Student Resources/ Recursos Para Estudiantes
Welcome to our Student Institutional Aid Resources!
This webpage is meant to serve as a guide to the institutional aid process! It has step-by-step instructions on how to apply for aid and all the forms and resources you need!
ALREADY STARTED THE PROCESS BUT FEELING LOST? WANT SOME HELP FIGURING IT OUT?
SET UP AN APPOINTMENT WITH US!
FINISH THE PROCESS? GIVE US FEEDBACK ON HOW IT WENT! FILL OUT THE FEEDBACK FORM!
OTHER QUESTIONS? EMAIL US AT: COLLEGEACCESS@CT4ADREAM.ORG
Step 1: Learn the Basics of the Process
Want to know if you qualify for aid, what schools have aid available and other basic information about the process? Then START HERE WITH OUR BASIC FACTSHEET (ENGLISH, SPANISH) on institutional aid. You can also check out the graphics below. Before you move on, CHECK TO MAKE SURE YOU QUALIFY! The requirements are in the graphics below.
Step 2: Determine What Schools you are Applying to Aid For
You can apply for aid at any of the state schools or community colleges including UCONN, Eastern, Western, Central, Southern, and all the community colleges. All of the schools have the same process, except for UCONN, so if you are applying there pay attention to the differences! GOT YOUR LIST? LET'S MOVE ON!
Step 3: Apply to the Colleges You are Interested In
It is highly recommended that you apply for the college you are interested in first before you apply for aid. For UCONN you cannot fill out the institutional aid application without applying to the University first so make sure you do that! UCONN Western, Eastern, Central, and Southern use the COMMON APP while the community colleges use their own applications. DONE APPLYING? LET'S CONTINUE!
Step 4: Get the Form and Get Ready to Fill it Out
This is where the process starts to get a little bit different. UCONN's form is filled out online while the form for the other state schools and community colleges is done on paper.
FOR UCONN:
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After you apply for UCONN, you will get an email saying your application was received and giving you something called your NET ID number. You will use this to activate your online account at UCONN.
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Activate your Net ID account which can be done through this link: https://netid.uconn.edu/.
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Once your NET ID is activated, go to the UCONN financial aid website for undocumented students (link here), click on the application and enters your NET ID information to get started. A picture of the webpage is included below on the left!
FOR CSU SYSTEM (State Schools & Community Colleges):
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Print out the 2022-2023 Institutional Aid application (called the AACTUS)! You can download it here! You can see what the first page of the form looks like in the picture above on the right!
Step 5: Gather all the Needed Information/ Paperwork
You are going to need information from your parents including their Date of Birth, tax information, and other financial information. Use this handy checklist (ENGLISH, SPANISH) to make sure you have everything you need before you start!
Step 6: Fill out the Form
Again, this process is a little different for UCONN than for the other state schools and community colleges.
FOR UCONN:
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Complete the affidavit which includes questions to make sure that you meet the requirements and then you will receive an email letting you know that you are eligible and can continue on to the application.
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Complete and submit the institutional aid application.
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Print the parent signature page and email, fax, or hand in the signature page to the financial aid office.
FOR CSU SYSTEM (State Schools & Community Colleges):
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Complete the application but do not yet sign the affidavit page (page 3) as it needs to be signed in the presence of a notary. See the picture to the right to see what the affidavit page looks like. Want a step by step guide for filling out the form? Check out our annotated form that contains tips and information to help you fill it out! (ENGLISH, SPANISH)
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Get the affidavit notarized. A notary public needs to sign the affidavit in the notary box on page 3. You can go to a bank, post office, or many colleges have a notary on-campus students can use.
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Attach all required tax paperwork/ documents to the form.
NEED HELP WITH THE PROCESS? WANT SOME HELP FIGURING IT OUT? SET UP AN APPOINTMENT WITH US!
Step 7: Submit the Form
For UCONN, as the previous step notes, you just submit the form online, send in the signature page and you are done!
For the CSU System, you need to hand in the form in person or mail it in. Remember you must submit a separate copy to EACH SCHOOL THAT YOU ARE APPLYING TO! Hand in the form at the financial aid office. Make sure that each copy is signed and notarized (you must sign/ notarize each copy, you cannot make a copy of the signatures but you can make a copy of the rest of the form).
Finish Applying? We want to hear from you about how the process went! Fill out this brief survey and let us know: http://bit.ly/undocuaidfeedback. This will help us to make the process easier for other students!