After you’re awarded aid

Understanding your financial aid award

If you've received your award letter and you're not sure you understand the information it contains, we have a sample award letter with explanations for various sections of the letter. You should also read "ComMITment," a booklet that came in the mail with your award letter and other materials. If you don't have it handy, you can read or print the PDF version of "ComMITment."

Finalizing your award

Ordinarily, getting your financial aid award notification is not the end of the application process. You need to accept your financial aid award by following additional steps. If you don’t do this, we can’t disburse the funds to your student account and you may receive a late charge for not paying your bill on time.

The steps for finalizing your financial aid award are different depending on:

• Your status (undergraduate or graduate/professional student)
• Types of aid you're offered (scholarship, research assistantship, teaching assistantship, fellowship, loan, job)
• Sources of aid (MIT, federal, state, private)

Overawards

If we offer you need-based financial aid, you must keep us informed of all your other sources of financial aid so we can make sure you're not overawarded. Any need-based financial aid we offer to any undergraduate, graduate or professional student is subject to change due to the receipt of additional need- or merit-based financial aid.

An overaward occurs when the aid you receive from all sources is greater than your eligibility. While we take care not to overaward a student when packaging, circumstances may change after we award aid that result in an overaward. For example, you may receive a scholarship or grant from an outside organization, or a research or teaching assistantship from an MIT department. When these circumstances arise, we may be required to adjust the need-based financial aid in your package.

If you are overawarded, we reduce your financial aid package so your total need-based financial aid does not exceed your financial need and so your total need- and merit-based financial aid does not exceed your budget. It’s possible for your financial aid award to be cancelled or adjusted after it is disbursed to your student account. We’ll notify you if we need to adjust your financial aid package.

The student budgets we use are listed in the undergraduate and graduate student expenses sections of "How Will I Afford an MIT Education?" on this web site.