U.S. Citizens and Legal Residents

For students who are U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens:

Franklin is considered a foreign university by the U.S. Department of Education. The Higher Education Act of 1965 dictates that only the Federal Direct Loan program can be used at a US Foreign School such as Franklin University. Therefore, your student may be eligible for other federal aid programs such as the Pell Grant, but only federal loans can be included in a financial aid award from Franklin. The Direct Loan program includes the Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans for students as well as the Direct PLUS Loan which can be applied for by parent(s). The aid application process should be jointly shared by the student and the parent so both parties understand their options and responsibilities. This process will be repeated each year.

Franklin's federal school code is G11683 and must be included on your FAFSA.

• Determine which aid year you are filing your FAFSA for. If filing for 2022-2023, gather tax or income information for the 2020 tax year. If filing for aid year 2023-2024, gather tax information for the 2021 tax year. You will be able to directly transfer your tax information from the IRS to the FAFSA, using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.If your family’s financial situation has changed drastically from the returns were filed, please still use the appropriate tax information and subsequently contact the Financial Aid Office (finaid@fus.edu) so we may correct the information on your behalf.  
• If this is your first time filing the FAFSA, you will need to apply for an FSA ID. An FSA ID is individually assigned to both student and parent(s), so each will have their own FSA ID. You can start the FSA ID application online at https://studentaid.gov/fsa-id/create-account/launch. It will be required to file and sign the FAFSA as well as to subsequently complete the requirements for all federal loans, such as sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN). Please note, both parent and student will have to sign for the FAFSA.If you already have an FSA ID, please use that to log into the FAFSA. If you cannot remember your FSA ID, please contact the federal government, using links on the FAFSA page to retrieve the information. 
• File and submit your FAFSA for 2022-2023 and/or 2023-2024 online at www.StudentAid.gov.Please be sure to add Franklin's federal school code; G11683 to your application to ensure we can gain access to your information.Once the application has been submitted, pay attention to any emails sent from the federal government to the student, should additional information be required. 
• Review and accept your award in our, student aid portal, Net Partner. Login instructions will be emailed to all admitted students. Students can decide to share login information with their parents.

For more information about these federal loans, please visit www.StudentAid.gov.

Please remember, the FAFSA application is free to all eligible U.S. residents and citizens. Beware of other websites that mimic the federal page and do not use sites that charge fees for FAFSA-filing or list a website other than www.StudentAid.gov.

(Please note: Franklin does not currently use the CSS Profile.)

Students holding U.S. citizenship or permanent residency, Canadian citizenship and students whose country uses the U.S. dollar as its official currency, will be billed in U.S. dollars (USD), with the exception of Graduate Students who will be billed in Swiss Francs (CHF) regardless of citizenship.

Citizens of countries outside the U.S.

Students who are neither U.S. citizens, nor permanent U.S. residents need to follow these steps to apply for need-based financial aid:

• If applying for need-based aid for the 2022-2023 academic year, please gather all tax and income information for the 2020 calendar year. If you are filing for the 2023-2024 academic year please use tax and income information from the 2021 calendar year. Student will need to have parent(s) tax information, as well as information regarding the value of family businesses, savings accounts and other assets. Additionally, if students have worked a job or own assets in their own name, this information will also be requested. 
• The financial aid application can be found and completed on the Net Partner portal (our online student portal for financial aid). Login instructions will be emailed to all admitted students. If you are unsure of your login, please contact us at finaid@fus.edu for assistance. You can start the application and save it before completing it, but be aware you must return to the application within 15 days or the information will no longer be stored. Please be sure to press the Submit button at the end of the application in order for the information to be transferred to our financial aid software.The questions on our application have been designed to mimic the information requested on the U.S. federal application for financial aid (FAFSA), in order to try and use an equivalent measurement of need for all our students. The aid application process should be jointly shared by the student and the parent so both parties understand their options and responsibilities. This process will be repeated each year.Students holding all citizenships other than the US or from countries who do not use the US dollar as currency, will be billed in Swiss Francs (CHF). 

Franklin institutional aid is awarded to fulltime degree-seeking students only and cannot be applied towards one or two semesters of study, or for students enrolled only during the summer semester. Additionally, we cannot process federal aid for students who are currently enrolled or intend to enroll at another institution after one or two semesters at Franklin. Please contact the office of financial aid at your home institution should you need financial assistance for your study abroad semester. 

Graduate students who are U.S. citizens or leligible non-citizens, who have filed an accepted FAFSA for the aid year(s) they wish to attend FUS, qualify for Direct Unsubsidized Loans. These students may also qualify for a private loan from Sallie Mae Student Loans or a Federal Direct Graduate PLUS loan (www.StudentAid.gov). Both of these loans are credit-check credit check loans which require a separate loan application and may require a co-signer for loan approval. All graduate students are billed in Swiss Francs (CHF).

Students transferring into Franklin should follow the same aid procedures as listed under the Undergraduate section. If the student has already filed a FAFSA for the relevant academic year, they will have to log into the FAFSA and add Franklin’s federal code, G11683 in order for the results to be pushed to FUS. Regardless of whether the student has borrowed federal loans at a previous institution, they will have log into www.StudentAid.gov and complete the Entrance Counseling webinar again as well as sign a new Master Promissory Note (MPN).

Franklin scholarships are renewable annually, with certain conditions. The FAFSA (www.StudentAid.gov) needs to be filed each year in order for the student to maintain federal student loan eligibility. Likewise, Sallie Mae Student Loans applications must be completed each academic year. Students' academic standing as well as housing assignments will be reviewed each semester for compliance with the renewal criteria below. 

Merit scholarships are renewable for four years or upon graduation, whichever comes first, provided the student:

• Maintains a minimum Cumulative GPA of 2.8

• Maintains full time enrollment

• Does not have any level 2 or 3 disciplinary infractions

• Remains in Franklin University housing*

Financial Aid (need-based) scholarships are renewed each year provided the student:

• Maintains a minimum Cumulative GPA of 2.5

• Maintains full-time enrollment

• Does not have any level 2 or 3 disciplinary infractions 

• Remains in Franklin University housing*

*Please note: Living off campus will result in a 20% reduction in institutional aid.

Federal Direct Loans will be available each year provided the student:

• Files a new FAFSA (www.StudentAid.gov) each aid year

• Maintains a minimum GPA of 2.0

• Signs a new Master Promissory Note (MPN) each aid year

Franklin students must be enrolled full-time in order to maintain their visa status within Switzerland.

Aid will be automatically renewed for students who meet the renewal criteria and have submitted their annual FAFSA as applicable. 

Students who have not met the CGPA renewal criteria will be required to meet with the Financial Aid Director, Ms. Sigrun Olafsdottir. The student will receive an email notification once final grades have posted after each semester (please note, we do NOT copy parents on this notification due to FERPA requirements). In-person interviews will be offered and conducted in April and/or November of each year, when our Director of Financial Aid is on campus. These interviews are intended to assist the student in identifying and applying app available resources to help them reach the CGPA requirements. The aid is initially placed on a Warning status, which means the CGPA is being monitored and the aid is still in place. If the student does not attend the mandatory aid meeting each semester and/or AND/OR continues to be below the CGPA requirement without any measurable improvements, the aid will be placed on a Probationary status and will be canceled. The parent(s) will NOT be notified of the aid cancellation by the Office of Financial Aid due to FERPA regulations.  

Franklin students have various opportunities to study abroad. Students receiving financial aid should contact our Director of Financial Aid directly (solafsdottir@fus.edu) prior to making a final decision, to discuss how the absence may affect their aid status. 

Students who are using federal loans need to be particularly aware that there are some federal restrictions placed on students at US Foreign Schools. These restrictions specify that students who are degree-seeking at US Foreign Schools may not earn any credits via distance (online) learning nor at institutions affiliated with or within the United States. 

It is imperative that these students contact the Franklin financial aid team prior to making any firm plans. The federal government offers a list of approved institutions around the world where these restrictions do not apply.  (https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/international)

Franklin institutional scholarships, such as merit and financial aid, do not transfer to study abroad programs but will remain in place upon the student's return to Franklin. 

Enrollment in a program of study abroad approved for credit or consortium agreement approved for credit by the home institution may be considered enrollment at the home institution for the purpose of applying for assistance under the title IV, HEA programs.

Students holding federal loans must complete exit counseling upon leaving the University regardless of whether they are graduating or simply not returning to Franklin. Students transferring to another university are responsible for making sure their federal records are updated with the new institution to keep loans from going into repayment.  Exit counseling can be completed online at www.StudentAid.gov.  

Returning students should submit the FAFSA as early as possible each year to ensure smooth aid awarding and renewal. The FAFSA opens up on October 1 each year for the subsequent academic year, allowing our students up to 10 months to file in time for the fall billing statements being sent out the following July.

New prospective students can begin the process as early as November, but will not be considered for merit or need-based scholarships until they have been admitted to the university. We send out aid letters on a rolling basis within 2 weeks of student submitting all the required documentation (FAFSA or Franklin Financial Aid Applications).

Regarding federal loan requirements: In order for the loans to disburse the student account, new students must complete the Entrance Counseling webinar and sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN) by early August each fall, in order to ensure smooth aid disbursements. Returning students must also sign a new MPN each year by early August to ensure a smooth disbursement process and to avoid any issues with their student accounts. These documents can be found online at www.StudentAid.gov. If students have not submitted these documents by the end of the add/drop period we will consider the loans canceled and an updated billing statement will be sent to the family. Please note: parents who are approved for the Parent PLUS loan will also have to sign an MPN for their loan on the same timeline.

The Net Partner Portal is the student web portal for financial aid at Franklin. New students will receive their login information shortly after being accepted into Franklin. The portal is where students and family members will be able to view and accept all aid offers, see outstanding financial aid requirements, check their application status, and more.

The “resource tab” contains various documents that will be useful to the family throughout the financial aid application cycle and beyond. We recommend that students log into their account on a regular basis to keep up with current information and the status of their financial aid.