DETERMINING FINANCIAL NEED
Financial need is the basis for awarding most student aid programs. Financial need is
your Cost of Attendance (COA) minus your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). Expected
Family Contribution (EFC) is the amount of out-of-pocket expense that you are expected
to provide toward your educational costs, from income, savings, or a non-need based
loan. EFC is calculated from the information you report on the Free Application for
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or TASFA.
PROCESSING YOUR FINANCIAL AID
Once we receive your information from the FAFSA or TASFA, we will determine your Cost
of Attendance (COA) and calculate your nancial aid eligibility for the academic year. If
you are asked to provide additional documentation by Texas A&M University, you must
submit requested documents to Scholarships & Financial Aid before your aid can be
processed. All nancial aid oers are completed on a rst-come, rst-served basis with
an aid application priority date of January 15.
Once you have been oered nancial aid, accept or decline your aid oers in the
Financial Aid Portal. Log on to howdy.tamu.edu and click on the Financial Aid Portal
icon at the top of the page. You will be notied of your nancial aid oer through your
Texas A&M University email account. If you receive scholarships/fellowships, corporate
sponsorships, and/or outside resources, you must report them to Scholarships &
Financial Aid on the status page of the Financial Aid Portal.
WHEN WILL I RECEIVE MY FINANCIAL AID?
Financial aid is applied to the University billing statement no sooner than 10 days prior
to the rst class day each semester. Your nancial aid could be delayed for the following
reasons:
• Incomplete items under “To Do” on the status page of the Financial Aid Portal
• Loan Entrance Counseling not completed
• Loan Master Promissory Note not completed
• Not enrolled at least half-time at Texas A&M
• Scholarship funds not received from your donor
• Course Program of Study (CPOS) requirements
FINANCIAL AID REFUNDS
If your nancial aid exceeds your total tuition and fees bill, a refund will be issued by
Student Business Services. Electronic direct deposit of refunds is required for all Texas
A&M students. All refunds will be electronically deposited into the bank account that you
designate. You must sign up (one time) for this service at howdy.tamu.edu under My
Finances.