Financial aid processed by the Office of Student Financial Planning & Services (OSFP&S) will be applied directly to the student's account in the Bursar's Office. If a credit balance exists after all charges have been posted, the student wil be refunded via direct deposit. To avoid delays in processing your refund, sign up for direct deposit here.

If your aid is issued as a check from an outside source (National Merit, R.C. Byrd), you must endorse the check to GA TECH or pay any remaining amounts due, prior to the release of your Financial Aid by the Bursar's Office. (It is the student's responsibility to verify that all aid has been applied to the account prior to payment deadline).

Many financial aid programs (including the Hope Scholarship, Federal Pell Grant, and Stafford Loan) do not require that the student be enrolled full-time in order for disbursement to occur. However, because some scholarships and grants do require full- time study, and some aid programs require at least 6 hours for disbursement, the student who is planning to enroll for less than 12 hours, and who is unsure of the requirements, is advised to seek clarification from the Financial Aid Office.

Using Financial Aid Funds from financial aid programs that are used to pay expenses owed the Institution must be on deposit in the student's account by the fee payment deadline. Any expenses owed by the student that are not covered by the financial aid programs must be paid by the fee payment deadline as well. Pending financial aid such as Stafford loans that are not deposited in the student's account are not considered a valid source of payment since there is no guarantee the funds will receive final approval by the Office of Student Financial Planning and Services or other approving agencies. If you wish to use pending financial aid or financial aid funds not yet received by the Institution to assist with fee payment, you must secure a Deferment from the Office of Student Financial Planning and Services prior to the fee payment deadline.