- Section 5: Financial Aid
- Financial Aid
- Payment Deadlines and Policies
- Refund Policies
- Student Eligibility Requirements
- Financial Aid Application Process and FAFSA
- Financial Aid Cost of Attendance (COA)
- Financial Aid Deadlines
- Financial Aid Notifications
- Financial Aid Disbursement Process
- Finishing the Program and Repaying the Loans
- Federal Financial Aid Loan Limits
- Loan Default
- State Grant Aid
- Private Education Loans
- Other Considerations for Financial Aid
- Return of Unearned Tuition Assistance Funds
- Veteran Students Tuition and Fees Policy
Walden University’s FAFSA Title IV code is 025042.
Students will need the code when filling out their FAFSA.
Financial Aid Application Process
- Students fill out the 2025-2026 FAFSA if they will start their program on or after May 26, 2025.
Applying for federal financial assistance is a two-part process consisting of (1) completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and notification of eligibility, and (2) acceptance of the financial aid offer and completion of the Master Promissory Note (MPN) and entrance counseling. This process takes approximately two to four weeks from the initial application through the receipt of funds. New students are strongly encouraged to complete the FAFSA at the same time they are applying for admission. Continuing students are required to complete a renewal FAFSA for each award year they are enrolled. A good practice is to complete the renewal FAFSA when it becomes available in October, but at least 8 weeks prior to each award year renewal date.
Walden University strongly suggests that all students who are eligible and who filed a federal tax return use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when filling out their FAFSA on the web. Using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool may expedite the verification and financial aid offer process.
FAFSA: Importing Federal Tax Information
For the 2024-2025 FAFSA and following award years, students, spouses, and parents, as appropriate, will be required, as a condition of eligibility for federal student aid, to consent and approve having their IRS federal tax information transferred to the FAFSA even if the applicant is aware that they did not file a federal tax return.
Please note that the FAFSA for years prior to 2024-2025 allowed students who were eligible and filed a federal tax return to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when filling out their FAFSA.
Verification Policy
In accordance with U.S. Department of Education regulations, Walden University is required to verify the accuracy of financial aid application information for selected students. The U.S. Department of Education and/or Walden University may randomly select students for verification or may select students based on predetermined criteria.
Students selected for verification are required to submit additional information. Federal tax information transferred into the FAFSA directly from the IRS is considered verified, but there may be other data elements that will still need to be verified with additional documentation. Additional information for the verification process may include but is not limited to the following: IRS tax return transcripts / signed IRS Form 1040 tax return and schedules, W-2s, verification of non-filing, identification documents, and a signed Statement of Educational Purpose. If a student is selected for verification, the documents that they will need to submit to the Office of Financial Aid will be scheduled on their myFinAid document portal. There are a few ways students can request a tax return transcript if they do not have a copy of their IRS 1040 Tax Return: online at the IRS website, by calling 1-800-908-9946, or by mailing the paper IRS Form 4506T-EZ, which can be printed out from the IRS website. For the 2024-25 FAFSA, a verification of non-filing letter is only required for an independent student, and their spouse if applicable, if they would file a return with a relevant tax authority other than the IRS. If a student is having difficulty obtaining the required tax documents, they should contact the Office of Financial Aid. Once the required documents are received in the Office of Financial Aid, the normal processing time is up to 10 business days to review documents and receive FAFSA corrections. Participation in the verification process is not optional and financial aid offers cannot be determined until verification is complete. If students do not complete the verification process by the end of the enrollment period, they will not be able to receive federal financial assistance for that award year.
Upon reviewing a student’s verification documentation, the Office of Financial Aid will correct their FAFSA if any information was reported in error. Students will be notified via email to their Walden University email account or through messaging on their myFinAid Document portal if they must make a correction to their FAFSA or, as a result of completing the verification process, their Student Aid Index (SAI) changes and results in a change to their offer amount.
A student whose FAFSA information is selected for verification by the U.S. Department of Education must complete the verification process before the Office of Financial Aid can make any changes to their cost of attendance (COA) or to the values of the data items required to calculate their Student Aid Index (SAI).
Please note that Walden University must, per federal regulations, review any conflicting information that may impact a student’s Title IV eligibility and has the right to request verification of income data elements, taxes paid, family size, , or any additional documentation if needed for resolution.
Please be aware that if students intentionally misreport information and/or alter documentation for the purpose of increasing aid eligibility or fraudulently obtaining federal funds, they will be reported to the U.S. Department of Education Office of the Inspector General or to local law enforcement officials.
Unusual Enrollment History Flag
The U.S. Department of Education added the Unusual Enrollment History (UEH) Flag to the ISIR (Institutional Student Information Record) to indicate whether students have an unusual enrollment history in regard to the receipt of Federal Pell Grant and/or Federal Direct Loan funds (not including a Direct Consolidation Loan, Perkins Loan or a Parent PLUS loan). The U.S. Department of Education enforced this process to determine if recipients were enrolling with the sole purpose of collecting Title IV credit balances. Students may be required to submit additional documentation to determine federal financial aid eligibility at Walden.