To be considered for Federal Financial Assistance at the University of the Virgin Islands, all applicants must:

• File a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (Available on-line at www.fafsa.ed.gov)
• Be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident
• Be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment as a matriculated student at the University and be working toward a degree in an eligible program
• Be in good academic standing as described in the Satisfactory Academic Progress policy
• Not be in default on a Federal educational loan.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (hereafter referred to as FAFSA) can be completed in paper or electronic format. Regardless of the means of application, the listing of the University's Federal Institutional Code number serves as the vehicle by which  we receive the students' records in an electronic format. This output document is known as the Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR). A student's failure to list the University's Federal Institutional Code number keeps us from getting an electronic record, however the student is still able to submit his paper output document, the Student Aid Report, to the Financial Aid office, for eligibility to be determined. This document also provides the University with the information needed to secure the student's record in an electronic format.

Once students' electronic records are downloaded to our institutional relational database, hereafter referred to as "BANNER", various edits are performed to determine readiness for financial aid award packaging. The edits primarily confirm a student's meeting the basic eligibility criteria, as stated above. In addition, tracking letters are generated for those individuals who are selected for 'verification' processing by the federal central processing center.  This process requires a school to check the information a student reported on the FAFSA, usually by requesting a copy of signed Federal tax returns for the student and/or  his parents  (and spouse, if applicable), prior to the awarding and subsequent disbursing of Federal funds. A verification worksheet (see above for links to appropriate worksheets) must also be completed by all applicants selected for verification processing.

A financial aid award is generated once a student has passed all federal and institutional edits. For all programs, disbursements to a student's account are made no earlier that 10 days prior to the scheduled semester start date. Failure to complete the registration process, even in the case where a student pre-registered, will keep an anticipated financial aid award from posting to a student's account.