As a financial aid applicant you have a responsibility to:

• be aware of all eligibility requirements and application procedures
• maintain your correct Social Security number, name and address with the records office
• prepare your applications for financial aid accurately
• review the information on your Student Aid Report (SAR) to ensure accuracy
• follow up with any directions given to you on your SAR
• be aware of all priority dates and final processing deadlines for the submission of forms
• comply with all requests for additional information in a timely manner
• keep copies of all financial aid information and all financial aid application forms (Any forms sent to the Office of Financial Aid become the property of the office and are not returned for the student to use elsewhere.)
• keep copies of all financial aid award letters, promissory notes and disclosure statements, and other correspondence regarding your financial assistance
• make payment arrangements with the business office if you apply late for financial aid
• conduct research on your future earning potential and borrow only the amount of money that you can reasonably repay

As a financial aid recipient, you have a responsibility to:

• comply with the terms and conditions of all awards that you receive
• notify the Office of Financial Aid if your enrollment status changes after you apply for or receive financial aid
• notify the Office of Financial Aid if you receive scholarships, graduate assistantships, fee waivers, fee remissions, grants, or other benefits other than those awarded by the Office of Financial Aid
• use your financial aid awards to pay only educationally related costs incurred during the current award period

If you are awarded a loan, you have a right to:

• detailed information from studentaid.gov about interest rates, fees, the balance owed, and repayment options
• a copy of the completed promissory note from your lender (The original note must be returned to you when your loan is paid in full.)
• notification if your lender sells your loan or transfers the right to receive payment
• a grace period before payment begins under the Federal Direct Stafford and Federal Perkins Loan programs
• repay your entire loan or any portion of your loan at any time without penalty
• deferment and forbearance of repayment options from studentaid.gov after the grace period if you qualify

If you are awarded a loan, you have a responsibility to:

• complete an Entrance Counseling Interview  and Master Promissory Note the first time you borrow a Direct Loan at Western New Mexico University
• notify Direct Loans if you graduate, withdraw from school, drop below half time status, transfer to another school, do not enroll in school, or change your name or address
• repay your loan according to the loan repayment schedule provided by the lender
• notify your lender of anything that affects your eligibility for a deferment or your ability to repay your loan
• complete an exit interview if you drop below half time graduate (6 credits) or plan to withdraw or transfer to another institution
• repay your loan even if you do not complete your degree program, are unable to obtain employment or are otherwise dissatisfied with your college education

Circumstances may require that a student’s aid package be revised in the following cases:

• Change in enrollment 
  Students are awarded financial aid based on estimates of enrollment. Awards are later adjusted based on actual enrollment.  Most awards are initially based upon full time enrollment, at the end of the add/drop period awards will be adjusted to actual enrollment.
• Withdrawal from school 
  Students contemplating withdrawing from classes should make an appointment to see a financial aid counselor. The current semester’s aid as well as future aid may be jeopardized.
• Receipt of other financial aid 
  This includes aid not awarded through the Office of Financial Aid, including institutional, state and private donor scholarships, tuition remission, graduate assistant-ships, and other aid that we become aware of after the student has been awarded.
• Change in residency status 
  Students who are granted in-state residency after they receive an award based on out-of-state residence will receive a budget adjustment, which reflects the in-state charges for tuition and fees. This may require an adjustment to aid awarded and/or received. In such cases, funds may be returned to the appropriate financial aid programs to prevent an over award.
• Federal verification process 
  Students who are selected for verification will need to submit federal tax return transcripts (or import their tax information into the FAFSA), a verification worksheet, and other documentation to the WNMU Office of Financial Aid. This information may require changes be made to the original FAFSA information, resulting in changes in eligibility.
• Student initiated adjustments to the FAFSA.

NOTE: At any time during the aid year, even after aid has been received, the U.S. Department of Education can require that the University request and review documentation from the student.  This is most likely to happen when the student makes a change to the FAFSA, even adding an additional school can result in additional requirements, and aid may have to be returned if the student fails to submit the required documents, or the documentation does not support the information on the FAFSA!

The Office of Financial Aid prepares a Cost of Attendance Budget, that varies depending upon:

• Your Career – Undergraduate, Graduate
• Your Program – Which program, and program related expenses
• Your enrollment – Number of Credits/Amount of Bill
• Residency – In state vs. Out of State
• Living situation – Living on campus, off campus or with parents

Your Budget includes:

• Tuition (before any Tuition Awards)
• Fees
• Room and Board
• Personal Expenses -required to pursue your degree
• Transportation Expenses – required to pursue your degree
• Books and Supplies

When preparing your budget we initially budget and award for full time enrollment.  If you enroll less than full time we then adjust the budget, and awards to a part time level.

Your Budget may be adjusted anytime you:

• Drop a class
• Add a class
• Change Careers
• Change Programs
• Your bill is adjusted for any reason
• Change from instate to out of state
• Change your housing situation

Note: any change can change the amount you may receive in a loan, do not spend your refund before you earn it!

The cost of attendance, sometimes referred to as your financial aid budget, is an estimate of the average total cost for you to attend Western New Mexico University (WNMU) for an academic year.  It is calculated for full time enrollment, if a student enrolls in more, or less credits the amounts will change.

Each Students total Aid, including, but not limited to State, Federal, Institutional, Loans from all sources, Federal or State Work-study, Tuition Award/Waivers cannot exceed this budget.

Estimated student budgets reflect typical “modest but adequate” expense patterns of students based on research conducted by the Office of Financial Aid.

These estimates do not include online/lab fees etc. Budgets will be adjusted to actual tuition and fee expenses approximately one month before the semester; changing enrollment can change the budget. A change in budget may cause a change in your award.

You can use the Net Price Calculator to get an idea of what you will have to pay and what you are potentially eligible : Net Price Calculator

Please see Tuition and Fees. 

Indirect Costs:

There are, of course, indirect expenses related to going to school full time that will not appear on your college bill (except Room & Board for on campus residence halls). These are not the same as estimated Living Expenses. We estimate the average expenses below for the cost of books, supplies, and other miscellaneous expenses.  For Students who live on campus the Room and Board amount will adjust to the actual Housing/Meal charges approximately 1 month before school starts.

If the student enrolls less than full time, some of these items will be pro-rated for student budget purposes.  Students who enroll less than part time (under six credits) will not have Room & Board or Personal components calculated as part of their budget.   

Only certain elements in the Cost of Attendance Budget can be adjusted or added, these include:

• Transportation – if your actual expenses exceed the budgeted amount
• Tuition and Fees – if they exceed the amount budgeted (this will be discontinued starting with the Summer 2018 when the budgets will automatically be adjusted to the amount shown on your bill.)
• Dependent Care, during the academic year, which are necessary in order for you to attend. generally this means that adjustment will not necessary cover the cost of child care, for work and other obligations, but for class and study time.  This does not include the cost of private school for school aged children.
• One time purchase of a computer for educational purposes
• Health Insurance, paid for out of pocket
• Extraordinary or unforeseen medical expenses that you have paid for out of pocket, not what you have been billed and are not subject to re-imbursement by employer or others.
• Student Accessibility Services that are needed to attend school must be paid for out of pocket. For HIPPA reasons these requests must go through our Accessibility Office, who can be reached at 575.538.6014.

All of the above are for periods of enrollment only, for instance, child care for the actual time you are in class and/or studying.  Receipts will be required for all adjustments.

Please note:  the budget increase appeal does not directly result in you receiving additional financial aid. If you have accepted and received all of the federal, state, and/or institutional aid initially offered to you by our office, you will most likely not receive additional aid as a result of this appeal unless you apply for additional funding such as Federal or State Work-Study, Parent Plus, Graduate Plus, or private student loan.