Financial Aid in TUportal
After you receive a TUmail email notification with a financial aid offer, visit the Costs and Aid tab of the TUportal.
- To review the financial aid offer select View Financial Aid Offer (save as a PDF or print for your records).
- To accept, decline or reduce Student Federal Direct Loans and/or work-study, select Self-Service Banner Financial Aid. (Grants and scholarship are automatically accepted.)
Temple University is committed to using the Principles & Standards of the College Cost Transparency Initiative in its student financial aid offer.
Right to Cancel
If you are receiving financial aid, student loan amounts may reflect lender deductions of origination fees. Financial aid on this bill includes only funds used to pay off your balance. Federal work study funds are not included. Every student’s financial aid offer is available in the Costs & Aid tab of their TUportal student account, and it will list the annual financial aid types and amounts offered.
Students and parent borrowers receiving federal student loan funding or the TEACH grant, have the right to cancel all or a portion of the annual funding or semester disbursement and have the funding returned to the lender. They have a minimum of 14 days from the statement date to request that a loan be cancelled in part or full. This request must be submitted in writing to Student Financial Services.
Refunds
Most financial aid disburses 2-3 business days prior to the start of each term, provided that you have satisfied any outstanding requirements and meet the enrollment requirements for each type of aid offered to you. Less than full-time registration may result in a delay in private loan and PLUS disbursements to ensure your Cost of Attendance is accurate and the amount of aid processed fits within your budget. Federal financial aid is only applicable to current institutional charges, in compliance with federal regulations. Private aid and out of pocket payments (i.e., cash, check, or credit card) may be applied to outstanding balances before being applied to current institutional charges.
You can view your charges and financial aid disbursements on the printable Student Account Statement located on the Costs & Aid tab of TUPortal. Additionally, you can log into TUPay from the Costs & Aid tab to view the Current Account Activity for a similar summary of charges and payments. Undisbursed aid may be shown as "anticipated" aid on student accounts, so you should check your Statement for disbursement information.
A refund can be processed when a credit balance exists on a student's account as a result of any personal payment, financial aid, or combination of payment types that exceeds the total of institutional charges on the account. Credit balances are generally released as refunds within 48 hours of disbursement. With the exception of the federal Parent PLUS loan, credit balance refunds are issued to the student via paper check or direct deposit. Students may update their refund choice through TUPay. Parent-borrowers may choose how the a refund from the Parent PLUS loan is issued - either to the student or to the parent-borrower. Parent-borrowers who are also Authorized Payers have the option of signing up for Direct Deposit.
Information on how to manage your refund, including the forms for reducing or cancelling loans, and more detailed information on how refunds are processed, is located on the Managing Your Refund page of the this website.
Common Financial Aid Terms
Below are some terms and phrases you will come across in reviewing your financial aid. It is important to be familiar with them, as doing so will help you understand the information on your financial aid offer.