Basic Eligibility Criteria

Generally, to qualify for federal, state, and institutional financial assistance, students must meet the following requirements:

Demonstrate financial need. For some sources of aid, this is not a requirement.
Be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen
Have a valid Social Security number
Be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a regular student in an eligible degree or certificate program
Be enrolled at least half-time in degree-applicable coursework to be eligible for Direct Loan Program funds
Maintain satisfactory academic progress toward a degree or certificate in an eligible program
Provide consent and approval to have your federal tax information transferred directly into your 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®)
Sign the certification statement on the FAFSA stating that
- you are not in default on a federal student loan and do not owe money on a federal student grant and
- you will use federal student aid only for educational purposes
Show you are qualified to obtain a college education by
- having a high school diploma or a state-recognized equivalent such as a General Educational Development (GED) certificate
- completing a high school education in a homeschool setting approved under state law (or—if state law does not require a homeschooled student to obtain a completion credential—completing a high school education in a homeschool setting that qualifies as an exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law)

IMPORTANT: On the 2024–25 FAFSA form, a contributor refers to anyone (you, your spouse, your biological or adoptive parent, or your parent's spouse) who's required to provide information on the FAFSA form. If a required contributor doesn't provide consent and approval to have their federal tax information transferred into your FAFSA form, you won’t be eligible for federal student aid—even if they manually enter tax information into the FAFSA form.

Additional eligibility requirements can apply for non-U.S. citizens and students with criminal convictions.

Proof of Eligibility

Only U.S. citizens and eligible noncitizens may receive federal student aid. If your FAFSA Submission Summary indicates that you are required to provide documentation, the NSU Office of Financial Aid will notify you accordingly via NSU email and messages in your Self-Service Financial Aid Account.

The following documents will be accepted as proof:

U.S. Citizens	Eligible Non-citizens
Certificate of Naturalization Certificate of U.S. Citizenship U.S. Passport Card U.S. Passport Letter U.S. Birth Certificate	I-551 I-94 or I-94A I-571 VTVPA –HHS certification or eligibility VAWA – I-360 with I-79 JAY TREATY documents

OPTION 1: Submit copies of your citizenship documents

U.S. Citizens

Print the Affidavit form available under the Forms tab at our website, nova.edu/financialaid. Make copies of all of the appropriate documents, as indicated above. Fill in the academic year for which you are submitting these documents, your name (printed), and complete the list of documents with their expiration date and issuing authority. Bring all of your documents, as well as the Affidavit form, to a notary in your area. Sign the form in the presence of a notary and ensure the notary's signature and/or stamp is included.

Eligible Non-Citizens

Eligible non-citizens may submit copies of the above listed documents without an affidavit. NSU will verify non-citizen's documents with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Submit everything to NSU by one of two methods:

Scan and email to finaiddocs@nova.edu
U.S mail to:

Nova Southeastern University
Office of Financial Aid – EPS
3300 S. University Drive, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33328-2004

Do not mail original documents to NSU.

OPTION 2: Present original documents in person

Any of the originals listed above may be presented at the following locations:

One-Stop Shop, Horvitz Administration Building, Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus
Financial Aid Offices at the Shepard Broad College of Law, the H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship, and the Health Professions Division Terry Administration Building (Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus)
Your local NSU Campus

For questions regarding this process, please call the Office of Financial Aid at 800-806-3680.