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Current Students Applying for Federal Student Aid

Current CSU students who wish to apply for Federal Student Aid (FSA) for the first time should follow these procedures.

Review the Preparing to Apply for FSA CSU webpage which provides a summary of important information you must know before applying for FSA.
Students in the Per-Course/Self-Paced system will be required to switch to the Term Enrollment System in order to use FSA. Term Enrollment is very different than Per-Course Enrollment. Review the differences by reading the term policies webpage.
Make certain you are enrolled in an eligible degree program. All programs are eligible except those listed below. If you are enrolled in one of these programs and wish to apply for financial aid, contact the Office of the Registar at registrar@columbiasouthern.edu.
Programs Not Eligible for Federal Student Aid
Submit the Financial Aid Intent Form for Existing Students. This form will notify the CSU Office of the Registrar and Office of Financial Aid of your intentions to apply for Federal Student Aid. If CSU does not have all official transcripts on file, you will be contacted by the Registrar’s Office and provided with information regarding the CSU Transcript Request Service. All official transcripts must be on file for students who wish to use FSA.
Complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.ed.gov. Make certain to indicate the Columbia Southern University school code of 041215 on the FAFSA. If you have already completed a FAFSA, retrieve it and add the CSU school code.
Monitor your email for important notification and your Student Aid Report (SAR).
Contact the Office of Financial Aid at financialaid@columbiasouthern.edu and indicate you have submitted your FAFSA and wish to complete the financial aid approval process. The Office of Financial Aid will review your FAFSA. Once this review is complete, you will be provided with additional instructions for completing the process.

If you would like a quick estimate of FSA available, the FAFSA4caster site can provide an estimate of your eligibility. The information entered will later transfer to your FASFA if you decide to apply for FSA. You'll need tax information on hand to complete the process.

Please contact your student services representative at students@columbiasouthern.edu or 800-977-8449 if you have any questions.

CSU uses the services of Global Financial Services (GFS) to process FSA. The GFS staff will contact and assist students through the application process as necessary.

Financial Aid Forms

Federal Aid Student Intent Form

Financial Aid