Financial Aid
How Financial Aid Works
For study abroad financial aid purposes, 12 semester hours is considered full-time for the fall and spring terms and 6 hours is considered full-time for the summer.
Financial aid is available in the following manner:
Stafford and PLUS Loans—Must be enrolled at least half-time (6 hours) to receive assistance.
Federal Pell Grants—Award based on number of credit hours enrolled. Subject to lifetime eligibility limits.
MAP—There is no MAP award in the summer due to funding; however, you can use MAP during the academic year for study abroad (fall or spring semester) to pay for tuition and fees for most approved study abroad programs.
EIU Scholarships—Eligibility requirements and deadlines vary by award. Search and apply for EIU study abroad scholarships online at eiu.academicworks.com
Below is the type of aid you can receive based on the program type and term you choose to study abroad.
EXCHANGE (Fall and Spring)
Typically billed regular EIU Tuition and Fees
| YES | YES | NO |
| Loans | LPROM, EIU PROM, TPROM | |
| PELL | ECACE | |
| MAP | MERITs | |
| A2E | Presidential Scholarships |
COST – Consortium for Overseas Student Teaching (Fall and Spring)
Student Teaching Abroad – Split 8 weeks at EIU and 8 weeks abroad
If split 8 weeks stateside /8 weeks abroad, Cost of Attendance will look different because they will have half their tuition billed to EIU
| YES | YES | MAYBE |
| Loans | ECACE | Waivers and MAP |
| PELL | A2E | Combined amount cannot exceed cost of billed hours! |
THIRD PARTY (ONE-WAY) (Fall and Spring)
Students pay tuition, fees, and housing to host provider.
Only charge students will have to EIU is the Study Abroad Administration Fee.
| YES | YES | NO |
| Loans | LPROM, EIUPROM, TPROM | Waivers (Includes Panther Promise) |
| PELL | ECACE | |
| MAP | A2E | |
| MERIT |
DIRECT ENROLL (ONE-WAY) (Fall and Spring)
Students pay all tuition, fees, and housing to host school.
Only charge on the EIU bill is the Study Abroad Administration Fee and Health Insurance.
| YES | YES | NO |
| Loans | LPROM, EIUPROM, TPROM | Waivers (Includes Panther Promise) |
| PELL | ECACE | |
| MAP | A2E |
FACULTY-LED (Usually Summer, but can be Spring Break as well)
Faculty take a group of students abroad. Most are billed as sponsored credit through Continuing Education.
| YES | YES | NO |
| Loans | LPROM, EIUPROM, TPROM | Waivers (Includes Panther Promise) |
| PELL | ECACE | |
| MERITs |
JANUARY-TERM/SPRING BREAK STUDY ABROAD
Only increases Cost of Attendance for the Spring Semester. No additional aid is given out except Study Abroad/Departmental Scholarships.
SUMMER STUDY ABROAD
This has the same rules as on/off campus summer awarding. Students can only get Pell and Loans if they meet eligibility guidelines.
If you desire to use your financial aid in the Summer, you will need to go to this link and apply for Summer Financial Aid. https://www.eiu.edu/finaid/summer_application_policy.php
Who Can I Talk To?
The Office of Financial Aid meets with study abroad students to review their financial aid package and determine the availability of existing aid for a study abroad program. As a requirement for program application, any student that has a FAFSA on file and receives financial aid is required to speak to a representative from the Financial Aid Office before studying abroad. The Financial Aid office can be reached at finaid@eiu.edu or (217) 581-6405