Step-by-Step Guide to Applying for Financial Aid Online

1. GET ORGANIZED

• You and a parent must each create an FSA ID at studentaid.gov/fsa-id. The FSA ID serves as your electronic signature on your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and promissory notes and is your login for studentaid.gov.

• Names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers must be accurate. Use only the legal name that appears on your Social Security card. Using nicknames or preferred names will cause significant delays.
• Contributors who do not have a social security number will be able to create a FSA ID. 
• Dependent students must have a parent’s electronic signature on the FAFSA. Per federal regulation, most undergraduate students under the age of 24 are considered dependent for financial aid purposes.
  • Review the dependency guide if you feel your situation will make you an independent student. 
  • For additional information on which parent or parents to include on the FAFSA review the Who's My Parent when I fill out my FAFSA guide.
• Gather 2023 federal tax information for you and your parent(s). If you or your parent(s) did not file 2023 federal taxes you will need all earnings statements received for 2023. The student and parent(s) will need asset information as of the day you file the FAFSA. 

REMINDERS

• 2025-26 FAFSA will be available by December 1, 2024.
• You will use 2023 federal income information on the 2025-26 FAFSA.
• File the FAFSA as soon as you can.

2. SUBMIT THE FAFSA

Complete your FAFSA at studentaid.gov/fafsa.

• The student should start the FAFSA.
• Select the appropriate school year: 2025-26.
• List Marquette University: our school code is 003863.
• Dependent students will need the parent's correct information to successfully invite them to contibute. 
• Complete all sections of the FAFSA.
• Enter the FSA ID for both you and your parent. Your FAFSA will be rejected if one of these is missing.
• Submit your FAFSA and print a copy for your records.

NOTES

• You and your contributor(s) must give permission for the Future Act Direct Data Exchange (FA DDX), even if you or the contributor(s) did not file 2023 taxes. By giving permission IRS information for both tax filers and non-tax filer will automatically be transferred to the FAFSA.
• When using the FA DDX, your tax data will be masked for data privacy.
• In certain situations you or your contributor will not be able to use the FA DDX and will need to manually enter the information. 
• If a student under the age of 24 selects a status that makes them independent, follow up documentaion will be required. 

3. REVIEW THE FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS)

• A FSS will be sent to the email address supplied on your FAFSA. If you did not provide a valid email address the FSS will be sent through the U.S. Postal Service.
• Read through the entire FSS to make sure the information is correct. Pay close attention to the following sections:
  • Application Status
  • What you must do now
• The FSS will show the Student Aid Indes (SAI), which is calculated using information you provided on the FAFSA.
  • The SAI is an indicator of the family’s financial strength and is used to determine financial need. Financial need then determines a student’s financial aid eligibility.
  • The SAI is not how much aid you will receive or how much you will need to pay for college. Limited available funding may cause some students to have unmet need.

These are possible next steps that will not apply to everyone.

VERIFICATION 

Your FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) may indicate that your FAFSA has been selected for Verification. If your FAFSA is selected, the Office of Student Financial Aid will send you a Missing Information Letter (MIL) via your Marquette Email account indicating what is needed to complete your application for financial aid. Required documents also will be listed on your “To Do List” in CheckMarq.

• All correspondence (including your MIL and FAN) will be sent to your Marquette Email address. Students can obtain a paper copy of their MIL by sending an email request to marquettecentral@marquette.edu.

• The required 2025-26 Verification Worksheet will be emailed to the student's Marquette Email account and the parent email listed on the FAFSA through DocuSign. 

Applicants whose FAFSAs are selected for Verification are encouraged to use the Direct Data Exchange (DDX) when filing or correcting the FAFSA. This allows an automatic transfer of tax-related data. If your FAFSA is selected for Verification and the DDX was not available or not used, or changes were made to the transferred data, you are required to submit a signed copy of the 2022 Federal IRS Tax Return Transcript.

• More information on verification, go to mu.edu/central/verify2526.

• Permission must be granted to retrieve tax data using the DDX for the FAFSA to be processed. 
• For more information on obtaining a 2023 IRS Tax Return Transcript, go to mu.edu/central/taxes2526 and select tab #9. 

• Submit additional documents by using Document Upload found in under the Financial Aid tile in CheckMarq.

SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCE APPEALS

• If you have special or unique financial circumstances not reflected on the FAFSA, you may be eligible for the Special Circumstances Appeal process. Special circumstances may include, but are not limited to, parent job loss; high medical expenses; private elementary/secondary tuition for a sibling; marital separation after the FAFSA was filed; death of a parent, etc.

• After you receive your initial Marquette Financial Aid Notification (FAN) via Marquette Email, contact Marquette Central at 414-288-4000 or marquettecentral@marquette.edu to discuss your circumstance. 

• If you are eligible for a special circumstances review, you and your parent(s) will be required to complete and submit the 2025-26 Verification Worksheet and provide a signed 2023 Federal IRS Tax Return Transcript.

• We may email you or your parents for clarification of Verification or special circumstance documentation. Be sure to check your Marquette Email account and CheckMarq “To Do List” on a regular basis.

• It is not the practice of Marquette University to match financial aid awards from other universities.

WHEN TO EXPECT A Financial Aid Offer

• The process of offering financial aid to newly admitted undergraduate students begins as early as February.

• Offers for continuing undergraduate students begin in mid-March.

• Outstanding documents will delay offers.

FINANCIAL AID AWARD NOTIFICATION

• When aid is awarded, you will receive an emailed Financial Aid Notification (FAN) that describes the procedure for logging into CheckMarq and accepting or declining your aid. See our guide to Accepting Your Aid for more details. 

• If you wish to reduce the amount of aid you have accepted, use the Request Counselor Action feature in CheckMarq.

• Students must report all outside private scholarships to Marquette Central. Depending on the amount of the scholarship, need-based aid may be changed.

• For more information on what is included on your award visit the 2025-26 Financial Aid Information Guide.
• Students will receive notification via Marquette Email when a new or revised FAN is viewable. Students also can obtain a paper copy of their FAN by sending an email request to marquettecentral@marquette.edu.
• If you have questions, contact Marquette Central by email, marquettecentral@marquette.edu, or call (414) 288-4000.

The next steps you take depend on which loans you are taking. New direct loan borrowers will need to complete Entrance Counseling and a Master Promissory Note. Optional loan borrowers will need to complete the application process specific to the loan they are applying for. 

 

MASTER PROMISSORY NOTE & ENTRANCE COUNSELING

• Required for all first time Direct Loan borrowers. 

If you are a first-time borrower at Marquette and have accepted your Federal Direct Loan(s) in CheckMarq, you will need to sign an electronic Master Promissory Note (MPN) and complete Entrance Counseling online. After receiving notification via Marquette Email that the MPN is available, visit studentaid.gov/mpn and log in with your FSA ID. 

• While enrolled at Marquette, you need to sign the subsidized/unsubsidized MPN only once.

• For additional information about Entrance Counseling visit mu.edu/central/dlentrance.

OPTIONAL LOANS

The OPTIONAL loan (Parent-Student) cannot be accepted in CheckMarq. An optional loan can either be a Parent PLUS loan or a Private/Alternative loan. The amount listed on the financial aid award is the maximum that can be applied for; a lesser amount may be requested. To apply for an optional loan complete the following steps.

FEDERAL DIRECT PARENT PLUS LOAN

• For the parent of a dependent student wanting to take a loan to assist the student in paying educational expenses. 
• Parents can apply for the Parent PLUS loan beginning in mid-May for the upcoming school year. 

Follow these steps to apply for a Parent PLUS loan:

1. Beginning in mid-May visit studentaid.gov/plusapp. (Do not use studentloans.com, this is a commercial website.) The parent must submit an application for each new loan. 

2. Sign in using the parent’s FSA ID and select "Start" next to “Direct PLUS Loan Application for Parents.” Do not use the student’s FSA ID to sign in.

3. Follow the steps to complete the application and credit check. In the School Name section, be sure to select Marquette University.

4. The results of the parent’s credit check will be available immediately. If the credit is approved, the parent borrower will be given instructions for completing a PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note. If credit is not approved, the parent will have the option to obtain an endorser, appeal the credit decision, or not pursue the loan.

   The parent borrower who applies for the Parent PLUS loan must sign the Parent PLUS MPN.

   A parent borrower needs to sign his or her MPN only once for each student enrolled at Marquette, unless the loan is approved through an appeal or endorser.

5. If the parent or the student is an eligible non-U.S. citizen, you may also be asked to submit a copy of your U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services document to Marquette Central to verify your citizenship status.

PRIVATE ALTERNATIVE LOAN

To apply for a private alternative loan, a student must apply directly with a lending institution. Visit mu.edu/central/altloans for more information. Alternative loans are non-federal educational loans available from a variety of lending institutions. The borrower needs to have a satisfactory credit history and, in most cases, a creditworthy co-signer.

WHEN AID WILL PAY

Aid is paid no earlier than 10 days before the start of each term. Most financial aid will be divided in half and paid directly to your student account at the start of fall and spring terms.

All required documents must be received and processed before aid pays to your account. These may include, but are not limited to, the 2025-26 Verification Worksheet, 2023 Federal IRS Tax Return Transcript, loan entrance counseling, and signed Master Promissory Note. Be sure to check your Marquette Email account and CheckMarq “To Do List” on a regular basis for communication of missing documents. 

REMINDERS

• You must reapply for financial aid by filing the FAFSA every year.

• The Office of Student Financial Aid must receive the results of your processed FAFSA to ensure your aid can disburse, file your FAFSA as soon as you can. It can take up to four weeks for us to review the results of your processed FAFSA.

• If you are required to submit additional documents such as Verification documents and/or Supplemental Information Requests, or correct your Student Aid Report because it is rejected due to missing signature(s) or incorrect data (e.g., reporting your AGI = tax paid, etc.), you must comply with these requests within 30 days from the initial correspondence or your aid may be reduced or eliminated.

• For more information, go to mu.edu/fa or email questions to: marquettecentral@marquette.edu.

1. Plan ahead: Become familiar with procedures, priority dates and deadlines.

2. Keep records: Fill out forms carefully and keep copies for your records.

3. Reply on time: The financial assistance awarded to you has been temporarily reserved for you. Access CheckMarq to accept or decline your aid online. Failure to respond to any request for documentation within 30 days from the initial Financial Aid Notification may result in the cancellation of your award.

4. Reapply every year: Financial aid is not automatically renewed. You must file a FAFSA to be considered for financial aid each year. Check renewal requirements on all awards.

5. Guest Access: CheckMarq allows guest access so others can view student account and financial aid information. Students can share the guest username/password with parents, guardians, spouses, etc., which gives them the ability to monitor financial aid and tuition balances.

6. Be prepared: Students and parents inquiring about a student’s account are required to provide the student’s Marquette ID (MUID) and Marquette Central Access Number (MCAN). The MCAN is available on the Profile tile on the student’s CheckMarq homepage.

7. Manage debt wisely: We recommend that borrowing be limited to necessary educational expenses. Use the “View My Loan Debt” link under the Financial Aid tile to keep track of your federal loan borrowing.

8. Special circumstance appeals: If you have a special financial situation not reflected on the FAFSA you may be eligible for a Special Circumstance Appeal. 

9. Investigate: Scholarship opportunities may be available. Check with your high school, public library, your parents‘ employers and Marquette Central's Private Scholarship Opportunities page.

10. Ask questions: Contact Marquette Central with your questions or concerns at marquettecentral@marquette.edu or (414) 288-4000.