Financial Aid
Our Family Financial Planner is here to assist with your Financial Aid questions. In an effort to make this process easier on our students’ families, students will want to log-in to the MyOttawa portal (myottawa.ottawa.edu—open in a new page) to find what documents still need to be completed.
Directions for logging into the MyOttawa portal are located in the “MyOttawa News” tab.
Once you log-in, you will want to click
- “Student”
- “Financial Information”
- “View Financial Aid Document Tracking”
There you will find a list of documents that need completion. To expedite your enrollment day experience, please complete all items prior to your enrollment event.
In addition, the Office of Financial Aid may be mailing and/or emailing you with a variety of details regarding your financial aid package. These correspondences are extremely important, so please read them and reply in a prompt manner.
Timelines
Students Enrolling New for Fall
- October 1 – FAFSA Opens for submission
- March 15 – FAFSA Priority filing deadline
- July 1 – 11 month payment plan begins
- August 1 – 10 month payment plan begins
- August 1 – Students are required to have a plan in place with the University to finance their college education. This means that all financial aid documents must be completed by that day. In addition, if there is a balance due, the University must be notified of how that will be handled.
Students Enrolling New for Spring
- October 1 – FAFSA Opens for submission
- January 1 – Students are required to have a plan in place with the University to finance their college education. This means that all financial aid documents must be completed by that day. In addition, if there is a balance due, the University must be notified of how that will be handled.
Billing Information
As of July 1, an estimated statement will be available on the MyOttawa portal. Once housing assignments have been made the most current statement will be available.
Directions for logging into the MyOttawa portal are located in the “MyOttawa Portal” tab.
Once you log-in, you will want to click
- “Students”
- “Financial Information”
- “Course and Fee Statement”
- “Set Options”
- Select Undergraduate, Fall or Spring, 20XX
- “Submit Options”
Payment Information
Ottawa University offers students and families several options to assist with any amount due after financial aid has been applied. Those options include:
- In person Check / Cash / Credit Card payment
- Online payment through the MyOttawa portal:
Directions for logging into the MyOttawa portal are located in the “MyOttawa Portal” tab.
- Once you log-in, you will want to click
- “Students”
- “Financial Information”
- “Course and Fee Statement”
- “Set Options”
- "Select Undergraduate, your start term, and start year"
- “Submit Options”
- At the bottom of the Course and Fee statement select “Make online credit card payment” or “Make online check payment”
- Interest Free Payment Plan through Transact located on the MyOttawa portal.
- 11 month payment plans begin on July 1 and payments conclude on May 1
- 10 month payment plans begin on August 1 and payments conclude on May 1
- Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS)
- Alternative Education Loans
For details, click here.
FAFSA Information
This is the application that allows you to receive federal student aid for the upcoming school year.
The FAFSA opens on October 1 annually to begin completion. However, the priority deadline to file the FAFSA is March 15; however, we encourage you to file right away. There are types of federal student aid that are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.
In order to submit the FAFSA Students, parents, and borrowers are required to use an FSA ID, made up of a username and password, to access certain U.S. Department of Education websites. Your FSA ID is used to confirm your identity when accessing your financial aid information and electronically signing your federal student aid documents.
If you are a parent of a dependent student, you will need your own FSA ID if you want to sign your student's FAFSA electronically. If you have more than one student attending college, you can use the same FSA ID to sign all applications. Please note: Each FSA ID user must have a unique e-mail address.
You can create your FSA ID here.
IRS DATA RETRIEVAL
If eligible we encourage you to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. This tool allows students and parents to access the IRS tax return information needed to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and transfer the data directly into their FAFSA from the IRS website.
While not required, if you are eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, we highly recommend using the tool for several reasons:It’s the easiest way to provide your tax return information.
It’s the best way of ensuring that your FAFSA has accurate tax return information.
It may eliminate the need to provide additional documentation to your college. If you are ineligible or otherwise choose not to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to retrieve your tax return information, OU may require you or your parents’ (if you are a dependent student) IRS tax return transcript.
FAFSA
The FAFSA can be submitted here. When submitting the FAFSA you will need the Ottawa University Federal School Code which is: 001937.
FAFSA Help
You can find more information about federal student aid at www.studentaid.gov Should you have any questions, please contact David Tyner at 785-248-2376 or david.tyner@ottawa.edu
Returning students with questions, please contact Ottawa U's Financial Aid Office at 800-755-5200, #4 or finaid@ottawa.edu.