How to Apply for Financial Aid
The financial aid application process varies depending on what type of financial aid you want, your citizenship status, and whether you are a prospective or returning Grinnell student.
Merit Scholarships
Dec. 1 is Grinnell’s priority deadline for merit scholarships. Only the Common Application or the QuestBridge Application must be submitted by this deadline for priority consideration. No separate scholarship application is required. Merit scholarship eligibility is determined based on the application for admission.
Need-Based Financial Aid
| Aid Applicant Status | Spring Transfer Applicant | Early Decision I Applicant | Early Decision II Applicant | Regular Decision Applicant | Fall Transfer Applicant | Returning Grinnell Student |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Financial Aid Deadline | Nov. 1 | Nov. 15 | Jan. 5 | Jan. 15 | March 1 | April 1 |
| Aid Notification | late November | mid-late December | early February | late March or early April | mid-May | on a rolling basis beginning by early May |
For prospective students, financial aid deadlines correspond with admission deadlines. See below for a step-by-step guide on applying for need-based financial aid at Grinnell College.
The table below provides an overview of what is required to apply for need-based financial aid. Click on the status that applies to you for more information.
| Student Status | FAFSA | CSS Profile | Parent Federal | Grinnell Online Financial Aid Application |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prospective Domestic and Eligible Noncitizen Students | X | X | X | |
| Prospective International and Domestic Noncitizen Students | X |
| ||
| Returning Domestic and Eligible Noncitizen Students | X | X |
Returning international and domestic noncitizen students do not reapply for need-based financial aid since their aid is automatically renewed annually.
Prospective students who submit only the FAFSA will be considered for the following types of financial aid:
- Iowa Tuition Grant
- Federal Pell Grant
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant
- Federal Subsidized Direct Loan (if requested)
- Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loan (if requested)
- Federal PLUS Loan (if requested)
Spring transfers applying to enroll at Grinnell College in spring 2026 should complete the 2025-26 financial aid application process. All others applying to enroll at Grinnell College in fall 2026 should complete the 2026-27 financial aid application process.
The FAFSA and CSS Profile use income from two years prior (e.g., 2023 income is reported on the 2025-26 application, and 2024 income is reported on the 2026-27 application) for determining need-based aid eligibility. The CSS Profile and the FAFSA are available on Oct. 1 annually.
Tax data should come directly from your 2023 federal tax documents for the 2025-26 application and your 2024 federal tax documents for the 2026-27 application. Help text is available in both forms for additional guidance. All contributors to the FAFSA are required to provide consent to share their data with the entities the student indicates (i.e., schools) on the FAFSA. After providing consent, Direct Data Exchange automatically transfers tax information directly from the IRS for most contributors who are U.S. tax filers. If you are not a U.S. tax filer, you must manually enter your income data.
If you are experiencing special or unusual circumstances, please feel free to provide additional information and documentation directly to the Office of Financial Aid using our secure site.
The household size and number in college questions refer to the 2025–26 school year for the 2025-26 application and the 2026-27 school year for the 2026-27 application. All other information requested on the CSS Profile and FAFSA, including marital status and assets, should be reported as of the date the application is submitted.
Grinnell College uses its own need analysis formula guided by institutional policies to determine institutional financial aid eligibility. A key difference between the FAFSA and Grinnell's need analysis approach is that Grinnell continues to consider the number of dependent household members enrolled full time in an undergraduate program when determining institutional need-based aid eligibility. As such, the institutionally determined family contribution is unlikely to be the same as the federally determined SAI.
Grinnell meets the difference between the cost of attendance and an institutionally determined family contribution with financial aid from institutional, state, federal, and private sources. As such, for students receiving institutional need-based financial aid, any change in federal aid eligibility (e.g., Federal Pell Grant) after an initial notification of financial aid eligibility would result in an adjustment to an institutional grant so the total amount of financial aid does not change. In other words, the amount the family is expected to pay would stay the same.
Want to Learn More?
Financial Wellness Tip Sheets