Applying for summer or fall?

<p>If i apply for summer would i get less aid for the fall semester?
Im a transfer.</p>

<p>It probably depends on the school, but typically there is little or no aid available for summer other than federal/state aid if you qualify (but often no work study, SEOG, or other campus-based need aid). Merit aid often doesn’t extend to summer sessions either as it’s given for a certain number of semesters. Would you be a full or part-time student? Are you eligible for Pell?</p>

<p>For some schools the summer is part of the preceding year for financial aid purposes. For others it is part of the following year. </p>

<p>If summer is part of the preceding year then summer 2011 would be part of the 2010-2011 school year and any aid eligibility would be based on the 2010-2011 FAFSA and whatever aid you had already received for the year. For instance if you had already received the maximum Stafford loans for the 2010-2011 school year then you can not get more Stafford loans for the summer. If you are Pell eligible you may be able to receive more pell funds in the summer.</p>

<p>If the school counts summer as part of the following year then summer 2011 will be part of the 2011-2012 school year and and aid for the summer will be based on the 2011-2012 FAFSA. It is possible that receiving certain aid during the summer may reduce your fall and spring aid. For instance if you receive part of your Stafford loan in the summer then you will be eligible for less Stafford money during the school year.</p>

<p>Yes i know that my question is would i get the same aid for the fall semester? after i finish the summer sessions.
what about institutional grants? transfer scholarships ,need based institutional grants if any.</p>

<p>You may or may not. If the summer is part of the following year then getting summer aid may reduce you fall and spring aid.</p>

<p>The institutional money would depend completely on the institution and their policies so there is no way we can answer that question. At my daughter’s school the majority (maybe all) of the scholarships are for the regular school year and do not pay for any summer. This may vary by school. Transfer scholarships tend to be much lower than freshman scholarships of course. I would not expect that applying to start in the summer would reduce the aid you would get in the fall but I know some schools have odd and unexpected little quirks in their policies that can catch people out so you really need to check with your school. For instance my daughter was cautioned not to take summer classes at another institution between graduating HS and starting at her college because it would have changed her Status to a transfer student instead of a freshman and she would have lost her hefty scholarship that required her to have freshman standing. Only your school can tell you what their policies are.</p>