Financial Aid Information & Paying for College

Important Dates and Websites

• If students wish to be considered for financial aid, they need to complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) annually after January 1, but before March 1 to be considered for all types of financial aid at WOU.
• Students may file the FAFSA after March 1, but some limited aid types may not be available as funding may be exhausted.
• The best way to file the FAFSA is online.
• If you are unable to file the FAFSA online, contact a high school counseling or college financial aid office to obtain a paper application.

Application dates for scholarship applications vary greatly. For scholarship opportunities, please review our website.

Paying for College

One aspect of coming to college is learning new skills that will eventually result in improved employment and job satisfaction. Financial independence is a goal that many parents have for their children. When students prepare for higher education they are repeatedly told that a college degree is a good investment.

To help pay for college, approximately 60% of Western Oregon University (WOU) students borrow student loans. At WOU the average loan debt for undergraduates is $17,337. In addition to their student loans, the average undergraduate student will carry a $2,000 credit card debt.

The average monthly payment a student would need to make on both credit card and student loans will be $273 for the next 10 years. The good news to all of this is that a student with a Bachelor’s Degree may earn over one million dollars more than a person who does not hold a Bachelor’s Degree.

The majority of financial aid offered is in the form of loans to both students and their parents. Currently, an incoming freshman can borrow up to $5,500 in Stafford loans. This amount will cover most of their tuition and fees at Western Oregon University.

If the amount of student loans and other financial assistance is not enough to cover the student’s other educational expenses (room, board, books and supplies), a family will need to decide how to pay for the additional expenses. A parent has the option of applying for a Parent PLUS loan to help cover the additional expenses of school. Keep this in mind while you decide on how much to borrow for your student’s schooling.

Let’s assume that your student is only eligible for Stafford loans while in school. If you choose to borrow the full parent PLUS loan to cover room, board, books and supplies every year they are in school, your average loan debt will be $32,256. A standard monthly loan payment for the next 10 years will be $390.

This number may seem daunting, especially to families who have more children attending college in the near future. These numbers are meant to help you determine if and how much parent PLUS loan debt you want to incur. Keep in mind that there are things you can do know to help your student understand costs of schooling and help keep both their debt and yours to a minimum.