It is important to note that you do not pay tuition or fee charges during the quarters that you are on a co-op assignment and registered in the co-op course.
If I decide to co-op, how will it affect my financial aid?
A co-op student's financial need is determined by taking the cost of education minus the parents' contribution and the student's contribution from assets. The financial need is met through grant, loan, and an expectation from employment, e.g. co-op earnings.
Students participating in the co-op program are expected to contribute a portion of their co-op earnings towards their educational expenses. The normal summer savings expectation is waived and replaced by a portion of the co-op expectation. The academic year employment is also awarded in the form of the co-op expectation.
The average co-op earnings contribution for the 07-08 years has been $3,200. This has been determined from students' average earnings minus their average living expenses for two quarters. This expectation is reviewed annually and may be adjusted.
Will my grant award be reduced if I co-op?
Over the 12 quarters of your enrollment, you will receive the same amount of total grant aid as you would if you had not chosen co-op, assuming there are similar financial circumstances. If you have questions about the effect of co-op on grants from outside scholarship agencies, you should speak with the association issuing the grant. If funding is reduced, it is normally replaced with other financial assistance.
Will the amount of loans in my award increase if I co-op?
We are unable to assure that student loans will not increase because of the co-op experience. In general, though, loan amounts do not increase significantly. However, if there are any changes to the financial aid award due to unusual transportation costs or lower than anticipated earnings, the adjustment to the award will be in loan aid and not in grant.
General resources on Financial Aid at Northwestern University
