You can apply for the Southwestern Emergency Fund through this online application:

Southwestern Emergency Fund Application

For most students, there will be no change in their financial aid. The Financial Aid Office will issue a new aid letter through Self-Service if changes are made. Contact us if you have any questions.

Visit the Business Office page for more information:

Eligible students will be contacted via email during the week of March 30-April 3 with details about this process.

Yes.  Per the Federal Work-Study provisions, if you are not able to work remotely, you will still be paid for the hours you were scheduled to work, as provided by your supervisor.

Supervisors of Federal Work Study students were asked to provide information about each student’s scheduled hours through the remainder of the semester.  These scheduled hours will be used to determine each student’s pay per pay period, using the same hourly rate that was used prior to the COVID-19 situation.

Supervisors of Federal Work Study students were asked to provide information about each student’s scheduled hours through the remainder of the semester.  These scheduled hours will be used to determine each student’s pay per pay period, using the same hourly rate that was used prior to the COVID-19 situation.

No.  Payment of Federal Work-Study wages will not impact your current financial aid package, as the award amounts were already established before the COVID-19 situation occurred.  Future financial aid packages will be based upon the FAFSA submitted for that year and eligibility requirements in effect at that time.

Yes, if remote working is approved by your supervisor. Enter your actual days and hours worked online through WebAdvisor and submit those using the normal time entry guidelines and deadlines.

Yes. Please email your supervisor, and cc Pam Leatherwood, leatherp@southwestern.edu, with the actual dates and hours that were not previously reported.  Your supervisor can send the approved hours to Pam Leatherwood to be processed in the next payroll.

How will I know which of my student employees qualify for the Federal Work-Study program?
Supervisors were provided a list of their employees who are eligible for the Federal Work-Study program.

What about those student employees who do not qualify for FWS?
Students who do not qualify for Federal-Work Study may still get paid if they are able to perform their duties remotely.  Supervisors will need to work with their student employees to determine an appropriate schedule and online timesheets should still be completed and approved in a timely and accurate manner.  If a non-Federal Work Study student cannot perform their duties remotely, they cannot be paid for hours not worked.

What do I need to do to ensure the Federal Work-Study employees get paid?
Be sure to respond to an email from Pam Leatherwood, sent on 3/28/20, and provide the information about each student’s scheduled hours.

Am I reading this correctly?  Are Federal Work Study students being paid for not working?
Yes, that is correct.  There are provisions within the Federal Work Study program that allow eligible students to continue to be paid in an emergency situation such as the COVID-19 pandemic, if circumstances of the situation prevent the student from performing their job duties and working their normally scheduled hours. These provisions apply only to students who are eligible for the Federal 

Work-Study program, and who were already employed at the time the university decided to migrate to a distance learning protocol.  
Eligible students have been contacted and informed of their eligibility to receive their pay.  Non-federal work study eligible student employees are ineligible for this provision, and can only be paid for the hours they can perform remotely, if they are able to do so. 

My student employment position(s) are such that I can have students work for me remotely.  Am I still able to have non-FWS students work for my department and get paid?
Yes.  Students who do not qualify for Federal-Work Study may still get paid if they are able to perform their duties remotely.  Supervisors will need to work with their student employees to determine an appropriate schedule and online timesheets should still be completed and approved in a timely and accurate manner.  If a non-Federal Work Study student cannot perform their duties remotely, they cannot be paid for hours not worked.

What if I have a Federal Work-Study student who still wants to work even though they will get paid regardless of whether they work any hours. Can they get paid for working their hours and get their FWS pay in addition to that?
Federal Work Study employees will get paid for their scheduled hours per week as confirmed by your supervisor. If the actual hours are less than the scheduled hours, then the difference will be added to the actual hours worked.

What if my federal work-study student’s actual (remote) work hours are less than his/her original (on-campus) scheduled work hours? Will the student get paid the difference?
If that student’s actual hours exceed their scheduled hours, they will be paid for the actual hours worked.  The actual work hours should be recorded and approved online through WebAdvisor following the current procedures. Payroll will make any necessary adjustments so that the student’s earnings for the pay period reflect the actual hours worked.

I have a student employee (FWS or non FWS) who is in a crisis situation because of the loss of employment.  What do I advise them to do?
A student may apply for up to $500 in assistance using the SU Emergency Fund Application.  In addition, students who were living on campus may have a credit balance on their SU student account created by the proration of room and board, and may request those funds to be refunded to them. Students can be referred to the Student Accounts page for more information and to complete the refund request form.  Students with outstanding account balances due may contact the Financial Aid Office at 512-863-1259 or at finaid@southwestern.edu to discuss options.

Will my student’s financial aid package be affected by this?
No.  Payment of Federal Work-Study wages during this time will not impact a student’s current financial aid package, as the award amounts were already established before the COVID-19 situation occurred.   Future financial aid packages will be based upon the FAFSA submitted for that year and eligibility requirements in effect at that time.

The CARES Act contains a provision for emergency funding for students. We are awaiting information from the US Department of Education on when we can expect to receive these funds, as well as for guidance for how to administer these funds. As information becomes available we will send a notification to students.

Since the probation terms vary for each student, contact the SU Financial Aid Office to discuss your individual situation.

The Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy has been updated to include the recently approved CR/NC option that is available to students. This change will affect the calculation of a student’s completion rate and the maximum number of credits a student may attempt. Grades of CR will be considered as attempted and completed. Grades of NC will be considered attempted, but not completed.

Complete the FAFSA for the 2020-2021 academic year at studentaid.gov. 

If you have submitted your FAFSA for 20-21, go to Self Service to check the status of your application or for missing documents.

Go to Self-Service. Navigate to “Required Documents.” For more information on Self-Service, visit the Self-Service Information page

You may email, fax, or mail your documents to the Financial Aid Office. If you choose to send sensitive documents via email, you will need to password protect the document and send the password in a separate email. Directions on how to password protect a PDF can be found on the Adobe Help Page. The fax number for the Financial Aid Office is 512-863-1507. The mailing address is Southwestern University Financial Aid Office, P.O. Box 770, Georgetown, TX 78627.

If your family has experienced loss of income, medical expenses, or a circumstance that has significantly changed the family’s financial status from what was reported on the 2020-21 FAFSA, your family can submit a 2020-21 Special Circumstance form. You must have a 2020-21 FAFSA submitted and you will need to complete the Verification process.

Our forms are found on our Financial Aid page of the website under Important Dates, Policies, and Forms.

If your family has experienced loss of income, medical expenses, or a circumstance that has affected your family’s ability to pay your student account balance, your family can submit a Special Circumstance for 2019-20. You must have a 2019-20 FAFSA submitted and you will need to complete the Verification process.

The CARES Act provides regulatory relief for student loans with regards to the suspension of loan payments and interest accrual on federally held student loans for the next 6 months or September 30, 2020, while utilizing the National Emergency period to consider student loan borrower payments for the purposes of rehabilitation and credit reporting for Public Service Loan Forgiveness purposes. There will be a suspension of involuntary collection and required notification to borrowers within 15 days of passing.

No, your servicer should make the update automatically. For more information, visit the studentaid.gov Covid-19 FAQ page.

No, your servicer should make the update automatically. For more information, visit the studentaid.gov Covid-19 FAQ page.