Where to send scholarship checks
Send all scholarship checks for students attending the Bloomington campus to the Office of the Bursar:
Office of the Bursar
Indiana University
Franklin Hall 011
601 E. Kirkwood Avenue
Bloomington, IN 47405-1223
Make all scholarship checks payable to Indiana University. Scholarship checks for students attending other IU campuses should be mailed directly to the campus where the student is enrolled.
What to include with a scholarship check
Please include the following with each check:
- Student’s name
- Student’s IU University ID (10digits)
- Scholarship donor’s name, address, and phone number
- Letter from donor with any scholarship stipulations
When to send scholarship checks
In order for scholarships to credit a student’s account before their charges are due, we recommend that checks be submitted to the Office of the Bursar by these dates:
- June 1 for fall semester
- October 1 for spring semester
- March 1 for summer sessions
Students may accrue late fees if external scholarship checks are not received prior to the student’s bursar bill date. Non-IU scholarships are not reflected on the student’s bursar account until the check has been received by the Office of the Bursar and processed by the Office of Student Financial Assistance.
Preventing late fees from accruing on his or her bursar account is the student’s responsibility. Students should contact the Office of the Bursar at bursar@indiana.edu to discuss payment options if scholarship checks do not arrive by the bursar bill due date.
Scholarship disbursement
- Endorsement of scholarship checks by students is not necessary, since funds are applied directly to their bursar accounts.
- Once students are enrolled in at least one credit hour, their scholarships credit to their bursar accounts.
- Scholarships are disbursed according to the term(s) specified by the donor. If the donor does not indicate a distribution schedule, IU-Bloomington will pay awards of $499 or less all in the fall semester. Awards of $500 or larger will be split with half in the fall and half in the spring.
- Awards received after a term has ended will be posted to the student’s next active academic year term (i.e. fall or spring term), if no specifications are made by the donor.
- Scholarship funds first pay students’ outstanding IU charges. After a student’s current IU charges are paid, any credit balance is refunded to the student by the Office of the Bursar. If students or donors wish for any credit balance to be held for future charges, rather than refunded to the student, the student must make these arrangements directly with the Office of the Bursar.
Effects of scholarships on other aid
The receipt of a private scholarship may result in the reduction or repayment of need-based financial assistance previously awarded to the student by Indiana University. In accordance with federal regulations, our office is required to monitor whether a student’s total financial assistance remains within their financial need-based eligibility. Similar practices are followed with some institutional need-based grants. Whenever possible, self-help awards (loans and Federal Work-Study) are reduced before federal or institutional gift-aid.
Refunds to scholarship donors
Once an award has credited a student’s account in the current semester, the student’s enrollment status is not monitored. If a student withdraws from school after he/she has received an award, the donor is responsible for collecting any scholarship funds disbursed. However, if a student withdraws from school before he/she receives an award, any non-disbursed funds are refunded to the donor.
Non-disbursed external scholarships are generally reviewed and refunded to donors following the end of the fourth week of classes each semester. A student or donor may request that funds be returned to the donor prior to this deadline by contacting the Office of Student Financial Assistance.
The initial refund process may take up to 10 business days to complete. Refund checks are then issued by IU Financial Management Services and can take up to six weeks to reach the donor. The donor may contact the Office of Student Financial Assistance if a refund check has not been received within the normal six week processing timeline.
Disclosure of a student's cost of attendance and other financial aid
Donors requiring information regarding the student's other awards, estimated cost of attendance, or financial need should contact the student for appropriate documentation.
Donor forms or requests for official university documentation of financial aid information* should be sent to the Office of Student Financial Assistance using the contact information below. Requests for information should be submitted to the Office of Student Financial Assistance prior to the recommended check submission dates below:
- June 1 for fall semester
- October 1 for spring semester
- March 1 for summer sessions
A student's signed authorization to release confidential information to the donor is required by the Office of Student Financial Assistance before any information can be provided to the donor. The student may print the form below and mail or fax it to our office.
*Verification of actual costs of attendance should be obtained directly from the student.
Bill/Invoice for scholarship payment
The Office of Student Financial Assistance does not bill donors for scholarship payments. If an invoice or bill is required for payment, the student needs to provide a copy of his or her account statement from the Office of the Bursar. If bills for housing, books, or other educational costs are required, the donor needs to ask the student to obtain appropriate documentation from all eligible creditors.
Restriction of scholarship funds to credit hour fees
Due to the volume of scholarships received from external donor institutions, the Office of Student Financial Assistance cannot guarantee full compliance with any donor limitations placed on scholarship funds. Scholarship funds processed by the Office of Student Financial Assistance cannot be restricted to pay specific fees.
Donors who wish to restrict scholarship funds to tuition and fee charges should contact the Office of the Bursar to make special arrangement for award processing. The Office of the Bursar may be able to restrict the application of the donor’s funds to only pay a student's tuition charges. Donors interested in this option should call the Sponsored Billing area in the Office of the Bursar at (812) 855-2636. There is a small fee for this service, and we recommend that donors make these arrangements by the following dates:
- June 1 for fall semester
- October 1 for spring semester
- March 1 for summer sessions
Confirmation of enrollment
The Office of Student Financial Assistance will provide a confirmation of enrollment at the student's or donor's request, in order to facilitate a scholarship payment. However, the Office of Student Financial Assistance is unable to monitor a student's continued enrollment or academic progress.
Evaluation of academic performance
If an evaluation of academic performance is required for scholarship payments, the Office of the Registrar can provide this information to the student or mail it to the scholarship donor. Students may select between two documents: the official Indiana University transcript or an Indiana University document (Abbreviated Transcript) used for verification of academic record information. A student's signed release and payment would be required for either document. Call (812) 855-0121 or visit the Registrar's web site at http://registrar.indiana.edu to find instructions for requesting official transcripts or abbreviated transcripts for certification purposes.
Confirmation of check receipt
The canceled scholarship check serves as the donor’s receipt. If donors need further documentation of their donation for tax purposes, they must make special arrangements with the IU Foundation prior to mailing any scholarship check. Donors interested in making these arrangements for tax purposes should contact the Joint Gift Office in the IU Foundation at (812) 855-9391.
For more information
If you have questions about these procedures, please contact the Office of Student Financial Assistance:
Scholarship Coordinator
Indiana University
Franklin Hall, Room 208
601 E. Kirkwood Ave.
Bloomington, IN 47405-1223
Fax: (812) 855-7615
E-mail: blfinaid@indiana.edu
