Financial Resources

General Information

The total cost of earning your degree at a distance from UW-Platteville will vary with each program. Once you have received your credit evaluation and admissions notification, you can estimate the amount of money it will take to pay the tuition and fees associated with your program, based on the number of credits you need to earn. It is advisable to budget at least $100 per course for textbooks that you will need to purchase.

There are several avenues for receiving financial assistance to pay for tuition and fees associated with your degree program. On this page, you will find information about state and federal financial aid, state and federal veteran's benefits, union/company assistance, and scholarships. Please read this information carefully and contact the appropriate people and/or resources to further research the various methods of receiving assistance.

Federal and State Financial Aid

Financial aid is a complex area within student services that requires a great deal of specialized knowledge and information. Your individual consultation with the Financial Aid Office will be essential for you to understand the implications and proper procedures or options available to you.

If you are admitted to a degree program (matriculated), you may qualify for federal and/or state financial aid, including loans and grants (for undergraduate students). Eligibility for grants and/or loans will be determined after you have completed the U.S. Department of Education's online financial aid application at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov or you may request a paper application from the Financial Aid Office. You should complete the financial aid application as soon as you complete the UW System Application for Admission.

The process of determining whether you qualify for financial aid takes approximately eight weeks.

Assistance with Financial Aid

If you need financial aid forms or have questions regarding financial aid, please contact:

Sheila Trotter
Financial Aid Office
University of Wisconsin-Platteville
204 Brigham Hall
1 University Plaza
Platteville, WI 53818-3099
Telephone: 608.342.1836
E-mail: trotter@uwplatt.edu

NOTE: In all correspondence with the Financial Aid Office, be sure to indicate that you are taking classes at a distance.

Special Students and International Students

Special students and international students are not eligible to receive financial aid.

Scholarships

Distance Learning Scholarships

The following distance learning scholarships are available for degree-seeking UW-Platteville distance students. Application and supporting documents must be postmarked by February 15 for the following academic year. See below for details and criteria:

• Dawn Drake Excellence in Distance Education Scholarship
  • Dawn Drake Scholarship Criteria
  • Dawn Drake Scholarship Application
• The Walter Longacre Memorial Scholarship
  • The Walter Longacre Memorial Scholarship Criteria
  • The Walter Longacre Memorial Scholarship Application
• Ana Alvarez-Holmberg Memorial Scholarship -- available to adult project management students residing in Minnesota or Wisconsin. Deadline: April 30.
  • Ana Alvarez-Holmberg Memorial Scholarship Criteria
• Get Educated Scholarship
  • http://geteducated.com/services/scholarships.asp (Deadline October 15)

Other Scholarships

• Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Foundation Scholarships
  • Available to current SHRM members
• Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning Scholarship
  • Available to current Phi Kappa Phi members pursuing a post baccalaureate degree
• The Project Management Institute Educational Foundation

Scholarship Search Engines

College-scholarships.com provides a free scholarship search and links to major college financial aid offices.

Fastweb uses the Internet to help students find scholarships for college. Fastweb matches each student's background with eligibility requirements for scholarships from around the country. Fastweb also advises students about scholarship opportunities tailored to them. Free service.

Loans

FinAid is a web site that describes different kinds of loans, where to get them, and how to apply for them.

Wisconsin GI Bill Information

The Wisconsin GI Bill tuition waiver benefit provides eligible veterans, their spouses, and dependents a remission of up to 100% of the standard tuition and segregated fees for courses offered on-campus at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

NOTICE: The Wisconsin GI Bill does not cover all educational costs. Check with your Veterans' Certifying Official to determine which tuition/fees are not covered.

Online tuition/fee rates are typically higher than the standard tuition rates for students on campus. The Wisconsin GI Bill remission applies to the standard rate, so if you qualify for this benefit, you will be responsible for the difference in tuition/fees if you choose to take online courses. For information about recent legislative changes, please visit http://gibill.wisconsin.edu.

For Example: If the tuition/fees for an online course is $1500, and the standard tuition for a course is $1000, then $1000 will be waived, and you will be responsible for the $500 difference. If you have questions about the Wisconsin GI bill, please contact the Office of the Registrar at 608.342.1321.

Post 9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33)

A new education benefit for veterans—Post 9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33)—is currently being finalized at the federal level. All veterans who qualify for this education benefit should discuss this option with their County Veteran’s Services Officer. This benefit option will require the UWP Registrar to recertify all students who are currently using veteran’s education benefits.

Note to students that are currently using (or plan to use) Wisconsin GI Bill benefits:

In the 2009-2011 Wisconsin Budget, Governor Doyle has proposed that eligible Wisconsin student veterans be required to use federal Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits before receiving Wisconsin GI Bill benefits. This means that the UWP Registrar's Office may not be able to certify veterans for state or federal GI Bill benefits until the budget is approved. It is possible that the state budget will not be approved until after the tuition payment deadline for UWP’s online courses. If you are a Wisconsin student veteran and plan to use state GI Bill benefits to pay for fall online course enrollments with UWP, you may need to pay for your courses out of pocket and get reimbursed with your state GI Bill benefits. Tuition payments must be received in full by August 18, 2009. Given the unpredictability of when the state budget will pass, please plan accordingly to ensure that your tuition is received by the payment deadline.

For students who are interested in using Veteran's Education Benefits for the fall 2009 term, please refer to the "Veterans' Programs" link (http://www.uwplatt.edu/registrar/veterans.html) on the UW-Platteville Registrar's Office home page. This site will be updated as the University receives more information on both federal and state education benefits.

Employers or Union Tuition Assistance

Another source of financial assistance may be available from your employer or union. Many major employers or unions have tuition assistance programs and finance employees' or members' enrollment in distance learning programs. Contact your employer or union regarding its educational assistance programs.

More Information

Your public library may have information on public and private sources of financial assistance. You should also check foundations and religious organizations. If you would like to use a Financial Aid Calculator, go to http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml. Please check the UWP Financial Aid web pages for other helpful links.

If you have any questions regarding financial aid at UW-Platteville, please contact the UW-Platteville Financial Aid Office at:

Financial Aid Office
University of Wisconsin-Platteville
204 Brigham Hall
1 University Plaza
Platteville, WI 53818-3099
Telephone: 608.342.1836