclaimer
Information on this page is relevant to U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens seeking need-based aid. St. Kate’s Office of Financial Aid is dedicated to providing timely updates to ֱs, families, and our community.
